Having been aware of this article while reading a paper book over the last few days, I did notice that the "thereness" described indeed makes it easier to position yourself in the book. Flipping a few pages back made me remember what I read yesterday. And I do have a spatial memory when it comes to information ("ahh.. it's that sentence on the top-right corner next to Chapter 7"). I can understand the surprising differences in the digital-vs-analog research that way.
We need to cultivate a new kind of brain: a “bi-literate” reading brain capable of the deepest forms of thought in either digital or traditional mediums.
I agree with that. But maybe we even need a tri-literate reading brain:
Deep reading on traditional mediums
Deep reading digitally (Readup!)
A "quick info" mode
Number 3 is the brain mode that asks a question to Google Assistant instead of reading a Wikipedia article from start to finish. It's the Ctrl+F mentality. F or Z reading. It's the mode that increased our velocity at finding bits of needed information much faster, and hence our "productivity".
In my current job I couldn't live without this mode. As a developer jumping between many systems for many clients I often do searches in Slack/Google/Mail/DuckDuckGo and skim-reading of StackOverflow & documentation in order to get answers fast.
I hope that an indulgence in 3 doesn't affect my brain's ability to do 1 & 2. Indeed, by training 1 & 2 I hope I can keep them in good shape, because they are way more relaxing. And they fulfill the mind in a different way, one that we should fight to retain. But I don't think that 3 is bad per se.
Agreed, it's not easy! Even with Readup on iOS, when the article doesn't quite captivate, I find myself swiping out of Readup, checking the progress bar, or opening the notification drawer to see if there's anything new.
I sense a future blog post by you on the tri-literate reading brain. Really a fascinating idea behind the quick info mode, which truly has to be integrated with any informational scavenging we do online nowadays.
And the importance of highlighting that this is WAY different than deep digital reading.
Yes! And you read my mind haha. After writing this comment I added it to an embarrassingly long list of blog post ideas. I feel like my long Readup comments of late have become a warm-up activity for blog posts. But I also think that I should fix my online presence before I start writing again. Everythingishorriblyscatteredrightnow!
To be honest, I would love to give deep-reading attention to each question I have, but the realities of life today don't allow for that :/
We should be less concerned with students’ “cognitive impatience,” however, than by what may underlie it: the potential inability of large numbers of students to read with a level of critical analysis sufficient to comprehend the complexity of thought and argument found in more demanding texts, whether in literature and science in college, or in wills, contracts and the deliberately confusing public referendum questions citizens encounter in the voting booth.
Beyond a 10! Multi-tasking, split screen television viewing, add ladened search engines, scrolling news stories at the bottom of a news cast - all the distractions totally unhinge me! I can literally feel the assault on my mind and body. Give me mindfulness, ease, flow, depth - this is Nirvana. There does seem to be a great loss if things continue without some kind of balance. Good to have neuroscience announcing the warnings loud and clear.
One thing I have noticed about as my ability to read more deeply has increased, my ability to pay focused attention and enjoy the present moment has also improved.
In this hinge moment between print and digital cultures, society needs to confront what is diminishing in the expert reading circuit, what our children and older students are not developing, and what we can do about it.
There is so much more to uncover about the benefits of reading. Wolf really is the best in business, and we could definitely use more voices like hers!
"There’s an old rule in neuroscience that does not alter with age: use it or lose it. It is a very hopeful principle when applied to critical thought in the reading brain because it implies choice. The story of the changing reading brain is hardly finished. We possess both the science and the technology to identify and redress the changes in how we read before they become entrenched. If we work to understand exactly what we will lose, alongside the extraordinary new capacities that the digital world has brought us, there is as much reason for excitement as caution."
It's so scary to think that some people will maintain the ability to comprehend difficult texts and use that as power over others (e.g., with language on ballots). I can't tell whether that's scarier than the prospect of the entire human species losing the ability to read and comprehend.
I'm not surprised that we retain information better if we read physical texts than on screen. That's definitely true for me.
"We do not err as a society when we innovate, but when we ignore what we disrupt or diminish while innovating."
Having been aware of this article while reading a paper book over the last few days, I did notice that the "thereness" described indeed makes it easier to position yourself in the book. Flipping a few pages back made me remember what I read yesterday. And I do have a spatial memory when it comes to information ("ahh.. it's that sentence on the top-right corner next to Chapter 7"). I can understand the surprising differences in the digital-vs-analog research that way.
I agree with that. But maybe we even need a tri-literate reading brain:
Number 3 is the brain mode that asks a question to Google Assistant instead of reading a Wikipedia article from start to finish. It's the Ctrl+F mentality. F or Z reading. It's the mode that increased our velocity at finding bits of needed information much faster, and hence our "productivity".
In my current job I couldn't live without this mode. As a developer jumping between many systems for many clients I often do searches in Slack/Google/Mail/DuckDuckGo and skim-reading of StackOverflow & documentation in order to get answers fast.
I hope that an indulgence in 3 doesn't affect my brain's ability to do 1 & 2. Indeed, by training 1 & 2 I hope I can keep them in good shape, because they are way more relaxing. And they fulfill the mind in a different way, one that we should fight to retain. But I don't think that 3 is bad per se.
I agree one hundred percent about the third mode. The question that I have been grappling with is how to recognize when I need to switch to mode 2.
Agreed, it's not easy! Even with Readup on iOS, when the article doesn't quite captivate, I find myself swiping out of Readup, checking the progress bar, or opening the notification drawer to see if there's anything new.
I sense a future blog post by you on the tri-literate reading brain. Really a fascinating idea behind the quick info mode, which truly has to be integrated with any informational scavenging we do online nowadays.
And the importance of highlighting that this is WAY different than deep digital reading.
Yes! And you read my mind haha. After writing this comment I added it to an embarrassingly long list of blog post ideas. I feel like my long Readup comments of late have become a warm-up activity for blog posts. But I also think that I should fix my online presence before I start writing again. Everything is horribly scattered right now!
To be honest, I would love to give deep-reading attention to each question I have, but the realities of life today don't allow for that :/
I skimmed this article.
(I'm sorry, but I just couldn't resist.)
Just kidding. I read it, every word.
Beyond a 10! Multi-tasking, split screen television viewing, add ladened search engines, scrolling news stories at the bottom of a news cast - all the distractions totally unhinge me! I can literally feel the assault on my mind and body. Give me mindfulness, ease, flow, depth - this is Nirvana. There does seem to be a great loss if things continue without some kind of balance. Good to have neuroscience announcing the warnings loud and clear.
Deep reading for the win.
One thing I have noticed about as my ability to read more deeply has increased, my ability to pay focused attention and enjoy the present moment has also improved.
There is so much more to uncover about the benefits of reading. Wolf really is the best in business, and we could definitely use more voices like hers!
DUDE. MIND SYNERGIES. I'm emailing Maryanne Wolf right now.
She’s going to love Readup!
It's so scary to think that some people will maintain the ability to comprehend difficult texts and use that as power over others (e.g., with language on ballots). I can't tell whether that's scarier than the prospect of the entire human species losing the ability to read and comprehend.
I'm not surprised that we retain information better if we read physical texts than on screen. That's definitely true for me.
"We do not err as a society when we innovate, but when we ignore what we disrupt or diminish while innovating."
Wow. Echo:
"We do not err as a society when we innovate, but when we ignore what we disrupt or diminish while innovating."
THIS SHOULD BE THE REALLYREAD.IT MANIFESTO!
Maryanne Wolf for the win!