Dear MEL School’s Topic Readers,
Digital dependence
'eroding human memory'
How many phone numbers do
you remember? Do you think you need to remember any?
In today’s digital age,
it is much more convenient and fast to look up information in your smart phone
or from an Internet storage site. Actually, you don’t even need to look up a
phone number, email address or contact ID when you call or chat with your smart
phone.
A survey conducted in
several European countries just simply confirmed how much people are depending on
their IT devices or online services when they recall information. The result is
so obvious that the more people depend on external device or source, the less
they remember in their own memory. But that’s exactly the direction the whole
world is moving forward, isn’t it? Children who are growing up with a smart
phone are less likely to remember phone numbers, addresses or spelling because
they don’t need to.
The researcher was
concerned that people tend to forget information knowing that it can be
retrieved easily, which could make people less likely to keep or develop
long-term memory.
Enjoy reading and
thinking if people should sharpen up their memories or their learning skills.
