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Yes, both the reduction in the amount of reading and the reduction in the complexity of the average read text is leading towards a decline in cognition. Less t

by hx8 1y ago

Yes, both the reduction in the amount of reading and the reduction in the complexity of the average read text is leading towards a decline in cognition. Less than half of American adults have read a book in the last year, and younger people are reading less books[0]. The empirical evidence for cognitive benefits of reading books is so numerous and obvious that citing sources feels silly. Reading increases vocabulary, which are the building blocks that ideas are formed. This alone would be worth the time cost but reading also increases concentration, improves memory, and reduces cognitive decline. Reading books is roughly the same level of benefit as exercise. [0] https://www.arts.gov/stories/blog/2024/federal-data-reading-pleasure-all-signs-show-slump https://www.arts.gov/stories/blog/2024/federal-data-reading-...

dundercoder 1y ago
We don’t let our kids on to TikTok, but all their friends are on and it surprises me how much they take whatever advice is shown them as gospel. Lucky for me my kids will tell me “Hey, Johnny said the best way to get ripped is X” so I get the chance to teach proper research techniques (for the level they are at). Two of my four kids are avid readers, mostly fiction but some not, the other two I am really struggling to get them engaged. After being forced to read books in high school over the summer (school mandated summer reading) I got turned off on reading for years until I picked up Harry Potter. That changed my perspective and I read gobs of books now. I actually prefer to read information mostly than to watch a video about it.
- sotix 1y ago
  High school also killed my love for reading. I really regret that I didn't start reading again outside of assigned works until I graduated college. Now I read a pretty significant amount, and it's a joy to me! Something about how school analyzed literature and required you to read what they dictated didn't align with me. I just finished the Odyssey, a required book in high school, after I previously finished the Iliad, which wasn't required in high school. Reading those two together after reading Stephen Fry's Mythos and Heroes books was a wonderful experience that I felt could have been replicated in high school rather than the whirlwind of bouncing around to unrelated books like the Catcher in the Rye.
- mkbkn 1y ago
  How do one train their kids to read? One idea I read somewhere (online) is to financially incentivize them once they get an understanding of cash/money. No clue if it would work or how effective it would be. My kid is on the way and my spouse has zero interest in reading.
  - yencabulator 1y ago
    Personal anecdote: Before I could read, my mom would sit down and read Donald Duck comics with me. It started out as looking at pictures for a few minutes, soon was her reading a whole comic book aloud in one sitting, and when I eventually learned to read myself, the teacher's feedback was that I read out loud to the class in a way that brought the story to life, where others were just reciting the words. To think of replacing that shared time with a financial incentive comes across as really cold. (Sorry.) Also, way too late!
  - BobaFloutist 1y ago
    Kids are mimics. Read to them, and let them see you reading.
  - dundercoder 1y ago
    We read to them from the time they were born. Simple stories and picture books at first. I think exposure is key, but I’ve also found that kids learn way more with what they observe than what they are told to do. So they see mom and dad reading is going to have a much larger effect than just telling them to read. We take them to the local library and let them pick whatever books they want to try. One of ours took a long time to ever find anything, then discovered he loved dragons, so for a year he devoured any dragon book. Even graphic novels, which I had thought “Isn’t my 12 year old to old for these?” Primed the pump and she’ll go through 2-3 chapter books per week. We also made age appropriate audiobooks available to them and all 4 adore listening. Congrats on your baby! I’ve never been more exhausted in my life but I’m loving it.
    - ethbr1 1y ago
      > any dragon book Here are "a few", if still in that phase https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonriders_of_Pern https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonriders_of_Pern
- thevagrant 1y ago
  Solution for my kids was buy or borrow whatever books they show interest in. If they like reading comics, then get a stack of comics. I allowed them to stay up later (if they want) but the condition is that time only can be used for reading. They really enjoyed that and it helped. In time they traded the comics to fiction novels and their reading ability kept improving. They now get books from the library on their own and read quite a lot for their age. No parental pressure needed, they are addicted.
ryandrake 1y ago
> Less than half of American adults have read a book in the last year, and younger people are reading less books[0]. -fewer books- ...sorry, I had to, since we're talking about literacy :)
maxerickson 1y ago
Reading increases vocabulary, which are the building blocks that ideas are formed. Perfection.
ajdude 1y ago
I use Outlook to compose emails at work, and outlook's grammar system is constantly telling me to remove certain words from my sentences. For example, I would send an email saying something like "there's actually another permission I need to grant you so you can see this, so I'm submitting the form real quick to take care of that." Outlook will request that I change it to "there's another permission I need to grant you so you can see this, so I'm submitting a form to take care of that."
johnfn 1y ago
[flagged]
- hx8 1y ago
  I do not feel the need to defend myself against ChatGPT based arguments. If you could only do one of the two, you should probably exercise because physical health is a more base level need then improved cognition. If you hold the view that improved cognitive skills are not interesting to you then either you haven't had more basic needs meet, or your cognitive skills are so far declined that you cannot recognize the inherit value.
  - johnfn 1y ago
    ChatGPT cites PubMed, CDC and the Lancet -- do those not meet the level of argument you'll respond to? I like reading as much as the next guy, but saying "Reading books is roughly the same level of benefit as exercise" without any citation - when there are clear citations in the opposite direction - doesn't contribute to a good discussion. State what you mean without hyperbole.

