6 Minute English / Why read books, not screens?

Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript.

Hello. This is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I m Phil.

And I m Georgie. For me, there s nothing like reading a book I love turning the pages and the smell of the paper. But nowadays, the fact is that much of the time we read from electronic screens, not paper.

Yes. Like Georgie, I love books. I also find that too much screen time hurts my eyes. But the availability of digital information means that I end up reading from screens most days.

So, apart from sore eyes, is this a problem? Is reading from screens harmless, or could it be damaging us in some way, such as reducing our attention span - the length of time that someone can keep concentrated on what they are doing? That s what we ll be discussing in this programme, and of course, we ll be learning some useful new vocabulary too.

Great, but first it s time for my question. Whether you prefer paper or screens, as humans we re now reading more words than ever before. So how many words does the average person read a day? Is it:

a) 50,000 words?b) 100,000 words? or,c) 200,000 words?

I ll guess it s 50,000 words a day.

OK, Georgie, we ll find out the correct answer later in the programme. Of course, there s little doubt that any kind of reading is good for you. Here s Cressida Cowell, author of the How to Train Your Dragon children s books, speaking with BBC Ideas:

Reading brings three magical powers - creativity, intelligence, and empathy. Reading for the joy of it is one of the two key factors in a kid s later economic success. You're more likely to not be in prison, to vote, to own your own home. All of these advantages and benefits happen as a result of literacy.