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16:30 - 17:30

Sean Rafferty presents a selection of music and guests from the arts world.

Computers

4. Debate: Computers Make You Stupid.



Description

From search engines to spell-check and calculators to copy and paste, life's a lot easier with a little computer support. But are we losing ground on previous generations who could do these things themselves? Meet the Free Thinkers of the future as Radio Merseyside's Roger Phillips keeps the peace between two teams of young debaters from Liverpool schools. In collaboration with the English Speaking Union.



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Your thoughts

Grace Nquot liverpool
i am relaly impressed with the way the debate turned out.good work guys.

jason palmer,london
Perhaps being on the computer or watching tv reduces the time for reading books or listening to radio 3 so people appear more stupid ?

jason palmer, london
You need wisdom to know what to use a computer for and what not to use it for. How you gain wisdom is beyond me, education may help ?

Roooosta ....Nyorks
I remember a time of Gaestner printers, ink all over your hands, waiting for letters in order to get info, hours in the library researching....going to the printers to get originals pricked and processed....typewriter, mistakes....poor graphics....We have just had (are having) a run in with the local council....within a few days a web site was up, people rallied in cyber space, the nature of the medium made the debate civilised....posters and leaflets were created and evaluated in cyberspace....information of council (parish, district, county) were poured over....as with Regional Assemblies, LAW, newspaper archives, emails to press, MP's, etc etc etc....computers in this sense have empowered me and us....

jason palmer,london
They are a tool, good for some things but not others but I did find it rather sad when I recently visited my local library to find the kids playing on the web and not reading books.I wrote a poem about it, here it isThe Library Books, alone they stand Theatre leaflets, skills for life Kids on the web Learning Ladder Cd,dvd racks flipping Laptops in the corner Wireless web 2008, national year of reading Books,alone they stand Small,Large,stood,fallen Dusty jackets,bright new ones Alone they stand Books learn to be alone In the library

Steve: Nuneaton Warwickshire
Were Goethe's Faust or Marlowe's Doctor Faustus here today Mephistopheles would charge £14.99 per month and call himself an ISP.How disappointed would they be to find they were answer-wealthy and question-impoverished?

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