false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178726417m/826378.jpg 36085 11 In his fourth book, <i>Everything Bad Is Good for You</i>, iconoclastic science writer Steven Johnson (who used himself as a test subject for the latest neurological technology in his last book, <i>Mind Wide Open</i>) takes on one of the most widely held preconceptions of the postmodern world--the belief that video games, television shows, and other forms of popular entertainment are detrimental to Americans' cognitive and moral development. <i>Everything Good</i> builds a case to the contrary that is engaging, thorough, and ultimately convincing. The heart of Johnson's argument is something called the Sleeper Curve--a universe of popular entertainment that trends, intellectually speaking, ever upward, so that today's pop-culture consumer has to do more "cognitive work"--making snap decisions and coming up with long-term strategies in role-playing video games, for example, or mastering new virtual environments on the Internet-- than ever before. Johnson makes a compelling case that even today's least nutritional TV junk food-the <i>Joe Millionaire</i>s and <i>Survivor</i>s so commonly derided as evidence of America's cultural decline--is more complex and stimulating, in terms of plot complexity and the amount of external information viewers need to understand them, than the <i>Love Boat</i>s and <i>I Love Lucy</i>s that preceded it. When it comes to television, even (perhaps especially) crappy television, Johnson argues, "the content is less interesting than the cognitive work the show elicits from your mind." Johnson's work has been controversial, as befits a writer willing to challenge wisdom so conventional it has ossified into accepted truth. But even the most skeptical readers should be captivated by the intriguing questions Johnson raises, whether or not they choose to accept his answers. <i>--Erica C. Barnett</i> 430918 2005 Everything Bad is Good for You total:1069|5:134|4:404|3:398|2:108|1:25| 1069 3721 1677 204 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 4 2 false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Dec 13 09:25:35 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 16 11:22:13 -0800 2008 Everything Bad is Good for You, Johnson attempts to de-bunk the popular narrative that the culture industry is making us stupider, by feeding us more and more banal television shows, video games, and movies. He argues for understanding a Sleeper Curve in popular culture that is actually making te...more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 5 2 false Sat Aug 09 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Oct 27 21:04:59 -0700 2008 Mon Apr 20 13:41:18 -0700 2009
Johnson provides evidence that much of our mass entertainment, even the stuff we often shudder at, is gradually pushing the IQs of its consumers steadily up. He focuses our attention o...more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 1 3 false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Dec 10 11:43:25 -0800 2007 Mon Dec 10 13:35:00 -0800 2007 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 2 1 false Wed Dec 17 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Nov 05 07:55:45 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 17 11:42:46 -0800 2008
Ok, the notion that tv and video games are more complex, overall, than they were in the past is valid. Also the no...more...]]> 546039 1573223077 9781573223072 56 13 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175694141m/546039.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/546039.Everything_Bad_Is_Good_for_You_How_Today_s_Popular_Culture_Is_Actually_Making_Us_Smarter 3 1 false Sat Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Wed Dec 19 07:08:33 -0800 2007 Wed Dec 19 07:12:25 -0800 2007 Mind Wide Open a month or two ago & really enjoyed it, so I put this book on hold at the library.

Johnson's basic theory is that popular culture has gotten more comp...more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 2 1 false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Jul 28 18:07:58 -0700 2007 Sun Jul 29 00:05:09 -0700 2007 Everything Bad Is Good For You is that you can finish it in several short sittings. Three cheers for that. The book is quick and succinct, an easy but thoughtful and though-provoking read.

Johnson argues that over the last three decades, popular culture ...more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 1 4 false Thu Jun 07 18:00:18 -0700 2007 Thu Jun 14 11:57:02 -0700 2007 Because popular media (TV, video games, movies, etc.) are becoming more complex, and requiring more cognitive work to process them, they are making us smarter. This is the so-called "sleeper curve."

The logic of this argumen...more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 1 1 false Sun Jun 03 16:10:20 -0700 2007 Mon Jun 04 15:02:13 -0700 2007
my main problem with the book is the lack of data to support the hypothesis that johnson argues. if it were simply a polemic arguing that media has become more complex, and that complexity warrants closer insp...more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 3 1 false Wed Oct 08 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Oct 05 11:46:02 -0700 2008 Wed Oct 08 05:55:32 -0700 2008 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 3 0 false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Dec 08 10:49:30 -0800 2008 Mon Dec 08 21:12:59 -0800 2008 1 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 2 1 false Thu Jul 23 07:12:32 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 23 08:14:10 -0700 2009
The crux of Johnson's argument relies on the increasing complexity...more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 4 0 false Sun May 17 19:52:55 -0700 2009 Sun May 17 20:05:51 -0700 2009 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 4 0 false Sun Apr 12 06:29:45 -0700 2009 Sun Apr 12 06:33:15 -0700 2009 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 3 0 false Sat Jul 18 07:45:20 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 19 20:58:36 -0700 2009 more...]]> 546039 1573223077 9781573223072 56 13 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175694141m/546039.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/546039.Everything_Bad_Is_Good_for_You_How_Today_s_Popular_Culture_Is_Actually_Making_Us_Smarter 0 1 false Thu Feb 05 09:34:11 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 09:34:11 -0800 2009 Though the research behind Johnson's theories proves interesting, most critics found a few quirks in the construction of its delivery. Driven by a fervent desire to prove that today's media are more beneficial to the human mind than they are damaging, Johnson, author of several books on science and ...

more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 2 0 false Mon May 11 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon May 11 14:51:31 -0700 2009 Mon May 11 14:52:23 -0700 2009 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 3 0 false Wed Jun 24 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 19 10:03:14 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 01 10:45:28 -0700 2009 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 3 0 false Sun Feb 08 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 23 09:42:21 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 09 09:37:13 -0800 2009 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 3 0 false Thu May 07 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 30 14:39:05 -0700 2009 Thu May 07 17:22:52 -0700 2009 more...]]> 36085 1594481946 9781594481949 944 179 3.48 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168694070m/36085.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36085.Everything_Bad_is_Good_for_You 4 0 false Sun Jan 25 17:48:26 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 25 17:59:33 -0800 2009 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=826378