The Internet Grows Up
Now, 18 years after the Internet was born for public use, some experts claim that part of it, the World Wide Web, is dying (well, maybe not growing as fast). Many people are using applications rather than Web pages to receive information, especially on their phones. Applications provide information like movies via Netflix, news via RSS feed and music via iTunes.
These applications can bring preselected types of information to the user, rather than require the user to employ a search engine to track down the information and then spend time sifting through it. Companies like Apple also use applications to get past the "information wants to be free" aspect of the Web.The Internet has also begun to lose its egalitarian atmosphere. In the early years it was seen as a platform from which millions of people could see and be seen, where the "little guy" could make it big. Well, the little guys have made it big, and Internet monopolies that will eclipse even Google, such as Facebook, are the wave of the future (Chris Anderson and Michael Wolff, "The Web Is Dead. Long Live the Internet," Wired.com, Aug. 17, 2010).
One Thing at a Time
A team of French scientists has found that the human brain can successfully cope with two separate tasks at the same time, but on adding a third, the brain ceases to be efficient and one task gets dropped.
This fact may explain why, when people are given a long list of choices, they are more likely to make illogical decisions. The study analyzed brain activity while participants were engaged in one, two and three different tasks. The frontal lobe on the left side of the brain would light up with one task, and the right side followed as the second task began. When a third task was initiated, the frontal lobes couldn't keep up and the accuracy of the tasks declined rapidly (Helen Briggs, "Brain 'Splits to Multi-Task,'" News.BBC.co.uk, April 15, 2010).
Computer Keeping You Awake?
As laptop computers and now iPads become more mobile and creep into the bedroom, light emitted from these screens may cause sleep disruption, say some sleep researchers. Light from these electronic sources apparently tricks the brain into thinking that the artificial light is daylight, which upsets one's circadian rhythm.
Concerns about electronically induced insomnia were revived with the release of Apple's new iPad computer. Compared to e-book readers, which don't emit light, the iPad does, and the light shines directly into the eyes at a close distance (John Sutter, "Trouble Sleeping? Maybe It's Your iPad," CNN.com, May 13, 2010). Although some researchers are skeptical of the link between insomnia and the use of computers before going to sleep, avoiding this is worth trying if you are having trouble sleeping. Experts also say that if a person has to be on the computer not long before going to bed, it's helpful to decrease the emission of blue light and increase amber light, which is easier on the eyes.
Social Networking Don'ts
As companies like Facebook and Twitter continue to try to figure out who owns all the information and images that people share, there are some things that just don't need to be online.A recent article by Kathy Kristof gives the following six items that should never appear on your Face-book page or Twitter feed ("6 Things Never to Post on Facebook," Shine.Yahoo.com, June 23, 2010):
1. Birth date and birthplace—Day is okay, but year and place too is an I.D. theft freebie.
2. Vacation plans—Thieves live for this kind of knowledge.
3. Home address—Don't make it too easy for people to find you.
4. Confessions—This excess information could get you fired or lose you friends.
5. Password clues—mother's maiden name, birth city, etc. Don't make it easy for potential identity thieves to gather this information by posting it in your profile.
6. Risky behavior—If you are an intentionally reckless driver and brag about it, you could end up with a higher insurance premium. Insurance companies search for these types of details.
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