MNteractive.com

Steven Johnson attempts to debunk some strong popular opinions in his new book, Everything Bad Is Good For You: How Today’s Pop Culture Is Actually Making Us Smarter. He deconstructs the popular thought processes of today that say that all this video game playin’, music listening, reality tv watching culture is a race to the bottom.

He pulls together points from McLuhan to Nietzsche that it’s simply not true. Couched in a therory he calls the ‘Sleeper Curve’ he explores a very involved and persuasive treatise that we are smarter because of all these forms of media that we have to interact with and that these interactions actually make us more engaged than ever before. The technology is participatory, you have to engage your brain. With that thought on the table how can it possibly be void or base the way that it very often gets villified.

I commend Steven Johnson for making me challenge myself and my thinking about the changes that are occurring by putting forth these arguments. His books make people think and this new one continues that tradition.

It’s a worthy read and definitely made me think about my work as an Information Architect and how it will be necessary to actually make products that are more complex to appropriately challenge engaged users while ensuring that it doesn’t become so difficult that it creates frustration.

This book is an especially valuable read for anyone concerned about our youth. It puts forth samples and thoughts about the fact that these activities that seem at the outset negative and detrimental are really positive and teach tangible skills to help us navigate our increasingly complex reality.