Summary
Hubert Dreyfus's "On the Internet" argues that the internet, despite its potential for enhanced communication and access to information, often degrades human understanding by favoring a superficial, detached, and disembodied mode of engagement over the embodied, context-dependent skills necessary for genuine comprehension. He contends that the internet encourages a user to adopt a "virtual" or simulated understanding of the world, mimicking expertise through information retrieval rather than cultivating practical know-how and situated intelligence.
The book contrasts this digital mode of knowing with the embodied, skillful understanding derived from direct experience and interaction with the world. Dreyfus suggests that this shift towards virtual understanding fosters a sense of mastery that is ultimately illusory, potentially leading to a decline in critical thinking and a loss of connection to the tangible realities that shape human lives. Readers are cautioned against mistaking information access for deep understanding.
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Key concepts
- Embodied understanding — Knowledge and skill acquired through direct physical interaction with the world.
- Virtual understanding — Knowledge gained through abstract information retrieval and simulation, detached from physical experience.
- Skillful coping — The ability to navigate and respond effectively to situations based on practical, often unconscious, expertise.
- Disembodied expertise — The illusion of mastery acquired through access to information without the underlying embodied skills.