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Research Suggests E-Readers Are "Too Easy" To Read

New research suggests that the clear screens and easily read fonts of e-readers makes your brain "lazy." According to Neuroscience blogger Jonah Lehrer, using electronic books like the Kindle and Sony Reader makes you less likely to remember what you have read because the devices are so easy on the eyes. From the article: "Rather than making things clearer, e-readers and computers prevent us from absorbing information because their crisp screens and fonts tell our subconscious that the words they convey are not important, it is claimed. In contrast, handwriting and fonts that are more challenging to read signal to the brain that the content of the message is important and worth remembering, experts say."

8 of 185 comments (clear)

  1. Failed to Mention by tarsi210 · · Score: 4, Funny

    TFA failed to mention that the bulk of the content found on the e-Readers surveyed was copies of the Twilight series and whatever's on O's list these days.

    Somehow, I doubt it's the font that is making everyone stupid...

  2. Re:This is... by goombah99 · · Score: 3, Funny

    I just use my scratched pair of glasses when I read it. problem solved.

    --
    Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
  3. Re:This is... by blai · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... and +5 replies are now in Comic Sans.

    --
    In soviet Russia, God creates you!
  4. Re:This is... by Ambiguous+Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    My high-resolution display and crisp, anti-aliased fonts tell me your opinion is irrelevant.

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    Their may be a grammatical error, misspeling, or evn a typo in this post.
  5. Re:This is... by Tharsman · · Score: 5, Funny

    I would agree, but the crispy font in my higher than HDTV resolution monitor, made the article so easy to read that I dismissed it as unimportant and no longer recall why I started typing this.

  6. Use cut-up letters from magazines by DBCubix · · Score: 4, Funny

    and people won't forget your message

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    I called it a mighty Sperm Whale, she called it Finding Nemo.
  7. Re:This is... by szo · · Score: 3, Funny

    I think it's cool, if I read physics text, it feels like Stephen Hawking is giving me a lecture.

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    Red Leader Standing By!
  8. Re:This is... by HarvardAce · · Score: 3, Funny

    Clearly the solution is to convert all text into Captchas so we never forget the words!

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    Note to self: Stop putting jokes in my insightful comments so I can get something other than +1 Funny!