Is the Internet Making Us Smarter or Stupider?

New videos DAILY: Join Big Think Edge for exclusive video lessons from top thinkers and doers: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Technological advancements were supposed to free up our time and free up our minds, leading to a cognitive surplus. That hasn’t happened, says Douglas digital media environment deals in absolutes: yes or no; thumbs up or thumbs down. Chasing weird uncertainties and lines of thought is not a trademark of today’s time should equal more thought. But humanity seems to be swiping left on true cognitive engagement. So, asks Douglas Rushkoff, has the internet made us smarter, or just busier? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DOUGLAS RUSHKOFF Douglas Rushkoff is the host of the Team Human podcast and a professor of digital economics at CUNY/Queens. He is also the author of a dozen bestselling books on media, technology, an