Rethinking research in the Google era. (cover story)

CARR, Nicholas G., 1959-; WADE, Carla

The article discusses the study "Information Behavior of the Researchers of the Future," commissioned by the British Library and the Joint Information Systems Committee. The study sought to identify how students are likely to access and interact with digital resources in from five to 10 years. Author Nicholas Carr states that technology has changed the way people think, making the minds a high-speed data processing machine under the influence of internet search engines. The study found that about 60 percent of electronic journal users view no more than three pages and 89 percent of students use search engines to begin an information search. Carla Wade of the Oregon Department of Education thinks scanning is an important skill that students learned before the Google era.