El neurocientífico Small nos confronta con temas del manejo de datos y la avalancha de ellos en nuestro cerebro. ¿Estamos preparados? ( )

I bought this book because I read a great article by Gary Small in the Scientific American Magazine. But after reading iBrain, I'm extremely disappointed.

This is the typical book written by an adult who does not really understand neither young people nor technology. And adult who remembers the good old days and all new things are bad, dangerous or corrupted.

All the big arguments presented by the authors are more their adult-centric points of view than actual scientific proved facts. Sure, they cite a lot of scientific literature, but not to support their main suppositions.

Nobody deny that technology must have and effect in us (because it implies activities we perform over and over); but we are far from really understand how it is affecting us... ( )

Smart’s book is technical enough for someone with a background in biological studies to find detailed analysis of the modern brain while accessible enough for someone whose curiosity stems from cultural and anthropological side of things. It’s central questions are important—it seems as although our brains give us tendencies for certain lifestyle patterns, they are also amiable enough to become so adapted to our technology that we not only physically crave it, we go through physical withdrawal without it. In short, this book is about the development of habits and their physical existence in our brains. Though the book concludes with a scant resource guide on how to better cope with our modern world, it does not much raise the big question: Are our brains evolving or devolving? ( )

Don't bother with this book unless: 1. you are a Baby Boomer who is feeling overwhelmed with the web, and would like to commiserate with one of your own. 2. If you are internet addicted and in turn socially inept (there are a few pages of self-help advice). Interspersed in all of this split personality pages are a few references to fMRI studies of which areas of the brain light up when we are completing internet tasks. You won't be able to pinpoint the studies, though, because the author doesn't use notations. No footnotes, no endnotes, just a list of references in the back of the book. He lists his references but we have no idea which studies go to which fleeting mention.The book is ok, but it can't decide which way it wants to go. As someone who is under 40 (Generation X) and considers herself a digital native (I had a computer in my house in the late 70's), I found this book at times to be downright offensive. The anecdotal examples were inane and sensationalistic with fear. It's the typical refrain we hear from the stereotypically selfish and self-focused "me" generation of Baby Boomers.Unless you are in said state of panic about the internet and its implications, skip this book. The small self-help parts aren't going to help you. Dr. Smalls probably meant for you to read them to your WoW addicted daughter. ( )

What Small and Company have to say about the brain and digital technology enters the little explored realm where our understanding of the interaction of digital technology and contemporary culture is shaped without the influnece of marketing and product placement. I love this book. It is clearly written to be accesible to the layperson. ( )