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Virtual Unreality: Just Because the Internet Told You, How Do You Know It's True?
The bestselling author of Proofiness and Zero explains how to separate fact from fantasy in the digital world
Digital information is a powerful tool that spreads unbelievably rapidly, infects all corners of society, and is all but impossible to control—even when that information is actually a lie. In Virtual Unreality, Charles Seife uses the skepticism, wit, and sharp facility for analysis that captivated readers in Proofiness and Zero to take us deep into the Internet information jungle and cut a path through the trickery, fakery, and cyber skullduggery that the online world enables.
Taking on everything from breaking news coverage and online dating to program trading and that eccentric and unreliable source that is Wikipedia, Seife arms his readers with actual tools—or weapons—for discerning truth from fiction online.
Digital information is a powerful tool that spreads unbelievably rapidly, infects all corners of society, and is all but impossible to control—even when that information is actually a lie. In Virtual Unreality, Charles Seife uses the skepticism, wit, and sharp facility for analysis that captivated readers in Proofiness and Zero to take us deep into the Internet information jungle and cut a path through the trickery, fakery, and cyber skullduggery that the online world enables.
Taking on everything from breaking news coverage and online dating to program trading and that eccentric and unreliable source that is Wikipedia, Seife arms his readers with actual tools—or weapons—for discerning truth from fiction online.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published June 26, 2014
20 people are currently reading
1009 people want to read
About the author
Charles Seife
14 books173 followersCHARLES SEIFE is a Professor of Journalism at New York University. Formerly a journalist with Science magazine, has also written for New Scientist, Scientific American, The Economist, Science, Wired UK, The Sciences, and numerous other publications. He is the author of Zero: The Biography Of A Dangerous Idea, which won the PEN/Martha Albrand Award for First Nonfiction. He holds an M.S. in mathematics from Yale University and his areas of research include probability theory and artificial intelligence. He lives in Washington D.C.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
April 12, 2021
There Is No Vaccine
People lie
Because there are no consequences, the lies people tell on the internet are bigger than ever before.
Because people are largely uneducated, and like gossip, the lies that people tell on the internet are more consequential.
Because the lies told on the internet spread like an highly infectious disease, it is appropriate to use this analogy to describe the way in which they infect human brains as a sort of plague.
All the traditional defences we have relied upon to reduce the rate of infection - authority, cross-referencing, factual consistency, social distancing, isolation - have broken down with the advance and global proliferation of digital technology.
Consequently we are all at continuous peril of infection from a virulent auto-immune disease that hides its effects and is welcomed by its hosts: “As we sink into the comfortable monotony of constant reinforcement, as we spend an increasing amount of time listening to sources of information that are tailored to strengthen our mental fictions rather than challenge them, we are slowly being turned into cranks ourselves. And those who don’t succumb are often at the mercy of those who do.”
In short: “Bad information is a disease that affects all of us... And there’s no vaccine.” Yep, that’s right ladies and gents. There is no cure, no preventative, no fix for the condition. I admire Seife for admitting it. But then why write the book? Exposing some of the lies which have been shown to be false, misleading, or just stupid, typically involved dogged detective work beyond both the capability and interest of your average internet user. His examples therefore are more salacious than instructive.
There is no vaccine now; there will be no vaccine. The underlying virus has always been there waiting, like COVID, for the right environmental conditions to emerge. Yet Seife has hope. For what? A general improvement in human nature? The rise of some sort of new journalistic authority? Some new philosophical breakthrough in epistemology? Education in computer literacy? As soon as these solutions are listed, it is obvious that the cause is lost. As he notes, the current state of affairs represents the real social triumph of democracy. Finally we have a technology which rids us of the plague of elites. Truth is what the majority say it is (two-thirds in the US Senate, a stand for plutocracy!). Our right to believe anything we desire has been vindicated by our technological fellowship with others who believe the same things. Could it be that Seife’s hope is just another internet lie to enhance his position with his aspiring journalist students, giving them some hope that their futures are secure? Someone tell me why these students are not doomed to irrelevance.
People lie
Because there are no consequences, the lies people tell on the internet are bigger than ever before.
Because people are largely uneducated, and like gossip, the lies that people tell on the internet are more consequential.
Because the lies told on the internet spread like an highly infectious disease, it is appropriate to use this analogy to describe the way in which they infect human brains as a sort of plague.
