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Have often wondered about this. What does Internet do to curiosity? Or what happens when curiosity is quenched withing seconds of being aroused? Is the instant

Have often wondered about this. What does Internet do to curiosity? Or what happens when curiosity is quenched withing seconds of being aroused? Is the instant access to knowledge cutting short the thoughtful and deliberate pursuit of answers, a habit which might have been the hidden source of our great discoveries of the past...

pharrlax 9y ago
I'm sure people have wondered this about the written word, higher education, etc. over the years, and society has adapted just fine every time. If anything, there is now no end to the threads that can be pulled in pursuit of curiosity now that so much information is instantly accessible.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
j7ake 9y ago
internet quenches curiousity if the question has been explored already... but the internet only contains information humans know about, the point of curiosity is to push beyond boundaries of human knowledge.
DenisM 9y ago
Good point. There is less room for deliberate practice when it comes to research. Otoh there is more room to practice problem solving and synthesis of new ideas. It appears to be a net win to me. So long as we make use of this opportunity, rather than spending the sudden surplus of time to read Facebook or other parasitic resources.
stult 9y ago
I can see it going either way. On the one hand, you may find people spend less time reinventing the wheel. On the other, they may lose the basic skills involved in pursuing answers to questions that aren't readily available, or even the habit of pursuing such answers altogether. Really, though, our collective knowledge has advanced so far that most meaningful inventions require extraordinary specialization and focus. That kind of focus only comes from a lifelong, passionate curiosity, not just the sort of passing fancy a google search can satisfy.
igk 9y ago
>What does Internet do to curiosity? Or what happens when curiosity is quenched withing seconds of being aroused? For a substantial part of the population, this happens: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=wiki-hole http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=wiki-hole If you have ready access to information, you hunger for more, because after you understand one concept or fact, you NOTICE all the other things that depend on that, be they new things building on top or inconsistencies in other fields conflicting with your new knowledge
- athenot 9y ago
  And for the parody version of that, The Onion has put together this site. :) http://www.clickhole.com http://www.clickhole.com
- coldtea 9y ago
  >For a substantial part of the population, this happens: For an even more substantial part of the population, the "I'll pretend like I know things just because I can look them up in wikipedia or some such source" happens.
  - TeMPOraL 9y ago
    Which is great! The brain becomes relegated to the role of a cache instead of working as the whole of an individual's knowledge.
    - qb45 9y ago
      It's great to know what knowledge exists and where. It's less great to think that you know something just because you could swear you have read it on the Internet once, which I think is what GP meant. It's not unusual to see people post bullshit because they think they understand something they've read on Wikipedia or a random blog or forum but actually they know shit about it.
    - RandomOpinion 9y ago
      > The brain becomes relegated to the role of a cache instead of working as the whole of an individual's knowledge. I have a pile of physics textbooks sitting nearby but that doesn't make me a qualified physicist. Availability of knowledge isn't worth a thing if it's never been integrated into your mind.
ehnto 9y ago
My pet theory is that social media and other 'feeds' of information slowly erode the desire for curiosity, because as far as your brain is concerned it's getting it's share of good feelings. When I first started using the internet, there weren't many feeds and the way I navigated the web was to have an interest, an idea, a kernel of thought that I then chased through rabbit holes of information repositories. The process has been flipped, and instead of us seeking out information we simply wait for it to be delivered. I suspect the same process is why many are content watching TV versus taking up hobbies. But the internet and smartphones means that feed of information is with us all the time, drip feeding "just good enough" bites of information all throughout the day, squashing curiosity. There was a notable change in my thinking and clearness of mind when I stopped using social media, and I have very different habits for sites like HN now as well. I try to only use my phone when I have a clear purpose, not just to pass the time. With HN I still value it as a news source, but I understand I can suffer the same problems as other social media and so I try to make sure I just read the front page titles and find something to truly engage in, or else I leave the site for the day. After cutting down on checking feeds I find myself having more time to think and I do find myself chasing curious thoughts around. Which is nice!
- shopkins 9y ago
  Absolutely agreed on the feeds issue. Unlike TV, the internet as a medium has the capacity to enable both unbounded discovery, creativity, production, etc. and unbounded consumption. Like TV, feeds and their ilk encourage pure consumption, but with little slot machine levers (like, favorite, retweet) that make you think you're contributing more than you actually are. Overall though, it's all about how you use it, and many times it's a delicate balance and a constant fight against how these products are engineered to suck you in. But kudos for getting out of the giant casino that is social media!
- LostWanderer 9y ago
  I sometimes work in curious ways. Recently i have been printing the HN articles and reading them at random intervals like just before going for a jog,Thinking on one's feet is a wonderful experience
syphilis2 9y ago
My account is that the Internet is cluttered. Attempts to organize the clutter create piles of knowledge, but those piles contain a variety of simple and complex information, vague and detailed, accurate and creative, and still the piles themselves are not organized. We've learned to sort through piles of information to identify what we want (or something close enough). I think it's exhausting. I'd like to see a curated internet directory that can direct users to quality information as a librarian would. I believe that would stoke curiosity more than the current typical experience.
- ashark 9y ago
  My experience is that it's easy to waste tons of time on the Internet trying to learn how to learn things the best possible way when if you'd just spent that time on the first mediocre book on a given topic at your local library you'd have been better off. I'm deeply skeptical of the overall value of the Internet even for those trying to use it for enrichment and not just entertainment/shopping. I'm sure some outliers manage super-powered learning with it, but I think for most it's more like a massive distraction of false work and wasted effort that occasionally yields bursts of high productivity, while being kind of crap on average compared with what could be done without it and without the distraction of an all-you-can-eat information buffet. Especially if you factor in the Skinner box nature of the modern Web and its ability (along with other hyper-available, giant-catalogue-at-your-fingertips entertainment, all also delivered over the 'net) to waste hours of time in seemingly the blink of an eye.
6stringmerc 9y ago
Two sides in my perspective: One - those who 'grew up' in the habit of knowledge being somewhat scarce, as in, the best resource in the US was physically inside a Library (probably the 'Reference' section) - meaning the reward could be earned. The knowledge gained from Encyclopedias or Archives or Publications (ex: Time) built a large web of understanding over time. Not everybody retains a lot, but the art of learning Facts is pretty similar in the Internet age if one is careful about their sources... ...which leads us to Two - the "whatever the quickest answer is / validates what I believe, I'll go with it" mentality which manifests in stupid people spreading stupid erroneous things (ex: Anti-Vaccination "science") en masse because the Internet doesn't discriminate against idiots. Rather, it kind of enables them. I have a significant amount of contempt for people who behave in this manner, no matter their age group, and believe me, they're ever present up and down the roster from Millenial to Baby Boomer.
ashark 9y ago
> Or what happens when curiosity is quenched withing seconds of being aroused? Packages show up on the lawn it is astonishing how they appear. They are astonishing surprises. It’s what I ordered the cat food the espresso machine the two new tables. Ordering things and how they appear basically I am a small-scale sorcerer. On the road I press the button and the music goes. Air conditioning gas pedal restaurant take-out etc. It is my will being perpetually sated. Pretend we are writing a fable in which a sorcerer always gets what he wants. Consider what happens to a soul which always gets what it wants. - Emily Bludworth de Barios, printed in FORKLIFT, OHIO issue #31, copied from their "INSPECT FREIGHT" page for this issue so I feel OK reposting it directly here in its entirety.

