We live in an age when people check out WebMD before they talk to their doctor, when people order groceries, entertainment, pizza – everything – online, and when the answers to all the world’s questions can be found on Google. This trend had me convinced that people are becoming more and more secluded in their own homes – attached to the world, but only in the virtual sense.

I think the article assigned this week raised some important points about the way information is organized. Many times I will have friends that update their status with “What’s the best way to hard boil an egg?” or “How can I pop my ears without holding my nose and blowing?” My first instinct was to google the answer for them assuming they were just too lazy to do it themselves. However, when I saw how people responded to these posts, the replies had information that I didn’t turn up in my google search. This amazed me.

I would never think to ask questions like these in my status but maybe there was something I was missing here – a personal response guided by what my friends thought I should do, not some random person across the world. In fact, I tried it this week. Usually when I find a question that cannot be answered by a thorough Google search I post it to Yahoo! Answers to see what I get. I took my most recent question from Yahoo! Answers – “How do I watch something full screen on my TV and still work on my laptop when they are connected by an HDMI cable?” I’ve been checking Yahoo! Answers every day since Friday patiently waiting for a response from a stranger. Nadda.

I posted it to my Facebook status last night. Within a few minutes I had two friends investigating my problem. Within the hour I had the answer to my question and a friend to thank for it! I was shocked! Lesson learned.