All the traditional defences we have relied upon to reduce the rate of infection - authority, cross-referencing, factual consistency, social distancing, isolation - have broken down with the advance and global proliferation of digital technology.
Consequently we are all at continuous peril of infection from a virulent auto-immune disease that hides its effects and is welcomed by its hosts: “As we sink into the comfortable monotony of constant reinforcement, as we spend an increasing amount of time listening to sources of information that are tailored to strengthen our mental fictions rather than challenge them, we are slowly being turned into cranks ourselves. And those who don’t succumb are often at the mercy of those who do.”
In short: “Bad information is a disease that affects all of us... And there’s no vaccine.” Yep, that’s right ladies and gents. There is no cure, no preventative, no fix for the condition. I admire Seife for admitting it. But then why write the book? Exposing some of the lies which have been shown to be false, misleading, or just stupid, typically involved dogged detective work beyond both the capability and interest of your average internet user. His examples therefore are more salacious than instructive.
There is no vaccine now; there will be no vaccine. The underlying virus has always been there waiting, like COVID, for the right environmental conditions to emerge. Yet Seife has hope. For what? A general improvement in human nature? The rise of some sort of new journalistic authority? Some new philosophical breakthrough in epistemology? Education in computer literacy? As soon as these solutions are listed, it is obvious that the cause is lost. As he notes, the current state of affairs represents the real social triumph of democracy. Finally we have a technology which rids us of the plague of elites. Truth is what the majority say it is (two-thirds in the US Senate, a stand for plutocracy!). Our right to believe anything we desire has been vindicated by our technological fellowship with others who believe the same things. Could it be that Seife’s hope is just another internet lie to enhance his position with his aspiring journalist students, giving them some hope that their futures are secure? Someone tell me why these students are not doomed to irrelevance.
February 22, 2019
A Review in Two Sentences
This book scares the crap out of me and makes me fear for my future and the fate of journalism itself. It is not necessarily a pleasurably read, but God do you need to read it because this is stuff you should know about media in the digital age.
This book scares the crap out of me and makes me fear for my future and the fate of journalism itself. It is not necessarily a pleasurably read, but God do you need to read it because this is stuff you should know about media in the digital age.
October 4, 2015
I'm still a bit puzzled as to the grammatical correctness of the title. Shouldn't it be "Just because the Internet told you, doesn't mean it's true", or "The Internet told you; how do you know it's true?"
Anyway.
This book didn't tell me anything new; it just reinforced a list of observations I'd already made about everything virtual as opposed to real life.
Examples:
1) Identities on the Internet can be easily constructed and faked.
2) "Facts" you read on the Internet may not be true.
3) You can use the Internet to make yourself heard quite easily.
4) Computers, automation, and programmes have made it difficult or impossible for humans to compete in certain arenas (financial trading for one).
5) The arms race to be the most searched for entity continues.
What was interesting was the stories the author tells in order to substantiate the points I've listed above. E.g. We learn of how a university undergrad wrongly attributes a quote to a famous figure, and how journalists all start using that quote as well, thereby creating the mass perpetuation of an erroneous fact. (This was later corrected by the way, as the student owned up.)
I also learned some creative tactics Internet marketers use, as well as an overview of how SEO works, how some big and well-known companies actually use(d) underhanded methods to boost their site traffic and hence increase their ranking on Google, etc.
The above to me was the most amusing part of this book. I had no idea those companies he mentioned were using those tactics too. I thought "cheating" was only employed by the more desperate, smaller fish out there.
Anyway.
This book didn't tell me anything new; it just reinforced a list of observations I'd already made about everything virtual as opposed to real life.
Examples:
1) Identities on the Internet can be easily constructed and faked.
2) "Facts" you read on the Internet may not be true.
3) You can use the Internet to make yourself heard quite easily.
4) Computers, automation, and programmes have made it difficult or impossible for humans to compete in certain arenas (financial trading for one).
5) The arms race to be the most searched for entity continues.
What was interesting was the stories the author tells in order to substantiate the points I've listed above. E.g. We learn of how a university undergrad wrongly attributes a quote to a famous figure, and how journalists all start using that quote as well, thereby creating the mass perpetuation of an erroneous fact. (This was later corrected by the way, as the student owned up.)
