Clay Johnson, the author of the Information Diet journal states that language involves speaking and writing. From language the thinking capacity starts to expand, and people begin to make sense of the environment, both what is seen and unseen. It knows no disability if the individual can feel their environment. When Hellen Keller, a renowned deaf-blind activist, first touched water, she established a connection that paved the way for any other physical object in her surroundings. It opened her mind, and although she was deaf-blind, she could regain control and connect with the environment regardless of whether she could not hear or see. She could describe water more uniquely yet comprehensibly than any other person could. If people can communicate feelings, they are not limited to any new sources of information. Therefore, information is the details that people collect from the environment, which improves their brain capacity.
Language is the most basic tenet of information because people would not be able to communicate without it. People from all species use language to communicate. However, language evolved, too, because of the human species evolution. People can now share in more complex communication channels, which gives them an advantage over other species (Johnson, 2015, p. 20). Humans can communicate complex forms of information. Since the discovery of language and its constant evolution, the human population has transformed. It also expanded the cognitive capacity of humans, enabling them to store massive amounts of information in their brains. This led to a clearer understanding of all levels of communication and communication.
With time, the human species became more aware of themselves, their potential, and what they are capable of. They could not only gain all sorts of information but also retain that information in their brain for the longest time possible (Johnson, 2015). Across generations, the human brain capacity has expanded due to the continuous consumption of information. Humans have become more organized than before. There has been an increased rate of information consumption and creation. The more people consume information; the more much is created for circulation.
Knowledge is Power
With knowledge, people gained massive powers to control and coordinate what happened around them (Johnson, 2015, p. 22). They had the mandate to make decisions, assign duties and supervise them. They got privileges that no one else would have. They had the power to rule and dictate what was to be done by people. It was the start of the growth of human civilization to heights that were not known previously known to man. The Egyptians came up with alphabets which gave rise to another informational advancement. The informational path took another unstoppable path in history. Even though they used specific symbols, it was a start. The neighbors quickly adapted it and spread it all over the world.
Due to this inventory, the Egyptians gained massive power over all other nations. They took on the most challenging engineering jobs and built modes of transportation. They could adapt, control and disseminate conditions in agriculture and the economy (Johnson, 2015, p. 22). They rose to be the most respected and influential people due to their richness of knowledge. The Egyptians also came up with various communication channels. These communication channels needed some people to relegate them, known as the scribes. They had the experience of carving symbols into stone tablets. Even though it was the most efficient communication back then, any mistake was costly. The stone tablets were heavy and would break from time to time during transportation. It forced them to undergo the whole process of carving the stones again. Their breakage would ruin weeks, months, and possibly years of hard work.
The scribes, therefore, oversaw the whole operation. Since they knew all these things, they were considered amongst the highest in the ranks, with various privileges and opportunities which were not given to any other person. Being a scribe meant holding significant power in Egypt. Due to their knowledge and a special place in Egypt, they were exempted from manual labor, while others were given responsibility of supervising work in critical government projects (Johnson, 2015, p. 20). They did not have to fight in the military together with their sons. It showed that with knowledge, people are respected and ranked high in the social classes.
Later, another communication milestone was set, which began with creating the first form of media. Gutenberg was a movable material that fitted into the printed machine. It enabled people to type books, each piece identical to the other, without scribes. It led to the spread of literacy due to the inventory of the printing press (Johnson, 2015, p. 21). Books and magazines became popular and inexpensive but were acquired by the highly educated. It led to the development of schools and learning institutions. The printing press was the central source of other communication models. The development of television, radio, and other mediums came from the printing press.
The latest transformational change was three decades ago when the invention of computers and the internet came. It was enough to push the people to the digital stage. It led to the development of other gadgets, such as phones and tablets, and all others related to it. Everyone would access information from the palm of their hands without straining. Almost everyone right now owns a cellphone, a computer, or a tablet (Johnson, 2015, p.22). People with cell phones have printing presses, cameras, libraries, television, and radio in the palm of their hands. The cellphones have search engines that enable people to access all kinds of information on the internet.
All these transitions that the information system has gone through have brought people to the current status. It came from people having no access to information ultimately to having broad access to all types of information on the internet (Johnson, 2015, p. 22). Currently, the consumption of knowledge is unlimited. It is upon the readers to know when to stop consuming information from the internet. The readers have to differentiate between toxic and non-toxic information.
Measures have been taken to filter information on the internet. The internet is an open space in which anyone can get any information. Some content is inappropriate for specific ages, such as children and the old-aged. It means that some cities should take the initiative to filter what they release on the internet or put restrictions on the people who access it. If not so, the government should put the restrictions themselves, cooperating with the citizens.
There are many critiques by scholars about technology and the internet. The most vital critiques tend to be about the morality of women and children. They use the television as a sexual predator, sedating children and women to their offensive acts. The question of morality, when related to the internet and religion, is very similar today (Johnson, 2015). Others criticize the printing press by stating they would not vote to purchase a newspaper to carry it with them all day.
