Our brains have a plasticity that is easily exploited by the rapid nature of using the internet. In fact, our brains are changing to be able to multitask but not focus in-depth on a particular thing or idea. Carr takes a wide look at this, pulling everywhere from Nietzsche, neuroscience, Google, to Dr. David Levy (one of my favorite profs)and a litany of studies. To some this change in brain wiring is fine. To others, this is not okay. Several studies Carr sites distinctly show how counterproductive, and even detrimental to cognitive processes the current climate of search-consume-text-tweet-blah-blah-blah (my assessment) is.

(This next bit is commentary, rather than review. I found this book to be very thought provoking.) To me, it's not okay. It's sad. I see this lack of depth in understanding all around me, including in myself. The more connected we are with technology, the less connected we are with humanity. This is not to say humanity doesn't benefit from technology, it absolutely does. But what are we getting from the glut of email, the calendaring software, the devices that allow us to mindlessly chatter anywhere, all the time? I think there is a balance that can be reached in all of this, but it takes a lot of effort.

From pg. 197, "Culture is more than the aggregate of what Google describes as "the world's information". It's more than what can be reduced to binary code and uploaded onto the Net. To remain vital, culture must be renewed in the minds of the members of every generation. Outsource memory, and culture withers."