pharrlax 9y ago

I'm sure people have wondered this about the written word, higher education, etc. over the years, and society has adapted just fine every time. If anything, there is now no end to the threads that can be pulled in pursuit of curiosity now that so much information is instantly accessible.

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]

j7ake 9y ago

internet quenches curiousity if the question has been explored already... but the internet only contains information humans know about, the point of curiosity is to push beyond boundaries of human knowledge.

DenisM 9y ago

Good point. There is less room for deliberate practice when it comes to research. Otoh there is more room to practice problem solving and synthesis of new ideas. It appears to be a net win to me. So long as we make use of this opportunity, rather than spending the sudden surplus of time to read Facebook or other parasitic resources.

stult 9y ago

I can see it going either way. On the one hand, you may find people spend less time reinventing the wheel. On the other, they may lose the basic skills involved in pursuing answers to questions that aren't readily available, or even the habit of pursuing such answers altogether. Really, though, our collective knowledge has advanced so far that most meaningful inventions require extraordinary specialization and focus. That kind of focus only comes from a lifelong, passionate curiosity, not just the sort of passing fancy a google search can satisfy.

igk 9y ago

>What does Internet do to curiosity? Or what happens when curiosity is quenched withing seconds of being aroused? For a substantial part of the population, this happens: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=wiki-hole http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=wiki-hole If you have ready access to information, you hunger for more, because after you understand one concept or fact, you NOTICE all the other things that depend on that, be they new things building on top or inconsistencies in other fields conflicting with your new knowledge

athenot 9y ago
And for the parody version of that, The Onion has put together this site. :) http://www.clickhole.com http://www.clickhole.com
coldtea 9y ago
>For a substantial part of the population, this happens: For an even more substantial part of the population, the "I'll pretend like I know things just because I can look them up in wikipedia or some such source" happens.
- TeMPOraL 9y ago
  Which is great! The brain becomes relegated to the role of a cache instead of working as the whole of an individual's knowledge.
  - qb45 9y ago
    It's great to know what knowledge exists and where. It's less great to think that you know something just because you could swear you have read it on the Internet once, which I think is what GP meant. It's not unusual to see people post bullshit because they think they understand something they've read on Wikipedia or a random blog or forum but actually they know shit about it.
  - RandomOpinion 9y ago
    > The brain becomes relegated to the role of a cache instead of working as the whole of an individual's knowledge. I have a pile of physics textbooks sitting nearby but that doesn't make me a qualified physicist. Availability of knowledge isn't worth a thing if it's never been integrated into your mind.