I also learned some creative tactics Internet marketers use, as well as an overview of how SEO works, how some big and well-known companies actually use(d) underhanded methods to boost their site traffic and hence increase their ranking on Google, etc.
The above to me was the most amusing part of this book. I had no idea those companies he mentioned were using those tactics too. I thought "cheating" was only employed by the more desperate, smaller fish out there.
September 22, 2014
Virtual Unreality demonstrates that the Internet is fooling us constantly. And the Nigerian Prince and male enhancement scams are just a small part of it. Charles Seife spends almost no time with those obvious frauds, and deals instead with the subtle manipulations of "respectable" web sites such as Wikipedia and the Huffington Post.
Before reading this book, I had little idea what "search engine optimization" was. Now, I'm amazed how manipulative and clever it can be.
I particularly liked Seife's "Top Ten Dicta of the Internet Skeptic." I'll present an abbreviated list here, but they aren't all immediately obvious without the accompanying discussion from the book:
1. Wikipedia is like an old and eccentric uncle.
2. Everybody's a fake, at least that's what you should assume.
3. You don't have to fool all of the people some of the time or some of the people all of the time...All you need to do is fool a tiny fraction of the people once in a while.
4. The early bird gets the worm. The late bird gets the early bird.
5. In the media world, laziness is increasingly a virtue.
6. Not everything is online.
7. A social media's purpose is to serve its users -- in the same sense as a zoo's purpose is to serve its animals.
8. The internet doesn't represent a revolution for free speech as much as a revolution in free audiences.
9. People are using digital technology to make you act against your own self-interest -- and you're more than happy to go along.
10. Top ten lists are just marketing gimmicks for suckers.
This book has made me want to read Seife's other books. Well written, informative, and worth spending some time with. Unlike most of the internet.
Before reading this book, I had little idea what "search engine optimization" was. Now, I'm amazed how manipulative and clever it can be.
I particularly liked Seife's "Top Ten Dicta of the Internet Skeptic." I'll present an abbreviated list here, but they aren't all immediately obvious without the accompanying discussion from the book:
1. Wikipedia is like an old and eccentric uncle.
2. Everybody's a fake, at least that's what you should assume.
3. You don't have to fool all of the people some of the time or some of the people all of the time...All you need to do is fool a tiny fraction of the people once in a while.
4. The early bird gets the worm. The late bird gets the early bird.
5. In the media world, laziness is increasingly a virtue.
6. Not everything is online.
7. A social media's purpose is to serve its users -- in the same sense as a zoo's purpose is to serve its animals.
8. The internet doesn't represent a revolution for free speech as much as a revolution in free audiences.
9. People are using digital technology to make you act against your own self-interest -- and you're more than happy to go along.
10. Top ten lists are just marketing gimmicks for suckers.
This book has made me want to read Seife's other books. Well written, informative, and worth spending some time with. Unlike most of the internet.
August 6, 2014
I looked forward to reading this book for several months. I wanted to know how to tell the difference between reality and unreality on the internet. I wanted to learn new things, gain new insights. When I was finally able to get it, I started it immediately and found it to be very interesting . . . for the first few chapters. Then I noticed that I wasn't learning anything new, but I was getting a good history of some of the scams and ploys that are common. Well, I thought, this is the basic stuff, and soon the author will tell me about the new ways that the digital world is working and what to watch out for. But I was wrong. I really think the premise was good, and I still think it has real possibilities. But I felt most of the book was more of a history lesson on what has already occurred. If you use internet and all of the associated social engines and other possibilities, you are probably fairly well versed in what can happen and how to avoid the scams. Mr. Seife's last chapter was very good, and he reinforced that "we must learn to see through the haze of virtual unreality." But the book just did not seem to give any information on how to do that except to tell us to be careful about what we believe to be true.
February 18, 2015
I thought this book had a great premise. It seemed very relevant given all the crazy articles that people post on social media, without checking other sources and believe to be true. There were some interesting examples but not much information. It could have been a much shorter book or maybe even a magazine article considering the actual amount of information on the subject title. It's not a book I would recommend taking the time to read.
June 3, 2017
OMG! I did not realize just how interconnected we are (I am) when doing almost anything on the internet. I knew that personal information could be obtained in many cases with a few clicks but how available such information is and widely and quickly it is disseminated was a surprise. It makes me MUCH more conscious of what I click on and if I really want to share things with others.
