Information

        Today my post is about reading (again!) for me and getting information in general. I love to read and I have a lot of favorite books. But sometimes, instead of reading a book, I read on-line. I have a Google Reader Account (which I got thanks to my mom, who uses it also) so I usually go on and check new feed I have. H says that I also need to get used to reading an actual book, which I've been doing less of lately.

        Usually, H finds a book that has me hooked, read it in a day or two, and then read occasionally, then she find another book I really like, and so on. In other words, I read in spurts. For me, getting information has nothing to do with a newspaper. In fact, our house's newspaper contains information like what restaurant just opened.

 I get my news off of the Internet (to be specific, Google Reader) , the family dinner table, T.V., and mainly, NPR (National Public Radio), which I listen to in H's car when I'm being driven anywhere. I think that this assessment of news sources is the same for most of my friends. I think, as newer, younger generations are born, there will soon be no such thing as a book, all information and anything read will be on-line, on a Nook or E Reader, possibly a magazine. Am I opposed to that world?

 I'm not sure : I think everybody should be able to give themselves knowledge and entertainment how they want to, but should also try pushing their limits. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I think everything should be kept in moderation (including moderation itself!).

Quotes on Reading

Today's topic is based on two quotes about reading. I'll give you my opinion on them.
"Readers may be divided into four classes:

1) Sponges, who absorb all that they read and return it in nearly the same state, only a little dirtied.

2) Sand-glasses, who retain nothing and are content to get through a book for the sake of getting through the time.

3) Strain-bags, who retain merely the dregs of what they read. 

4) Mogul diamonds, equally rare and valuable, who profit by what they read, and enable others to profit by it also”                   
-Samuel Coleridge

"Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking."                                                  
-Albert Einstien

What I'm going to do today is find out who I think the man who Albert Einstein was talking about according to Samuel Coleridge. I will start with the 4th choice on the top quote. This man, M, would not be a Mogul Diamond because he is neither valuable, nor is gaining a profit. M would probably not be a Strain bag, because though he could fit into the qualities of a Strain-Bag, I think a more suitable classification is still somewhere up the list. I don't think M is a Sand-glass either, because he is probably not reading to pass time. He is probably reading because he has nothing better to do, making him a sponge. He will take in information and return, without changing it or inputting his own opinions.


Which of the four classes of readers do I think I fit into?I'd love to be a Mogul Diamond, but I don't think I fit into that class of reader. I think I would be a Class # 5, that is the one I think should be added to Samuel Coleridge's list. It's describes a reader who has a passion for reading, interprets it in his/her own way, but is quick to reject a book he/she thinks they don't like.