Nicholas Carr is a renowned writer on information and technology who criticizes the relationship between information and knowledge. He raises concerns about how the internet has corrupted many people’s brains. He says that the internet is making people easily swayed towards a certain direction of knowledge. It controls, tinkers with, and programs people’s brains (Johnson, 2015, p. 23). He argues that people consume the information they get from the internet, for example, google. The brain is not triggered to think independently due to the search engine. People get what they consume from the net, so it is fair to say that the internet controls the readers’ brains. Another criticism is that there is massive personalization. Everything searched for on the internet is personalized according to past searches. They tailor the searches according to the user’s previous search. The recommendations are based on what the user was looking for on the internet. There is no diversity since everything is lined up according to what the user already knows.
However, blaming the media or the content creators for changing or influencing the readers’ minds is like blaming food for making people fat. It is the people’s will to follow the content of the media. It is also their will to let it influence them (Johnson, 2015, p. 23). The media is considered the most prominent conspiracy theory. Conspiracy theories indeed take free will and choice out of the equation. Regardless of the nature of the information, as long as it is honest, people can choose to draw their conclusions. Sometimes, personalization does not mean that people see what the media administrators want them to see, but it is just a reflection of themselves.
People’s actions have consequences. Therefore, readers should take responsibility for consuming homogeneous content from the internet. Even if the media puts on a filter bubble, it is not the problem but rather the fact that people ignore the consequences of their actions (Johnson, 2015, p.23). People used to believe in their memory, but lately, they would instead not read books. It appears to be a choice for the readers to memorize or read books repeatedly. Responsible consumption of information lies in human technology, the brain’s software.
Information Overload
Information technology is neutral in that, there is no way that information can infiltrate a human’s brain without consent or cooperation. It means that there is no such thing as information overload. From searching on the google engine to scrolling through social media and watching television, the information obtained there does not require the reader to consume it (Johnson, 2015, p. 25). There is nothing like information overload because the brain keeps picking every detail in the surroundings to a level that feels uncomfortable. It shows that there is environmental knowledge that any human brain can fathom. Everyone knows the effects of specific information since one cannot intake something with unknown effects.
The number of books available in stores and libraries represents the vast number of books worldwide. Regardless, the creation of more books is still ongoing. However, no one knew that new ways would come up to organize books due to the increased number of books. Right now, some books have been uploaded online. The production companies of hard copies are slowly deteriorating. Most of these writers have shifted to digital (Johnson, 2015, p.26). They post their work online because there is a comprehensive audience volume. On the internet, books are accessible, contrary to libraries. This transition has reduced the number of hard copy books. It has not, however, reduced the amount of information disseminated by the same books.
Research has it that with time, people will be unable to retrieve books in libraries because there will be too many. Information will be altered due to the revision of the books from year to year. Getting anything from books will not be easy because people will have shifted to digital, where they update the books with time. (Johnson, 2015, p. 27). It is also clear that buying a book on Amazon is more accessible, whether in print or electrical versions. Possibly every word can be searched on Google.
Information over-consumption is the main problem with information technology. Information over-consumption involves taking information in vast quantities so that people have to devise new ways to accommodate it. It is costly. We must begin to accept responsibility for the knowledge we consume. It entails carefully examining the deliverance of information, how it affects us, and what we can do to mitigate the adverse effects and increase the positive ones (Johnson, 2015, p. 25). When we recognize that information technology is neutral and cannot possibly rewire our brains without our consent or cooperation, there is no such thing as information overload. There is no limit to the amount of information a person can consume daily. However, the type of information obtained from the internet or books has consequences. That should not be blamed on the logarithms of the internet.
The most extensive conspiracy theory is the relationship between information producer and consumer. The media administrators do not give consumers the free will to independently interpret content posted on the internet (Johnson, 2015, p 23). The content, most times, is opinionated. It draws and pushes the consumer in a specific direction without them knowing. When using the term reprogramming the brain, the consumers interpret information from the producer’s perspective, bringing more harm than good.
Regardless of the situation, information will still be disseminated. The main point highlighted in this chapter is how people survive with many information mediums, from print to digitalized sources. It highlights the main critique and interpretation of information consumption from various analysts. It also summarized the power and influence that comes with having knowledge of the past and the modern world. It gives the analysis of information and data consumption and its effects on the human population. It goes through transformational changes in mediums of information dissemination and the evolution of humans to become the most dominant species in the world. No one can ever get rid of information technology. The users have to consume the healthy information, as well as establish credibility of the information they get. A good relationship between the producer and consumers of information will be efficient in information technology.
Reference List
Johnson, C.A. (2015) The information diet: A case for conscious consumption. O’Reilly Media, Inc.