User beware whenever you are on the internet. If you don't believe me just send me $99 and I'll tell you.
User beware whenever you are on the internet. If you don't believe me just send me $99 and I'll tell you.
March 9, 2014
good info - how to know if fact or fiction is being presented - smile
April 26, 2014
Easy read, full of interesting facts about the scary reality of our online life.
September 16, 2015
Molto interessante. C'è sempre qualcosa da imparare.
October 21, 2023
Oh, diving into "Virtual Unreality" by Charles Seife was like opening a can of worms in the digital age. Seife takes you on a journey into the depths of misinformation on the internet, and oh boy, it's a wild ride. His narrative is engaging and kind of shakes you by the shoulders, making you question the 'reality' of the virtual world. The examples he provides are eye-opening and sometimes downright shocking. It's like he's peeling back layers of deception, one clickbait headline at a time.
The book isn't just a critique though, it's a cautionary tale. Seife doesn't just point out the problems; he offers a way to navigate through the minefield of falsehoods that the internet can sometimes be. He nudges you to think critically, to not take information at face value, and to be a discerning consumer of online content. I appreciate that he arms the reader with tools to differentiate between what's real and what's not.
I have to say, "Virtual Unreality" was a somewhat unsettling yet enlightening read. It's a wake-up call in a world where misinformation can spread faster than the truth. Seife's writing style is crisp, engaging, and sometimes humorous, which makes the serious topic of digital deception digestible and even entertaining. It's a book I'd definitely recommend for anyone looking to understand the landscape of the digital information age better and wanting to arm themselves against the barrage of misinformation out there.
The book isn't just a critique though, it's a cautionary tale. Seife doesn't just point out the problems; he offers a way to navigate through the minefield of falsehoods that the internet can sometimes be. He nudges you to think critically, to not take information at face value, and to be a discerning consumer of online content. I appreciate that he arms the reader with tools to differentiate between what's real and what's not.
I have to say, "Virtual Unreality" was a somewhat unsettling yet enlightening read. It's a wake-up call in a world where misinformation can spread faster than the truth. Seife's writing style is crisp, engaging, and sometimes humorous, which makes the serious topic of digital deception digestible and even entertaining. It's a book I'd definitely recommend for anyone looking to understand the landscape of the digital information age better and wanting to arm themselves against the barrage of misinformation out there.
October 29, 2021
Zeggen dat het internet ons individueel leven en de samenleving in z'n geheel fundamenteel veranderd heeft, is als het intrappen van een open deur.
Maar waar de overgrote meerderheid van de mensen zich niet bewust van is, is de mate waarin hun bestaan bepaald, ja zelfs gedirigeerd wordt door dat internet, en dat zij dat zelf toelaten, bewust of onbewust. Alle gepraat over privacy en individuele vrijheid, alle zogenaamde maatregelen van overheidswege om die privacy te beschermen, alle aankondigingen en waarschuwingen ten spijt, mogen we gerust stellen dat "onze" werkelijkheid steeds meer een virtuele irrealiteit geworden is die wij denken zelf te beheersen, maar waardoor wij in feite zelf beheerst worden.
Is het verontrustend? Jazeker.
Kan er iets aan gedaan worden? Jazeker... door bewust bewustzijn, door kritisch denken, door weigering mee te lopen in allerlei praatjes, door te checken en te dubbelchecken ook al vraagt dat moeite en inspanning, want hoe gemakzuchtiger je bent, hoe idioter en kwetsbaarder je bent.
Maar waar de overgrote meerderheid van de mensen zich niet bewust van is, is de mate waarin hun bestaan bepaald, ja zelfs gedirigeerd wordt door dat internet, en dat zij dat zelf toelaten, bewust of onbewust. Alle gepraat over privacy en individuele vrijheid, alle zogenaamde maatregelen van overheidswege om die privacy te beschermen, alle aankondigingen en waarschuwingen ten spijt, mogen we gerust stellen dat "onze" werkelijkheid steeds meer een virtuele irrealiteit geworden is die wij denken zelf te beheersen, maar waardoor wij in feite zelf beheerst worden.
Is het verontrustend? Jazeker.
Kan er iets aan gedaan worden? Jazeker... door bewust bewustzijn, door kritisch denken, door weigering mee te lopen in allerlei praatjes, door te checken en te dubbelchecken ook al vraagt dat moeite en inspanning, want hoe gemakzuchtiger je bent, hoe idioter en kwetsbaarder je bent.
