OBOM Book Club to Discuss Mind-Altering Technology
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- OBOM Book Club to Discuss Mind-Altering Technology
“The Net may well be the single most powerful mind-altering technology that has ever come into general use,” writes Nicholas Carr in his bestselling book, “The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains.”
Join Rhode Island College’s Open Books – Open Minds (OBOM) Book Club in a discussion of “The Shallows” on Thursday, July 21, in the Fortes Room of Adams Library from noon to 1 p.m. This event is open to faculty, staff, students and administration, including those who haven’t had a chance to read the book. Participants are invited to bring their lunch to this casual, yet lively, exchange.
OBOM Co-chair and Associate Professor of English Anita Duneer noted that Carr’s book has already generated quite a buzz on campus. “The topic relates to virtually every discipline,” she said. “It speaks to how we read, write, learn and communicate with others.”
In “The Shallows,” Carr explores how the Internet and our consistent diet of digital devices, with the constant distractions and interruptions that go along with them, are changing the way our brains function. These technologies are literally rerouting the neural pathways in our brains and altering the way we speak and listen, read and write. “We’re becoming, in a word, shallower,” Carr says.
A lecture by the author will be held on Thursday, Oct. 13, at 4 p.m. in Alger 110. In addition, round-table discussions, film screenings and other programs and activities inspired by “The Shallows” will be held throughout the academic year, culminating in the annual Open Books – Open Minds Student Conference in the spring, where students showcase their writing and research.
In terms of the ongoing discussion, the OBOM committee suggests that members of RIC’s educational community ask themselves, how does the Internet enhance and distract from learning? How do we find balance? What do we take away from Carr’s book in the context of education?
OBOM was created to generate intellectual and social engagement throughout the campus and to foster a sense of community through college-wide book discussions and other programs related to the common book.
“One of the benefits of OBOM events,” Duneer said, “is that they offer opportunities for students and faculty to engage in interdisciplinary dialogue about issues that matter to us all.”
For more information and interactive content on “The Shallows,” click on the following links.
Nicholas Carr’s blog, Rough Type
NPR author interview with Nicholas Carr, “The Shallows: This is Your Brain Online” on “All Things Considered,” June 2, 2010