by hx8 1y ago

dundercoder 1y ago

We don’t let our kids on to TikTok, but all their friends are on and it surprises me how much they take whatever advice is shown them as gospel. Lucky for me my kids will tell me “Hey, Johnny said the best way to get ripped is X” so I get the chance to teach proper research techniques (for the level they are at). Two of my four kids are avid readers, mostly fiction but some not, the other two I am really struggling to get them engaged. After being forced to read books in high school over the summer (school mandated summer reading) I got turned off on reading for years until I picked up Harry Potter. That changed my perspective and I read gobs of books now. I actually prefer to read information mostly than to watch a video about it.

sotix 1y ago
High school also killed my love for reading. I really regret that I didn't start reading again outside of assigned works until I graduated college. Now I read a pretty significant amount, and it's a joy to me! Something about how school analyzed literature and required you to read what they dictated didn't align with me. I just finished the Odyssey, a required book in high school, after I previously finished the Iliad, which wasn't required in high school. Reading those two together after reading Stephen Fry's Mythos and Heroes books was a wonderful experience that I felt could have been replicated in high school rather than the whirlwind of bouncing around to unrelated books like the Catcher in the Rye.
mkbkn 1y ago
How do one train their kids to read? One idea I read somewhere (online) is to financially incentivize them once they get an understanding of cash/money. No clue if it would work or how effective it would be. My kid is on the way and my spouse has zero interest in reading.
- yencabulator 1y ago
  Personal anecdote: Before I could read, my mom would sit down and read Donald Duck comics with me. It started out as looking at pictures for a few minutes, soon was her reading a whole comic book aloud in one sitting, and when I eventually learned to read myself, the teacher's feedback was that I read out loud to the class in a way that brought the story to life, where others were just reciting the words. To think of replacing that shared time with a financial incentive comes across as really cold. (Sorry.) Also, way too late!
- BobaFloutist 1y ago
  Kids are mimics. Read to them, and let them see you reading.
- dundercoder 1y ago
  We read to them from the time they were born. Simple stories and picture books at first. I think exposure is key, but I’ve also found that kids learn way more with what they observe than what they are told to do. So they see mom and dad reading is going to have a much larger effect than just telling them to read. We take them to the local library and let them pick whatever books they want to try. One of ours took a long time to ever find anything, then discovered he loved dragons, so for a year he devoured any dragon book. Even graphic novels, which I had thought “Isn’t my 12 year old to old for these?” Primed the pump and she’ll go through 2-3 chapter books per week. We also made age appropriate audiobooks available to them and all 4 adore listening. Congrats on your baby! I’ve never been more exhausted in my life but I’m loving it.
  - ethbr1 1y ago
    > any dragon book Here are "a few", if still in that phase https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonriders_of_Pern https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonriders_of_Pern
thevagrant 1y ago
Solution for my kids was buy or borrow whatever books they show interest in. If they like reading comics, then get a stack of comics. I allowed them to stay up later (if they want) but the condition is that time only can be used for reading. They really enjoyed that and it helped. In time they traded the comics to fiction novels and their reading ability kept improving. They now get books from the library on their own and read quite a lot for their age. No parental pressure needed, they are addicted.

ryandrake 1y ago

> Less than half of American adults have read a book in the last year, and younger people are reading less books[0]. -fewer books- ...sorry, I had to, since we're talking about literacy :)

maxerickson 1y ago

Reading increases vocabulary, which are the building blocks that ideas are formed. Perfection.

ajdude 1y ago

I use Outlook to compose emails at work, and outlook's grammar system is constantly telling me to remove certain words from my sentences. For example, I would send an email saying something like "there's actually another permission I need to grant you so you can see this, so I'm submitting the form real quick to take care of that." Outlook will request that I change it to "there's another permission I need to grant you so you can see this, so I'm submitting a form to take care of that."

johnfn 1y ago

[flagged]

hx8 1y ago
I do not feel the need to defend myself against ChatGPT based arguments. If you could only do one of the two, you should probably exercise because physical health is a more base level need then improved cognition. If you hold the view that improved cognitive skills are not interesting to you then either you haven't had more basic needs meet, or your cognitive skills are so far declined that you cannot recognize the inherit value.
- johnfn 1y ago
  ChatGPT cites PubMed, CDC and the Lancet -- do those not meet the level of argument you'll respond to? I like reading as much as the next guy, but saying "Reading books is roughly the same level of benefit as exercise" without any citation - when there are clear citations in the opposite direction - doesn't contribute to a good discussion. State what you mean without hyperbole.