October 28, 2018
Probably on the order of 3.75ish. Shelving under public_policy because I see some need for policy to address a few points that Seife brings up in the text.
While only published in 2014, a number of sites / individuals / corporations / etc. have taken the techniques Seife exposes to a whole new level. I'd love to read what he thinks of these techniques used during 2016 and beyond.
It's always good to have a solid reminder of just how screwed we are if we're not constantly critical, vigilant, and skeptical.
While only published in 2014, a number of sites / individuals / corporations / etc. have taken the techniques Seife exposes to a whole new level. I'd love to read what he thinks of these techniques used during 2016 and beyond.
It's always good to have a solid reminder of just how screwed we are if we're not constantly critical, vigilant, and skeptical.
November 21, 2017
Clearly written, and the topic is highly relevant, though because the book is several years old some of the examples feel slightly dated. And it somehow doesn't have quite the sense of urgency that I was expecting.
August 10, 2019
Loved the book but, unfortunately, it’s a bit outdated. It’s the nature of this topic. That said, I still enjoyed some of the history. I like the way the author connects the dots with this complex subject.
March 9, 2017
Ought to be required reading in every high school in the country. Only complaint: could have been longer! There's so much ground to cover....
August 13, 2018
Everyone who uses the internet at all should read this book. Gave me a lot to think about.
August 23, 2018
Perhaps a little pessimistic, but fascinating material!
January 19, 2019
Well worth considering
Slightly old now, but potent description of the shadow side of the internet. Has lots of common sense. Even after a few years.
Slightly old now, but potent description of the shadow side of the internet. Has lots of common sense. Even after a few years.
Read
October 18, 2021Wikipedia. Plagiarism. Photo alteration. Email scams. Deception.
December 19, 2021
so full of interestings -- like a portal and magic mirror combo
September 16, 2022
Not as practically useful as I'd hoped it would be, but an interesting (and slightly terrifying) read nonetheless.
May 22, 2018
I've been on the Internet since my college days in the 1990s—back when my connection was dialup, when Usenet was (more of) a thing, and when Prodigy, CompuServe, and AOL were big—so I like to think I'm pretty savvy about the Internet. However, Virtual Unreality: The New Era of Digital Deception by respected science journalist Charles Seife demonstrated more than amply that no matter how much I thought I knew, the Internet always has further ways of deceiving its users.
A case in point: I recently rejoined a prominent online dating website—one on which I had met more than one person—after at least a year off, and I've messaged a few people; one of them did respond, but her profile was one sentence, with nary a period at the end, and she consistently responded with terse, one-sentence responses. Eventually, I guessed that she wasn't readily communicative online, so I asked her out—only for her to respond "LOL I'll think about it". Seife devotes an entire chapter to such interchanges, and he notes the prevalence of bots—solely virtual profiles designed to boost the site's numbers and entice additional users to join and stay—on online dating sites . . . and even after reading Virtual Unreality, I didn't detect a likely bot until well after I had messaged it several times—and it messaged me back. Seife makes excellent argument that the Internet is rife with That Which Is Not As It Seems, on nearly every level, and no one is immune to "falling for" these pitfalls; indeed, I openly wondered as I read Virtual Unreality what Seife would've made of the 2016 Presidential campaign, with its plethora of Russian spambots and fake news. (Never mind that Jon Ronson's opening anecdote in So You've Been Publicly Shamed, another book I enjoyed, suggests this phenomenon as well.)
In general, Virtual Unreality should act as a wake-up call to anyone who frequents the Internet—i.e., most people, everywhere. Yes, Virtual Unreality isn't perfect—the book, as the Internet proliferates exponentially with each passing day, has dated even since it came out, and in a couple cases Seife casts a more alarmist tone than I felt was strictly warranted—but it does comport with every other book on skepticism I've read, that a healthy dose of skepticism about everything is valuable; I particularly contrast Virtual Unreality with Jonathan Kay's Among the Truthers insofar as while Kay is explicitly trying to "sell" you on his ideas, Seife is doing so far less intently. Perhaps that's Seife's most fundamental thesis: On the Internet, question whatever you see, question the motives of who's showing it to you, and so forth. Seife has earned his respect as a science journalist and educator, and Virtual Unreality bolsters that respect further.
