Google has made searching for most information much easier. But searching for information at home (because of poor organization and
non-digital documents?) and within our work organizations is not as easy. What are the reasons for this discrepancy and what impact does it have on our quality of life?
In my distant past, I collected newspaper clippings but after trying to reorganize following a move, I realized I never refer to these, mainly because I don't even remember the specific topics that I archived. There wasn't an easy way to search through these clippings to look for that nugget of information. And yes, it needs to be "easy as pie" for one to even bother beginning a search.
What do we do when we can't search easily to find the information that we need? At home, what are we teaching our children when they ask questions we don't know the answers to? Do we make a best guess and put it forth as fact, or defer it? As another example, why do so few people read user manuals. I, for one, often skip over the warnings at the beginning of a user manual unless a block of text is clearly highlighted. Too many details, no time.
Besides easy-to-access information, I'm seeking "better information". That is, valid and unbiased information. What sources of information are trustworthy? For example, is information from government health authorities reasonably accurate? Some of my motivation stems from the medical situations faced by my wife during pregnancy (and after) and my son's
premature birth and resulting complications, and my father's heart condition. Also our son is now not only understanding what we are saying but repeating
it back: I don't want to pass on misinformation if I can help it.
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