For most children and young adults thinking today is spelled “Google.” They type in a question and accept whatever Google finds for them. There is no questioning of sources just an answer they will use not knowing if it is the truth or just an opinion of somebody on the internet. They are not taught how to research and to question potential answers because in the immediate gratification world of today that would take too much time and be too hard. This means we have a lot of people making life decisions predicated on false information.
Is this a problem with society or does it stem from teachers allowing students to go the easy way as long as they “go?” Prior to our current technological age we had rumor and wives tales that often interfered with the truth but while sometimes widespread those mechanisms did not have the impact of the Google answer. What we have now is a generation and a half of people who do not know how to “Think.” They know only that if Google says it is so, then it must be so. Some teachers are just glad the student did the work assignment and will accept the Wikipedia answer thankful the student took the time. Other teachers are thankful that students now must type all their answers with spell check enabled, so there is no need to correct for spelling although the grammar may still be off. Yes, Google has done our thinking for us, it has winnowed all the information, applied all the logic necessary and given us the “most correct” answer. Alas, it does not, however, show its work and so we’re just stuck with an answer not knowing how it was attained and not understanding the process for ourselves.
Heaven help us if our adversaries actually do crash our power net or internet nodes. We’ll have entire generations of people running through the streets, their hands in the air, shouting, the sky is falling, woe are we, the sky is falling, whatever shall we do? Well, whatever shall we do?
Just Google it!