A case in point: I recently rejoined a prominent online dating website—one on which I had met more than one person—after at least a year off, and I've messaged a few people; one of them did respond, but her profile was one sentence, with nary a period at the end, and she consistently responded with terse, one-sentence responses. Eventually, I guessed that she wasn't readily communicative online, so I asked her out—only for her to respond "LOL I'll think about it". Seife devotes an entire chapter to such interchanges, and he notes the prevalence of bots—solely virtual profiles designed to boost the site's numbers and entice additional users to join and stay—on online dating sites . . . and even after reading Virtual Unreality, I didn't detect a likely bot until well after I had messaged it several times—and it messaged me back. Seife makes excellent argument that the Internet is rife with That Which Is Not As It Seems, on nearly every level, and no one is immune to "falling for" these pitfalls; indeed, I openly wondered as I read Virtual Unreality what Seife would've made of the 2016 Presidential campaign, with its plethora of Russian spambots and fake news. (Never mind that Jon Ronson's opening anecdote in So You've Been Publicly Shamed, another book I enjoyed, suggests this phenomenon as well.)
In general, Virtual Unreality should act as a wake-up call to anyone who frequents the Internet—i.e., most people, everywhere. Yes, Virtual Unreality isn't perfect—the book, as the Internet proliferates exponentially with each passing day, has dated even since it came out, and in a couple cases Seife casts a more alarmist tone than I felt was strictly warranted—but it does comport with every other book on skepticism I've read, that a healthy dose of skepticism about everything is valuable; I particularly contrast Virtual Unreality with Jonathan Kay's Among the Truthers insofar as while Kay is explicitly trying to "sell" you on his ideas, Seife is doing so far less intently. Perhaps that's Seife's most fundamental thesis: On the Internet, question whatever you see, question the motives of who's showing it to you, and so forth. Seife has earned his respect as a science journalist and educator, and Virtual Unreality bolsters that respect further.
April 14, 2014
This is a very engaging book, well-researched and informative regarding the changes in our society today due to our interconnectedness. The author paints an intriguing picture of how the internet is a wonderful resource but should be viewed also as a tool that can be used against us: to exploit us for money and information that can often be turned against us. He tells us how our private information can be easily taken from us, and how we willingly give up our locations and valuable private information in ludicrous pursuits such as online games, some of which are being used as research tools to study our habits and responses to time-wasting tasks masquerading as social games. Mr. Seife tells us how we are being manipulated by people and robotics online in different ways, including online dating sites and stock market interactions. The scary thing is that we often have no idea we are being manipulated by scam artists. Chock-full of examples of the myriad changes over the recent years due to the explosive "noise" of the digital age, this book is a timely expose on the revolution that is changing the way we receive information. The change to even the way news is researched and written impacts each of our lives in the modern world of technology. From e-mail and the pros and cons of e-books to Farmville and the comparisons to the brain alterations by some parasitic organisms to some Skinnerian digital experiments, this book is a must-read for anyone interested in how the interconnectedness of the internet is changing our very lives, both for better and for worse, and what we can do about it by seeking news that is in opposition to our prejudices and by a careful analysis of everything we hear and read to ensure that it is not merely "copied" and parceled out to us as such.
Disclaimer: I received an uncorrected proof copy of this book free of charge through Goodreads from the publisher.
Disclaimer: I received an uncorrected proof copy of this book free of charge through Goodreads from the publisher.
July 13, 2014
Based on his own experience as a journalist and a professor, Charles Seife provides a readable account of having to live with the Internet run amok. He opens with an interesting warping of reality, the case of the Muppet Bert's affiliation with the terrorist Osama Bin Laden. What had started as a joke with the "Bert is Evil" website was transformed in to strange reality when someone made up posters using images off the Internet. This segues into eleven chapters and three half chapters that covers a lot of ground regarding the effect the Internet has on your life (the half chapters provide a longer look at specifics covered in the previous chapter). He then finishes with a Top Ten list for the Internet skeptic.
Seife provides plenty of material for information literacy discussions with his discussions of the interaction of information versus knowledge versus wisdom, the problem with authority (citing sources and proving sources), trolling, fake people, interconnection rather than communication, copyright issues, etc. He also discusses the problems of too much information with noise drowning out signal, the dumbing down of intelligence, and the use of public/private information being used for private gain by companies and individuals.
