Brain’s new world
While enjoying the luxury of R&R and the Easter break in Melbourne, I picked up a free magazine called ‘Child The best guide for parents – Food & Wellbeing Issue’ (April 2009). No, I’m not a parent, but I thought it would give me something to read while I was waiting for my eagerly anticipated cup of latte and breakfast to arrive.
After flicking through the first few pages highlighting coming events for children in and around Melbourne, I came across this article (see attached) – Brain’s New World written by Dr Michael Nagel (Senior Lecturer and Head of Education Programs in the Faculty of Science, Health and Education at the University of the Sunshine Coast).
The article discusses the rapid advance of technology that is not only changing our lives but as Dr Nagel describes, changing our brains. Dr Nagel refers to people born into the world of Nintendo, laptop computers, blogging, text messaging, twittering and virtual reality as Digital natives and those who are developing their range of neuro-architecture during the advent of modern-day technology as Digital Immigrants.
Nagel believes that Digital natives are more concerned with focusing of time in nanoseconds – not hours and days as once was the case while Digital immigrants are concentrating on quickly trying to improve their technology skills to be able to understand and communicate better with their children.
Dr Nagel links this change in focus to the grey matter of their brains and how that changes in response to the changes in environment. He explains the functioning of the brain through our development and our aging acknowledging that the brain changes everyday in responsive to environmental stimuli. The question he asks is what happens when the brain changes its organisation to accommodate a world of stimulation where technology and high-speed communication and media are in abundance ie the environment that Digital Natives are constantly involved in?
Dr Nagel believes that this ability of Digital natives to multi-task as they navigate through one environment while shifting focus from one attention-seeking device to another may help explain changes in the way that people communicate and/or interact with one another. He refers to two findings:
- Dr Richard Restak (renowned neurologist and neuropsychiatrist) who believes that this attention switching capability could be a contributing factor to such as ADD (Attentione deficit disorder) and/or ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder); and
- Dr Gary Small and colleagues from UCLA who have findings from research indicating that technology may be changing the way we interact with each other.
Nagel acknowledges that there is no turning back in the new world, but we should all be mindful of the different types of behaviours that are emerging – behavioural conditions that, in the past, were in some instances linked to hereditary dispositions, may now be attributable to be a product of our culture and environment ie evolutionary stage.
Profile of Dr Michael Nagel, viewed on 19 April, 2009, http://www.usc.edu.au/University/AcademicFaculties/Science/Staff/027553.htm
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