Google is definitely an all powerful
and infinite entity that I have much faith in. It’s been my saving grace many a
time. I’m that person who would whip out Google on my phone to settle any
argument. And those days of being bothered for days by my inability to remember
something are gone. Along with the days of wondering who that actor in that
movie is (I’m sure I know that guy!)
I don’t just love Google either, I love all the weird sites
that are in any way related to Google. There’s my personal favourite, and
then there’s the one that appeals to my green
consciousness. Of course I love looking at all the
cool Doodles and I
treat myself to the odd sightseeing.
Would I take it as far as comparing
Google to a God? I’m not so sure…
The Church of Google, however, is
actually an existing organisation. They believe that, “Google is the closest
humankind has ever come to directly experiencing an actual God”. Go and check
out their site and their “nine proofs” that Google is divine, http://www.thechurchofgoogle.org/,
and
decide for yourself.
I’m not sure how serious “Googlism”
really is. I truly hope it’s as tongue-in-cheek as I’m reading it.
But I also hope the people that
actually believe Google is making us stupid are not serious, or perhaps they're
just stupid?
Let’s think about this for a second.
Before Google existed, we had to go to
the library and actually read books. (Gasp!) From there we would contemplate
what we were reading and come up with our own associations and ideas.
These days, we’re bombarded with so
much information, and it’s so easy to come by, I have to ask – do we really
retain any substantial information? Or do we just end up having some vague
ideas about a whole lot of interesting opinions and bits of knowledge?
Richard Foreman coined the term
“pancake people”. Basically, with all of this knowledge at our fingertips, we
risk stretching ourselves so thin as we try to connect with the vast network of
information.
And how do I know that? I Googled it of
course!
People have been chasing up ghosts every time new technology
comes along. When the printing press came along in the 15th century,
people had the same fears. Hieronimo Squarciafico thought that the easy
availability of books would make people intellectually lazy and weaken their
minds (Thanks again Google.)
If you ask me – and like Google I enjoy giving answers –
there will always be people who become intellectually lazy anyway, no matter
how easy or difficult information is to come by. The availability of information
just makes my life easier, and makes it easier for me to be a know-it-all.
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