Charles Seife packs a lot of information in a small book with the unfortunate result that it feels like a collection of essays rather than a coherent argument. The coverage of multiple and divergent topics and some of the examples used will leave this book feeling dated in a few short years. That being stated, the author has provided many coherent arguments that should be examined and discussed not just by librarians, information literacy specialists and academics, but by the public as a whole.
Seife provides plenty of material for information literacy discussions with his discussions of the interaction of information versus knowledge versus wisdom, the problem with authority (citing sources and proving sources), trolling, fake people, interconnection rather than communication, copyright issues, etc. He also discusses the problems of too much information with noise drowning out signal, the dumbing down of intelligence, and the use of public/private information being used for private gain by companies and individuals.
Charles Seife packs a lot of information in a small book with the unfortunate result that it feels like a collection of essays rather than a coherent argument. The coverage of multiple and divergent topics and some of the examples used will leave this book feeling dated in a few short years. That being stated, the author has provided many coherent arguments that should be examined and discussed not just by librarians, information literacy specialists and academics, but by the public as a whole.
September 24, 2015
Una delle tante cose che non capisco è perché la traduzione italiana di questo libro non abbia potuto mantenere l'evocativo titolo originale "Irrealtà virtuale", sostituito con un "Le menzogne del web" che è doppiamente falso: innanzitutto perché non si parla solo del web ma anche di media cartacei e aziende ben reali, e poi perché più che di bugie si parla di manipolazioni ai nostri danni. La rete è indubbiamente un importante ampllficatore, come Seife ben spiega, ma la maggior parte delle dinamiche esistevano già in passato, almeno in nuce. Quello che è cambiato è l'interconnessione tra le persone che è accresciuta in maniera incredibile e crea così fenomeni emergenti e la duplicabilità infinita e virtualmente gratuita dei dati, che porta al paradosso che non abbiamo mai avuto a disposizione tanta informazione come oggi ma allo stesso tempo è sempre più difficile conoscere qualcosa, cioè estrarre il segnale dal rumore.
Seife, che è un docente di giornalismo ma ha un background di matematico - lo conoscevo per il suo libro sulla storia dello zero - spiega nell'introduzione che lui non è un luddista ma vuole metterci in guardia dai rischi di un uso non informato della rete, anche con alcuni approfondimenti puntuali - i capitoli "e 1/2". Le bufale sono solo la punta dell'iceberg: molto peggiori sono i modi in cui le aziende possono condizionarci senza nemmeno che ce ne accorgiamo. Evidentemente sono rimasto parecchio indietro anch'io, perché certe tecniche di SEO, i modi cioè di portare un sito in cima ai risultati di una ricerca, mi erano sconosciute. La traduzione di Susanna Bourlot è scorrevole e non pedante, anche se in qualche punto, come per esempio quando Seife parla di link canonici e delle truffe 419, ho il sospetto che non sia stata controllata da un esperto.
Seife, che è un docente di giornalismo ma ha un background di matematico - lo conoscevo per il suo libro sulla storia dello zero - spiega nell'introduzione che lui non è un luddista ma vuole metterci in guardia dai rischi di un uso non informato della rete, anche con alcuni approfondimenti puntuali - i capitoli "e 1/2". Le bufale sono solo la punta dell'iceberg: molto peggiori sono i modi in cui le aziende possono condizionarci senza nemmeno che ce ne accorgiamo. Evidentemente sono rimasto parecchio indietro anch'io, perché certe tecniche di SEO, i modi cioè di portare un sito in cima ai risultati di una ricerca, mi erano sconosciute. La traduzione di Susanna Bourlot è scorrevole e non pedante, anche se in qualche punto, come per esempio quando Seife parla di link canonici e delle truffe 419, ho il sospetto che non sia stata controllata da un esperto.
October 7, 2014
(I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.)
This book is a must for anyone who wants to be able to discern the facts from all the deception found on the internet. Charles Seife presents an eye-opening look at how easily the "facts and truth" can be altered on the internet. This book, an enjoyable read thanks to the author's wit and writing ability, is a serious analysis of the problems caused by the fluidity of anything digital.
