Information and Thought

As I was going through online news reports, and then YouTube listening to some news and interviews, I realized that too much information can cloud thought. Instant access to news about what is around the world with a click of mouse is a good thing, as the communication technology has made the individual aware about his surroundings, and also provided the news of his interest.

But we can debate how much information does a human being need for a healthy, active and purposeful life? Does too much information cloud the individual’s thought process? Does too much information impact the priority concerns of the individual and desensitize as to which information is more useful and which is not? These are some of the questions that emerged in my mind.

There is a saying that science and technology can be the best servant and the worst master. It is a dilemma as to in which position we find ourselves in. As I was reading a facebook humor posted by a friend, I found it really meaningful. In a pictograph one person says to the other that cell phone has made life so easy as it saves our time, the other one fiddling with his cell phone playing games starts laughing, implying that cell phones are actually keeping users busy and killing time. Though the master-slave analogy applies here, the issue is more deep and complex.

In olden days people did not have these means of technology. There were no cell phones, no computer, and no internet communication. But, the people were highly productive as they are now. The genius who developed the communication technology or gave the scientific formula to develop this technology had not used this technology.

The point is too much information may confuse the mind as to which one to pick and which one to leave. It may have also another negative dimension. A time may come when too much information may appear too little, and the seeker may look for more information, and for which the information technology is an easy platform. This process may be an unending, and amassing too much information may make this individual a collector of information, but without any processing of it, or developing it in a coherent useful way. This information may not help in producing further knowledge, whether theoretical or practical.

When you look for daily news in various websites, we come across a lot of information in all areas of our life. We come across what one leader says in legislature, what is happening in polity and society, who kills whom, where road mishaps take place, weather update, bomb blasts by extremists, conference and summits between countries, violence in our neighborhood or in province or country, or in some other part of the world, but finally this information overload make the human mind tired, without actually processing this information for any rational use.

There may be an ideal situation, though in human life ideals are seldom possible. One can use the information technology just for the required purpose and not more. For example, one can surf news websites to see news relevant for his purpose, and stop then. But, it does not happen exactly this way. One can think of doing some other thing, like opening social networking websites, or watching a song in YouTube, or watching a favorite video clip. And in this process, without our knowing we passed so much time than we expected to give to this particular purpose of searching for news.

I notice that in the above paragraph I am talking about another dimension. Besides information overload, we may spend more time in Net surfing than the time fixed by us for the purpose. This happens not only once in a day. Once this habit is developed it goes for days, and if we calculate and combine all these times we spend unexpectedly, the time of few minutes actually turns into hours and days. And this routine monotone can prove a block on the creativity of the individual. Because these acts of waywardness is performed not with conscious, purposive will, but by a dint of habit, which is actually a drag.

This turns my attention to another dimension. This habit may not stop at one point. The information technology is so vast, the information we can get from internet is so vast and mammoth, a fickle mind may not stop at a given station, may look for more and more novel information and news on various subjects. For example, when we listen to a song or watch a video in YouTube, we come across a range of videos or song, etc after we finish it. Our curiosity may lead to another click, hence another song, etc. And this may go for a fairly long time without our notice.

            Here, I am not arguing against the social networking sites or YouTube, rather they have immense value. As they are technologies, they are value neutral. It depends how the individual use it. Using the analogy, it is like the same knife which we can use to slice a fruit or kill a human being. Too much information in that sense is a blessing as well as a curse. It depends on which side of the fence we are. Too much information can be useful for the individual who knows exactly which pieces of information he has to pick, and which pieces of information let pass.

This brings forth the control aspect of human mind. A controlled, well trained and disciplined mind will use the information for a purpose. Again, here I am not bringing the issue of morality and ethics, good and bad. A violent extremist may well have a disciplined mind like a scientist. I came across a news report how extremists were using information from internet to find targets and for other destructive purposes. In this case, there is no information overload, but selection of information for one’s intended purpose. A disciplined mind will not falter in the face of sea of information and will not drown in this sea, but will rather remain afloat and pick up gems while marching ahead towards the goal.