The question of how much power Google has in our lives has been raised a lot recently. It's true, we Google everything from how to spell a word to how to make the best Chili. But does this constant Googling and Youtube video watching and Reddit reading actually mean we are addicted to these mediums?
To answer this questions, let's start with a comparison with someone who is addicted to smoking. They try to quit, they know they should, but the nicotine craving is just too much. If the person addicted to smoking does successfully quit, they go through a miserable "detox" period in which they're cravings are at an all time high but are never satisfied.
Would the same go for someone who tried to quit using Google, Youtube, Facebook, or another online medium? Personally, I gave up Facebook for lent one year and had no problem not checking it. It was actually a little liberating. But, of course, as soon as Easter was over I was back to checking Facebook on a daily basis. But I feel like that's because there's nothing like Facebook anywhere else.
Google, to me, is different. Anything you can do or find on Google, you can do or find somewhere else on the internet. Google is just more convenient because it's a "one stop shop" so to speak. But you can look up a word's spelling and meaning in an online dictionary or find out a recipe in an online cookbook. You don't NEED Google to do those things.
But if you asked someone to use an ACTUAL dictionary or an ACTUAL cookbook I don't think they could do it. So in conclusion, I don't think we are addicted to Google, but I definitely think we're completely addicted and dependent on the internet as a whole.
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