Paleogoogle. Wait, what?

Looking something up not on the Internet but in dictionaries and reference books, as well as using other old-fashioned ways.


Derives from paleo and Google.

How to use the word

The paleo prefix can be attached to any word, if it refers to the Internet, electronics or any other phenomenon that has not recently existed or has changed a lot. Paleocomputing is used when a computer is not able to install new software and you have to use outdated versions of the operating system. Paleotech or paleoadmin is the same, but is used in regard to a person who can only work with old equipment and software. Paleodating is used when a woman is treated in the old manner, as an object of sexual practice, to the extent of rape.


Searching for information in the old fashioned way seems to be a more decent paleo option than everything else. In the end, the Internet is not infinite and the information gets online from offline. Except for the simplest clickbate storages that repost the same old jokes and “amazing facts”. Truth be told, paleogoogling seems harmless entertainment only if a person successfully combines his or her virtual life with the real one. If he or she is not able to google and only uses books with outdated information, it already looks problematic.

However, there is a detail. A few years ago, in Italy, a series of experiments was conducted that found out that people perceive paper texts better than electronic ones. They find more information, experience more empathy and generally better interact with the object. It seems to be connected with tactile sensations, which are still important to us — just like real paleo-people who did not know either the Internet or even writing. Not to mention the fact that a real paper library, besides dust, gives the feeling that its owner is a smart and successful person.

Natalia Konradova

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