Today, when iPads and Kindles and smartphones (oh my) have virtually taken over every conversation and cafe, you could be forgiven for thinking that thick, substantial books are headed for the unemployment office.
Yet however amazing modern reading technology is, there is a growing body of research that suggests paper is still the better delivery system for information. A Scientific American article posted this morning reports that:
“…navigational difficulties [when reading on screens] may subtly inhibit reading comprehension. Compared with paper, screens may also drain more of our mental resources while we are reading and make it a little harder to remember what we read when we are done. A parallel line of research focuses on people’s attitudes toward different kinds of media. Whether they realize it or not, many people approach computers and tablets with a state of mind less conducive to learning than the one they bring to paper.”
Apparently, there isn’t an app for that.
