Surrounding the issue of people getting smarter or dumber in the present age, there is a great conflict in deciding definitely whether people are getting dumber with the passing time or is technology and modernity making them smarter. It is chiefly to determine what smartness or dumbness is, and this is marked by the ability to use the present technological advances to mark one’s intellectual capabilities. Therefore, it can be said that people today are not getting dumber, in fact, they are getting smarter, and their mental capabilities are enhanced because of the use of technology in everyday life.
Firstly, people today are definitely smarter than their ancestors. This is because they are exposed to a more diverse and well-defined world than their ancestors were and in fact they would score more points on their IQ test than their parents (Pinker). The reason is that our ancestors were not able to deal with things that went beyond everyday conception and what seemed to go outside the box, was deemed irrelevant and complex for them. Today, people are more involved with a hypothetical and evolutionary approach to matters rather than a concrete and restricted one (Gottfredson). Moreover, reason is more widespread and far-flung than it was in the past (Jackson). Today people have moved beyond the bounds of race and color and progressed to other matters that reach out to futuristic approaches. Homosexuality, for instance, is no longer a matter of such disgrace because people have accepted that there is more to life than hate and resent (Flynn). Also, the world has grown more complex and even though people hold technology responsible for their illness like getting diabetes, it is the same technology that is responsible for telling people how to regulate their bodily health (Gottfredson).
On the other hand, the debate says people are getting dumber because technology has enslaved them and made them victims to dumbness because they are unable to solve math problems, remember numbers and compute simple sums without technology (Jackson). Unlike their ancestors, people today are dumb in this respect. The internet makes things easier for them and many people lose the ability to think on their own (Duncan).
However, science has extended the need for the people to use technology to solve these problems and to move beyond these matters and make the lives of people easier while they can make use of their lives for something better. They can use technology to do things for them and be able to use the complex technology is an achievement in itself.
Work Cited
Duncan, Ritch. The Internet amplifies the dumb stuff that people do. International New York Times.
2012. Web. 6 April 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/02/26/are-people-getting-dumber/internet-amplifies-the-dumb-stuff-that-people-do
Flynn, R. James. What is intelligence: beyond the Flynn effect. Cambridge Univeristy. 2009.
Web. 6 April 2016.
http://www.amazon.com/What-Is-Intelligence-Beyond-Effect/dp/0521741475
Gottfredson, S. Linda. The World grows more complex. 2012. International New York Times.
2012. Web. 6 April 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/02/26/are-people-getting-dumber/the-world-grows-more-complex
Jackson, Eric. People are getting dumber, and it’s no joke. International New York Times. 2012.
Web. 6 April 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/02/26/are-people-getting-dumber/people-are-getting-dumber-and-its-no-joke
Pinker, Steven. Zoom out and you’ll see people are improving. International New York Times.
2012. Web. 6 April 2016.
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/02/26/are-people-getting-dumber/zoom-out-and-youll-see-people-are-improving
