If You Can Still Read This, You’re a Miracle
Dear Magicians,
The Last Readers: A Cognitive Extinction Event?
Let’s talk about attention.
Not the fleeting kind that skims this text right now. The deep kind. The kind that built civilization. The kind that’s vanishing faster than Arctic ice.
Here’s an uncomfortable fact.
Many elite university students have never read an entire book. Not “rarely read.” Never read. Think about that. Really think about it. These are students at Columbia, Georgetown, Princeton — the supposed apex of academic achievement.
Interesting.
We’re not just losing readers. We’re losing the neural architecture that makes reading possible. The cognitive scaffolding that allows a mind to build complex ideas, one paragraph at a time.
Consider this paradox.
A student brilliant enough to enter Columbia, yet unable to track a narrative longer than a TikTok video. The intelligence is there. The capacity isn’t. Something has rewired these minds.
Let me be specific.
This isn’t about laziness or screen time or “kids these days.” This is about neurological adaptation. These students aren’t choosing not to read — their brains have literally reorganized around fragmented information consumption.
Think about the implications.
Democracy requires sustained attention. Policy demands nuance. Justice needs context. What happens when a civilization can no longer hold a thought longer than a tweet?
But wait.
What if we’re asking the wrong question? It’s not “How do we make them read like we did?” but “How do we preserve deep thinking in a fundamentally different cognitive landscape?”
The stakes are real.
Every democracy depends on citizens who can follow complex arguments. Every scientific breakthrough stems from sustained investigation. Every moral advance requires extended ethical reasoning.
Here’s the thing about attention.
You can’t fix a neurological rewiring with nostalgia. You can’t solve a cognitive crisis with complaints. We need new tools. New methods. New ways of building bridges between fragmentary thinking and deep understanding.
The path forward isn’t clear.
But it’s not optional either. We’re witnessing a cognitive extinction event in real-time. The last readers might be sitting in our classrooms right now.
Think about it.
Test your own attention.
When was the last time you read a physical book cover to cover? That long, huh? For me, it’s been even longer!
Until next time, have a M.A.G.I.C. Week,
Brian
Appearance
I got name checked twice this week. Once with moon landing denier Bart Sibrel on Danny Jones’ podcast and another time on Patrick Bet-David’s podcast with Terrence Howard. How should I react?
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Simon’s Observatory
📸 Felipe Carrero
Conversation
In this episode, Dr. Brian Keating engages in a thought-provoking conversation with Ben Bratton, a visionary philosopher of technology. Together, they dive into the fascinating concept of planetary computation, exploring the bold idea that Earth itself might be evolving intelligence through humanity. The discussion also delves into the complex relationship between humans and AI, probing the exciting possibilities and the emotional boundaries of artificial intelligence.
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By popular demand, and for my mental health 😳, I am starting a paid “Office Hours” where you all can connect with me for the low price of $19.99 per hour. I get a lot of requests for coffee, to meet with folks one on one, to read people’s Theories of Everything etc.
Due to extreme work overload, I’m only able to engage directly with supporters who show an ongoing commitment to dialogue — which is why I host a monthly Zoom session exclusively for patrons in the $19.99/month tier.
It’s also available for paid Members of my Youtube channel at the Cosmic Office Hours level (also $19.99/month). Join here and see you in my office hours!
Upcoming Episode
Marcus Chown will be on The INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast soon. He’s a physicist-turned-author whose mind-bending books like The Ascent of Gravity and Infinity in the Palm of Your Hand translate the universe’s deepest mysteries into poetic clarity. What would you like me to ask him? ➡️ Submit your question here