Among the many interesting and thought-provoking anecdotes in the book, I found the examples of the ability of errant virtual information to bleed over into real life a bit frightening. Luckily, this book provides some helpful tips on how to verify the information one comes across on the internet. Another point I found extremely interesting is how the interconnectedness, provided over a vast population, allows large groups people to link up with other like-minded individuals thereby permitting the exaggeration and substantiation of some extreme views.
The author does not condemn the advances in the ability of the internet to spread news and information, which generally is a good thing, but rather shows how you must always be careful to analyze the source.
I plan to purchase of copy of this book for my daughter who gets all her "news" from the internet.
This book is a must for anyone who wants to be able to discern the facts from all the deception found on the internet. Charles Seife presents an eye-opening look at how easily the "facts and truth" can be altered on the internet. This book, an enjoyable read thanks to the author's wit and writing ability, is a serious analysis of the problems caused by the fluidity of anything digital.
Among the many interesting and thought-provoking anecdotes in the book, I found the examples of the ability of errant virtual information to bleed over into real life a bit frightening. Luckily, this book provides some helpful tips on how to verify the information one comes across on the internet. Another point I found extremely interesting is how the interconnectedness, provided over a vast population, allows large groups people to link up with other like-minded individuals thereby permitting the exaggeration and substantiation of some extreme views.
The author does not condemn the advances in the ability of the internet to spread news and information, which generally is a good thing, but rather shows how you must always be careful to analyze the source.
I plan to purchase of copy of this book for my daughter who gets all her "news" from the internet.
October 12, 2015
If you've been living part of your life on the Web from its toddler days in the 1990s, you probably know most of the stories assembled here: How Bert moved from Sesame Street to become an ally of Osama Bin Laden; people who create avatars with illnesses and dramatic stories and solicit funds for their support; hoax web sites and conspiracies.
What makes this book immensely valuable is how Seife puts all of this together to create a larger, integrated story of how the information explosion is making us more solipsistic, more gullible, and more vulnerable to acting against our own best interests.
This is a thick book, but a substantial portion is references, bibliography, and index. Seife, a journalism professor, has meticulously provided documentation throughout -- no easy matter in a world of evanescent flickers.
I strongly recommend this book for all of us, but especially those of us who, for health reasons, or other forms of isolation, have a substantial time and emotional investment in the virtual worlds. This would also make an excellent text, in whole or in part, for an information literacy class or program.
What makes this book immensely valuable is how Seife puts all of this together to create a larger, integrated story of how the information explosion is making us more solipsistic, more gullible, and more vulnerable to acting against our own best interests.
This is a thick book, but a substantial portion is references, bibliography, and index. Seife, a journalism professor, has meticulously provided documentation throughout -- no easy matter in a world of evanescent flickers.
I strongly recommend this book for all of us, but especially those of us who, for health reasons, or other forms of isolation, have a substantial time and emotional investment in the virtual worlds. This would also make an excellent text, in whole or in part, for an information literacy class or program.
August 25, 2016
"Virtual Unreality: Just Because the Internet Told You, How Do You Know It's True?" is Charles Seife's take on dishonesty and manipulation in the online environment. I don't really believe much of what I read or see online as I was already aware of much of the information presented in this book, but I am quite shocked at what some other people believe. I remember, when I was on Facebook, some people would forward some of the most ridiculous news stories from the most unreliable sources and actually believed them. I would love to send copies of this book to them, but I doubt it would help, as I have often found out that many of these people want to believe these outrageous stories, but that is a whole other field of study.
I think this book would be great for young people who may not be fully aware of the consequences of using and the misinformation running rampant on the internet. It is an excellent resource for study, especially in sociology, economics, etc. The author did an excellent job of researching and presenting the information.
I think this book would be great for young people who may not be fully aware of the consequences of using and the misinformation running rampant on the internet. It is an excellent resource for study, especially in sociology, economics, etc. The author did an excellent job of researching and presenting the information.
March 17, 2015
Based on the title and the cover, I had expected this to expose Internet fads and myths. Instead, what I read was a reasoned and accessible book about how our concept of information and our relationship with it has changed. Touching on topics that range from fake people to plagiarism, Seife examines how the ubiquity of digital information is changing entire industries and systems of behavior. Reading this book will not tell you whether that last meme you saw on Facebook was true or not; it will, however, give you some suggestions as to how to decide whether a person, business, or charity is genuine or shady. It will also leave you with plenty of food for personal reflection: how do you view information? How are you manipulated by online entities? And what will you do about it?
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