Smartphones Are Making Us Stoopid

The Dark Side of Convenience

There used to be a time when people had to travel to get information, which meant they had to think hard about what information they needed. We would have to remember things like facts and figures, or we would have to write them down. Nowadays, it’s as if we’ve become allergic to thinking hard about anything — and the Internet has made this worse than ever before. Smartphones don’t just make us dumber because of their addictive qualities. They actively encourage us not to use our brains in any meaningful way.

The best thing about smartphones is that they can tell you about anything, anytime.

You can use them to help you find your way around town or get from A to B on time. They’re great for learning new languages and even more helpful when finding out what the weather will be like tomorrow.

They are also excellent tools for getting news updates while on the go; smartphone users can stay informed without tuning into radio stations or reading newspapers that often contain outdated information.

The worst thing about smartphones is that they can tell you about anything, anytime.

You don’t need to be a genius or intelligent to use a smartphone. All you have to do is tap on an app, and voila! There’s your answer in black and white or whatever color scheme your phone uses. This can be great when it comes to finding out what time the next bus leaves or whether there’s still any hot water left in the tank after taking a shower, but there are also times when this instant access can be problematic.

People used to have no choice but to use their brains and think things through themselves. While some might argue that this led them down paths of ignorance, I would say otherwise. If we want our kids to grow up strong and independent thinkers who aren’t afraid of asking questions or admitting when they don’t know something or even realizing when someone else knows more, then it isn’t such a bad thing.

You can easily get sucked into a time warp where you are endlessly distracted by the little red light blinking on your phone.

If you have a smartphone, you know what I’m talking about. The little red light blinking on your phone is an invitation to enter a time warp where you are endlessly distracted from whatever task at hand by the lure of the new notification.

The reason this happens? Your brain is designed for survival and reward systems that evolved for millions of years in an environment where food was scarce, predators lurked around every corner, and life was short, a world very different from today’s modern society. The problem is that our brains have yet to catch up with all the technological advancements we’ve made since then and probably never will.

Smartphones have turned us into babies who keep asking, ‘Are we there yet?’ repeatedly.

Imagine you’re on a cross-country road trip with your family, cruising along in your car. You’re bored, so you listen to NPR on the radio. Suddenly, there’s an exciting story about how smartphones are making us stupider than ever.

“We just don’t have time to think anymore,” says one expert interviewed by NPR. “People want answers immediately.”

Another expert agrees: “This has been going on for years, people asking ‘Are we there yet?’ repeatedly.”

When we go online, we are actually in a different dimension altogether.

We’ve left our physical bodies behind and are now inhabiting an entirely virtual space with its own rules, limitations, and possibilities. It’s as if you were walking down the street in your hometown when someone suddenly gave you superpowers or transformed your body into something else. You may be pretty amazed at first and then confused about how best to use these new abilities, but soon enough, they will become second nature and part of who you are.

For us humans not only survive but thrive within this new environment called “the internet” or “cyberspace,” if you prefer, we need some way of understanding what’s going on around us so that we can learn how best to interact with it safely while also maximizing our potentials within this brave new world.

Technology has made us dumber because we no longer challenge ourselves by thinking hard.

The most obvious way technology has made us dumber is by taking the challenge out of thinking hard. When you were younger, did you ever think about how many times a day you had to use your brain? If so, would it surprise you that today’s teens use their brains less than ever?

According to Stanford University and UC Berkeley researchers,

“The more time spent on digital media, e.g., watching television, the less time spent reading this may contribute to lower literacy levels among youth.”

Why is this happening? Because smartphones offer instant gratification in exchange for our attention, they do it with dopamine. Dopamine is one of our brain’s feel-good chemicals. When we use technology like smartphones or social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram or even video games, they release dopamine into our system, which makes us feel good temporarily but also makes us want more dopamine, for those feelings not only continue but also intensify over time. This leads us down a path where we become addicted not only physically through chemical reactions but also mentally because now, whenever someone mentions checking their phone, they’ll get excited inside too.

We live in the age of smartphones when we’re constantly connected to our devices and each other. But this constant engagement with technology has consequences. We’re seeing a rise in anxiety and depression rates among young people and declines in cognitive functions such as attention span and memory recall. Our phones have made us smarter they have access to all kinds of information. But having access doesn’t mean we use it wisely or even remember what we read. And while using our phones for too long can make us feel bad about ourselves or downright depressed, there are ways we can manage this addiction without going cold turkey on technology altogether, like setting limits on screen time so we don’t overdo it by accident.

Thanks for taking the time to read. I’d like to hear your perspective.

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