2012 summer reading program author says, ‘Net keeps us in the shallows’

Author Nicholas Carr has a controversial bit of advice for college students.

Dump your Facebook account.

Carr’s book “The Shallows,” which details his theory that Internet use might compromise one’s ability to read and think deeply, will be the University’s 2012 summer reading book for incoming students.

“College students live and work at the intersection of technology and learning,” Carr said in an email.

“It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of a new technology, like the iPad or Facebook, but it’s not always easy to see how that tool influences the way we communicate, develop knowledge and skills, and make sense of the world. That’s the subject of ‘The Shallows.’”

Unlike last year’s program, which featured Jonathan Safran Foer’s “Eating Animals,” the 2012 summer reading program will not be a joint effort with Duke University.

Carr’s book was a finalist for the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction and the 2011 PEN Center USA Literary Award for research nonfiction.

April Mann, director of New Student and Carolina Parent Programs, said the book will prompt college students to think critically about how technology and the Internet affect society today.

“It’s not your typical book that just points your finger at technology,” said Konrad Kosmala, sophomore and member of the nine-person selection committee.

Carr said the Internet also has ethical implications.

“It’s important to see that the Internet has a particular intellectual ethic, that it exerts an influence not only on how we think but on what we value about our minds,” he said.

He added that while people are young they develop basic habits of the mind that stick with them throughout their life.

“The Net tends to keep us in the shallows,” he said.

Kevin Stewart, chairman of the selection committee, said the group began with almost 300 books before narrowing the pool to six titles, Mann said.

Kosmala said he loved the conversations the books inspired, and he enjoyed reading all six final books.

“They were really hard to sort through when we were trying to decide,” Kosmala said. “We discussed what the purpose of reading here at Carolina should be.”

Although it is not yet decided, Mann said the University is also in the initial stages of bringing Carr to UNC.

“I like to share my ideas in person, but, even more than that, I like to hear about other people’s experiences and points of view,” Carr said.

Mann said she is interested in having Carr come speak in the first week of classes next fall.

The other finalists for next year’s summer reading selection included: “Half the Sky” by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn; “It Happened on the Way to War” by Rye Barcott; “Garbage Land” by Elizabeth Royte; “The Big Sort” by Bill Bishop and Robert Cushing; and “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind” by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer.

Contact the University Editor at university@dailytarheel.com.