Publish at January 20 2019 Updated September 14 2023
In a country like France, reading is on the up. But do we still take the time to read a text peacefully and intensely, whether it's printed on paper or an electronic medium?
Is the image of the reader peacefully ensconced in an armchair by the fire or in the shade of a tree no more than a faded 19th-century painting? From handprints on cave walls to the cuneiform alphabet, the reader moved on to papyrus, then cursive letters on velum. This was followed by texts printed on sheets of paper with movable lead letters and Gutenberg's press, to arrive at the typewriter and the computer. In just a few thousand years, our writing and reading ecosystem has been completely transformed, along with our brain connections. With the Internet, the whole ecosystem of our thoughts is digitized: from their emergence to their dissemination and effects. We think in bits and pieces.
The great libraries, the advice of a friend, the input of a professional are pitted against search engines, social bookmarks and RSS feeds. The Google search engine monopolizes a large share of the audience (90% of search engine market share) and saturates us with advertising in the West, while Baidu filters out what is good to access and what is suspected of sedition in China. Search engines influence and guide billions of investigations every day. Social bookmarking(Diigo, Pearl Tree) and peer-reviewedscooping (scoop it) of what matters is also a way of sorting out and finding a reliable source. Our online friends bring their influence and recommendations, and reassure us as we browse. RSS feeds are a way of keeping an eye on our themes of interest and pushing the most suitable reading material towards us. Artificial intelligence will diagnose what we're reading.
Not only is the integrity of works being compromised - we're discovering bite-sized chunks as we browse - but cultural mediation and the meaning it conveys are also changing. Paper books find themselves in competition with online service packages. What matters is less the possession of a physical work than ergonomic and relevant access to my object of interest. Library shelves are being replaced by cloud computing. The mediator is invited to be a browser too, and to know the tags.
All places become potential libraries and reading spaces. But reading in the bath, on public transport or while traveling was already possible with a paper book. What changes is the support of video, the contribution of audio, the possibility of freeing one's hands for other occupations. All locations are covered.
Texts are so fragmented in format that they can be read at different times. It's as if the experience of continuous connection made possible by wifi transmission terminals engenders an experience of continuous reading. Walls struggle to stop the waves, streams of information pass by and the temptation of current events is strong. What are my loved ones doing? What's going on in the world?
Screen reading stimulates more varied areas of the brain. The range of colors available for reading is almost infinite. Pop-ups, images, videos and signs delineate the reading thread. In other words, character strings alternate with other signifiers. Semiotics analyzes a message as a combination of signifier (the means of expressing the message, such as a text or photo), signified (the concept) and referent (the actual thing). The hypothesis is that this triptych is out of balance, with the signifier in a dominant position to the detriment of concepts and reality.
We'd be so inundated with media that we'd lose sight of what's essential. Advertising irruptions put our attention to the test. How can we stay focused on what's important when a personalized ad comes on?[1] When a noisy video goes off? How can we keep our train of thought going in the face of constant noises and whispers?
Online reading is enriched by a host of aids. An online dictionary will give the meaning of abstruse words. Strange words with lost meanings can be immediately translated, or even entire pages translated. Lexicons and hyperlinks for further reading are also useful resources.
Digital reading opens up new possibilities for interaction. Handwritten, audio or video reading notes can be associated with the text. Scribbling on papyrus by a proofreader is multiplied. What's more, other readers can share their opinions and exchange ideas. The work is transformed into an object that opens up debates and allows ideas to be confronted.
A wide variety of media are available. The screens of computers, televisions, digital tablets, e-readers, smartphones and a variety of connected objects offer a range of sizes, light conditionsThey can be adjusted to contexts far beyond reading in a chair while sitting in a room.
If the reading span narrows with a small screen (that of a telephone), does this mean that the brain is less stimulated to see wide and far? Sentences apprehended at a glance are limited to a subject, a verb and a complement. Does this mean that comprehension is increasingly choppy? Does the multiplication of interactions and reading possibilities lead to fatigue, or does it allow new meanings to emerge? We're relearning how to read, and that makes us think in new ways. If our attention is put to the test, a new, more curious and involved intention may well emerge.
Sources
Digital reading and writing: what's changing?
http://www.ressources.univ-rennes2.fr/cultures-numeriques-dans-l-enseignement/plateforme/1-collaboration-est-apprentissage/1-1-titre-1/
How the internet is changing our reading habits
http://www.lefigaro.fr/sciences/2009/08/26/01008-20090826ARTFIG00236-comment-internet-transforme-les-habitudes-de-lecture-.php
Reading is changing, and so are our brains
https://www.science-et-vie.com/archives/e-book-internet-smartphone-la-lecture-change-nos-cerveaux-aussi-41029
Building a reading ecosystem - http://jiminy.chapalpanoz.com/batir-un-ecosysteme-de-lecture/
Top 10 libraries - http://blog.infotourisme.net/top-10-des-plus-grandes-bibliotheques-du-monde/
Digital reading devices - Pearl Tree
http://www.pearltrees.com/u/38747968-dispositifs-lecture-numerique
Reading and writing digital text - Diigo -
https://groups.diigo.com/group/lecture-et-criture-du-texte-numrique
Moderator's blog - Google figures 2018 - https://www.blogdumoderateur.com/chiffres-google/
Digital factory - Baidu - https://www.usine-digitale.fr/baidu/
Scoop it - https://www.scoop.it/t/litterature-jeunesse-et-numerique
Eduscol - Reading span
http://eduscol.education.fr/numerique/dossier/archives/hypermedia/impact-sur-lecture-et-ecriture/lire
Wikipedia - Semiotics - https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A9miotique
France TV Info - Les français lisent de plus en plus mais manquent de temps consacré à la lecture
https://www.francetvinfo.fr/culture/livres/les-francais-lisent-de-plus-en-plus-mais-manquent-de-temps-consacre-a-la-lecture_2107922.html
Lexicon - http://www.lexique.org/
Qualitexte - Online dictionary - https://www.qualitexte.fr/meilleur-dictionnaire/
[1] https://www.journaldunet.com/ebusiness/publicite/1009567-le-chiffre-d-affaires-de-la-publicite-en-ligne-en-france/ 4 billion euros of online advertising budget for a country like France
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