iGod

            Nicholas Carr does a fantastic job of informing his audience of the increasing developments and improvements that have been done towards the internet in his article “iGod.” He provides his audience with an enormous amount of factual evidence and the opinions of many other intellectuals. He compiles these facts and opinions to inform his audience on artificial intelligence (AI).

            Google was evidently a very large portion of his informative essay. He utilizes the google executives to not only capture the attention of his audience, but to also provide ethos. Everybody knows Google and the impact it has had on our everyday lives. By seeing such a major company being mentioned, his audience might be more prone to reading his article. He doesn’t only use Google, but also mentions Bill Gates’ ideologies when it comes to AI. The findings that Carr provides may actually surprise some of his audience which would also keep them engaged since Gates is the force behind Microsoft.  He also gives a slightly personal connection in the brief sentences where he gives his own thoughts. This allows him to form a closer bond with his readers.

            At certain points, Carr even asks important questions in which he proceeds to answer them with his research. This was a major strength in his essay and allowed him to move his research forward without many rough points. In the first paragraph after the break on page 354, he provides a list of questions that he has formed from his research. This allows him to focus on his purpose to inform his audience more easily. Many of his points are extremely thought provoking and can allow his audience to actually think of questions to ask that Carr might not have even thought of. At times however, even though it is an informative essay, I feel like he swarms the audience with information and not enough analysis on the quotes he provides. It slightly detracts from the nature of his article. He does keep it intriguing with some of the more convoluted topics which helps strengthen his essay. Other than the small distractions, Carr does a fantastic job of informing his audience on the nature of AI.