By Steve Johnson

7/10

Special Thanks: thank you to Joel Busby for letting me borrow this from his library.

Elevator Pitch: With the increase of technology, new mediums like the internet and video games, culture is actually getting more complex, and therefore more intellectually stimulating and creating more cognitively developed generations. IQ scores are getting better not worse, and it is due to Pop Culture.

Favorite Quotes: “I believe the printed word remains the most powerful vehicle for conveying complicated information – though the electronic word is starting to give printed books a run for their money.”

“Today’s pop culture may not be showing us the righteous path. But it is making us smarter.”

“If you create a system where rewards are both clearly defined and achieved by exploring an environment, you’ll find human brains drawn to those systems…”

Overview: I really liked this book. It is an academic, not application type of book. But, you can use it to determine whether or not you are maximizing your cognitive development. Very interesting spin for parents that are struggling with what they should censor of their kid’s intake of pop culture. Also introduces an interesting thought about video game rewards, that might be the future of workplace motivation. It is very interesting to read this in light of Drive by Daniel Pink.

Check it out… It is an easy single day read, and shows some love to Arrested Development, CSI, 24, Grand Theft Auto, and many other sleeper cognitive developers.