Intelligence in the internet age

[AndyO]

Do innovations and new technologies make us more intelligent?

[cultivategreatness]

Intelligence is finite... however tapping into more knowledge via technology is certainly obtainable.

Without the internet, I wouldnt have access to thousands of key thinkers like the ones in this fine forum.

So... uh, yeah!

[Dolazy]

Originally Posted by AndyO

Do innovations and new technologies make us more intelligent?

They stimulate certain aspects of our thinking like abstraction, dealing with interfaces etc..

I think the cost is that we are losing our ability to focus for a long time. It seems that technology contributes to ADD because of the instant results every time.

Of course, it's up to the individual to be aware of what technology is doing to him or her.

[AndyO]

Originally Posted by Dolazy

They stimulate certain aspects of our thinking like abstraction, dealing with interfaces etc..

I think the cost is that we are losing our ability to focus for a long time. It seems that technology contributes to ADD because of the instant results every time.

Of course, it's up to the individual to be aware of what technology is doing to him or her.

Thats a very good point, im glad you pointed that out.

[DataWraith]

Originally Posted by AndyO

Do innovations and new technologies make us more intelligent?

That really depends on what exactly you mean by 'intelligent'.

IIRC there was a study recently which concluded that the constant interruptions of email and instant messaging effectively lowered your IQ.

As I said, the question depends on the view of what constitutes Intelligence. In my opinion, technology does not improve our intelligence (ability to learn and reason about the universe, broadly speaking), but it does give us tools to apply our intelligence more effectively (i.e. knowledge ressources, communication mediums, automation of distracting tasks such as filtering spam).

In the long run - who knows. Maybe we will ultimately merge ourselves with technology, like some authors suggest (e.g. Ray Kurzweil), which, given the ever improving performance of our technology, ought to improve our intelligence manifold.