Internet changes the way we remember things

It has been suggested following a recent study that the Internet and computers are having an impact on the way we remember things, resulting in poor recollection of information that is easily available online.

Computers and the Internet are things that most of us now use on a day to day basis in our lives, with many people now reliant on their broadband, PCs, smart phones, laptops, internet tablets, and the wide range of other technologies and devices.

Whilst there is no doubt that the Internet has done a huge amount to make our lives easier over the years, a recent report suggests that it has done little to help us with our memories. This is because a recent study has suggested that the Internet and computers have impacted on the way that we remember things, which has resulted in poor recollection of information that is available easily on the Internet.

In experiments that were carried out, participants were faced with difficult questions and immediately started to think about computers. The study showed that those involved in the study had poor recollection of answers that they knew would be freely available on the Internet but they had enhanced memory of where they were stored.

Those involved in the research described the Internet as a ‘transactive memory’ that people have become reliant upon to do their remembering for them. An official described transactive memory as “…an idea that there are external memory sources – really storage places that exist in other people”.

Do you rely on the Internet to aid your memory?

Source – BBC