On the Benefits of a Television Education
Using the highly scientific method of a comparison study whose subjects number two, myself and my younger brother, I've decided that watching television is more educational than going online. Moreover, this is true even if Subject A (brother) watches nothing but sitcoms and ESPN while Subject B (myself) peruses political websites. I have come to this conclusion after having observed the way in which subject A utilized the free time he had inadvertently been given by my bad shopping choices (he can't eat fish, breaded, or fried food; three guesses as to what I bought for dinner).
While home sick, he watched TV. When home not-sick, he also watches TV, a lot of it. When I'm home, I generally read, or write, or rollerblade, or make plans, but mostly I go online. My brother knows more random bits of history and science than I do. Also more sports, but I'm willing to forgive him that. Since I refuse to believe that he is any smarter or more able to remember trivia than I am, the only possible explanation is that television itself imparts greater knowledge.
{Begin Pseudo-Scientific Babble} I can actually see where this might be true: it is a fundamental principle of... something.... that the greater the available choice, the more marginalized each choice will become. It follows that since there are so many different interests available on the web, the natural tendency will be for most of them to be narrow, and for most of the people viewing them to remain within a few equally narrow bounds. Whereas with TV there is much more variety in the types of information presented by a single channel, excepting of course such freak-of-nature stations as The Golf Network and the Video Game Channel. {/babble}
Just think of all the things one can learn simply by watching Saturday Night Live, and tell me that I'm not right.
So, yes. In defense of my apparent insecurity, he is my younger brother. Who watches TV all day. Speaking of days, today is a particularly nice one, with fluffy-cloudy skies and a nice warm breeze. It really makes me wish that I had more friends (in this state) who enjoy physical activity. More jobless, on-vacation friends with time to waste, that is. I feel particularly bad for having wasted my weekly shot at an outdoor group activity on tennis yesterday, when it was raining.
*Looks at her profile page and weeps, then laughs* I think I'll keep it for sentimental reasons.
While home sick, he watched TV. When home not-sick, he also watches TV, a lot of it. When I'm home, I generally read, or write, or rollerblade, or make plans, but mostly I go online. My brother knows more random bits of history and science than I do. Also more sports, but I'm willing to forgive him that. Since I refuse to believe that he is any smarter or more able to remember trivia than I am, the only possible explanation is that television itself imparts greater knowledge.
{Begin Pseudo-Scientific Babble} I can actually see where this might be true: it is a fundamental principle of... something.... that the greater the available choice, the more marginalized each choice will become. It follows that since there are so many different interests available on the web, the natural tendency will be for most of them to be narrow, and for most of the people viewing them to remain within a few equally narrow bounds. Whereas with TV there is much more variety in the types of information presented by a single channel, excepting of course such freak-of-nature stations as The Golf Network and the Video Game Channel. {/babble}
Just think of all the things one can learn simply by watching Saturday Night Live, and tell me that I'm not right.
So, yes. In defense of my apparent insecurity, he is my younger brother. Who watches TV all day. Speaking of days, today is a particularly nice one, with fluffy-cloudy skies and a nice warm breeze. It really makes me wish that I had more friends (in this state) who enjoy physical activity. More jobless, on-vacation friends with time to waste, that is. I feel particularly bad for having wasted my weekly shot at an outdoor group activity on tennis yesterday, when it was raining.
*Looks at her profile page and weeps, then laughs* I think I'll keep it for sentimental reasons.