Remembering and Forgetting in the Age of Technology: Teaching, Learning, and the Science of Memory in a Wired World

281 Pages·2022·1.85 MB·English

by  Michelle D. Miller

Remembering and Forgetting
in the Age of Technology
TEACHING AND LEARNING IN HIGHER EDUCATION
James M. Lang, Series Editor
A list of titles in this series appears at the end of this volume.
REMEMBERING
AND FORGETTING
IN THE AGE OF
TECHNOLOGY
Teaching, Learning, and
the Science of Memory in
a Wired World
Michelle D. Miller
West Virginia University Press
Morgantown
Copyright © 2022 by West Virginia University Press
All rights reserved
First edition published 2022 by West Virginia University Press
Printed in the United States of America
ISBN 978 -1- 952271-46-5 (cloth) / 978 - 1-9 52271 - 47 - 2 (paperback) /
978 - 1-9 52271 - 48 - 9 (ebook)
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data is available from
the Library of Congress
Cover design by Than Saffel / WVU Press
For my mother, Dr. Darla Ferris Miller

CONTENTS
Introduction: Machines, Memory, and Learning 1
1. W hat Technology Does to Us (and for Us):
Taking a Critical Look at Common Narratives 19
2. Why We Remember, Why We Forget 45
3. E nhancing Memory and Why It Matters
(Even though Google Exists) 87
4. Memory Requires Attention 133
5. Th e Devices We Can’t Put Down: Smartphones,
Laptops, Memory, and Learning 171
Conclusion: How Memory Can Thrive in a Technology-
Saturated Future 211
Notes 227
Acknowledgments 253
Index 257

INTRODUCTION
MACHINES, MEMORY,
AND LEARNING
Our minds are made of memories, and today, those memo-
ries have competition.
Where we once depended on human memory — our own,
other people’s, the collective knowledge of a society passed
down orally and in books — we now turn to digital records.
Computers ranging from tiny wearables to vast AI- driven
networks are what we rely on to remember, to remind, and
to reminisce. For most of us, these machines have seam-
lessly integrated themselves into every corner of our lives.
We are at a point in history where it’s impossible to talk
about human memory without also talking about the digital
memory mechanisms that run alongside our own.
And make no mistake, we do need to be talking about
memory. For one, there’s simply more to know today than
there ever has been before; name almost any subject area or
professional specialization, and there’s a vast and exponen-
tially growing knowledge base that goes along with it. There
are also greater rewards now for people who’ve cracked the
code for acquiring and using knowledge, who know how to