ehnto 9y ago

My pet theory is that social media and other 'feeds' of information slowly erode the desire for curiosity, because as far as your brain is concerned it's getting it's share of good feelings. When I first started using the internet, there weren't many feeds and the way I navigated the web was to have an interest, an idea, a kernel of thought that I then chased through rabbit holes of information repositories. The process has been flipped, and instead of us seeking out information we simply wait for it to be delivered. I suspect the same process is why many are content watching TV versus taking up hobbies. But the internet and smartphones means that feed of information is with us all the time, drip feeding "just good enough" bites of information all throughout the day, squashing curiosity. There was a notable change in my thinking and clearness of mind when I stopped using social media, and I have very different habits for sites like HN now as well. I try to only use my phone when I have a clear purpose, not just to pass the time. With HN I still value it as a news source, but I understand I can suffer the same problems as other social media and so I try to make sure I just read the front page titles and find something to truly engage in, or else I leave the site for the day. After cutting down on checking feeds I find myself having more time to think and I do find myself chasing curious thoughts around. Which is nice!

shopkins 9y ago
Absolutely agreed on the feeds issue. Unlike TV, the internet as a medium has the capacity to enable both unbounded discovery, creativity, production, etc. and unbounded consumption. Like TV, feeds and their ilk encourage pure consumption, but with little slot machine levers (like, favorite, retweet) that make you think you're contributing more than you actually are. Overall though, it's all about how you use it, and many times it's a delicate balance and a constant fight against how these products are engineered to suck you in. But kudos for getting out of the giant casino that is social media!
LostWanderer 9y ago
I sometimes work in curious ways. Recently i have been printing the HN articles and reading them at random intervals like just before going for a jog,Thinking on one's feet is a wonderful experience

syphilis2 9y ago

My account is that the Internet is cluttered. Attempts to organize the clutter create piles of knowledge, but those piles contain a variety of simple and complex information, vague and detailed, accurate and creative, and still the piles themselves are not organized. We've learned to sort through piles of information to identify what we want (or something close enough). I think it's exhausting. I'd like to see a curated internet directory that can direct users to quality information as a librarian would. I believe that would stoke curiosity more than the current typical experience.

ashark 9y ago
My experience is that it's easy to waste tons of time on the Internet trying to learn how to learn things the best possible way when if you'd just spent that time on the first mediocre book on a given topic at your local library you'd have been better off. I'm deeply skeptical of the overall value of the Internet even for those trying to use it for enrichment and not just entertainment/shopping. I'm sure some outliers manage super-powered learning with it, but I think for most it's more like a massive distraction of false work and wasted effort that occasionally yields bursts of high productivity, while being kind of crap on average compared with what could be done without it and without the distraction of an all-you-can-eat information buffet. Especially if you factor in the Skinner box nature of the modern Web and its ability (along with other hyper-available, giant-catalogue-at-your-fingertips entertainment, all also delivered over the 'net) to waste hours of time in seemingly the blink of an eye.

6stringmerc 9y ago

Two sides in my perspective: One - those who 'grew up' in the habit of knowledge being somewhat scarce, as in, the best resource in the US was physically inside a Library (probably the 'Reference' section) - meaning the reward could be earned. The knowledge gained from Encyclopedias or Archives or Publications (ex: Time) built a large web of understanding over time. Not everybody retains a lot, but the art of learning Facts is pretty similar in the Internet age if one is careful about their sources... ...which leads us to Two - the "whatever the quickest answer is / validates what I believe, I'll go with it" mentality which manifests in stupid people spreading stupid erroneous things (ex: Anti-Vaccination "science") en masse because the Internet doesn't discriminate against idiots. Rather, it kind of enables them. I have a significant amount of contempt for people who behave in this manner, no matter their age group, and believe me, they're ever present up and down the roster from Millenial to Baby Boomer.

ashark 9y ago

> Or what happens when curiosity is quenched withing seconds of being aroused? Packages show up on the lawn it is astonishing how they appear. They are astonishing surprises. It’s what I ordered the cat food the espresso machine the two new tables. Ordering things and how they appear basically I am a small-scale sorcerer. On the road I press the button and the music goes. Air conditioning gas pedal restaurant take-out etc. It is my will being perpetually sated. Pretend we are writing a fable in which a sorcerer always gets what he wants. Consider what happens to a soul which always gets what it wants. - Emily Bludworth de Barios, printed in FORKLIFT, OHIO issue #31, copied from their "INSPECT FREIGHT" page for this issue so I feel OK reposting it directly here in its entirety.