Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Wondering if we learn more.

In this modern day and age, we have more information readily available right at our fingertips than ever before. With all this abundant information, I wonder if we really learn anything. Human beings are basically lazy as our all parts of our body. Any aids to our body do not make the affected parts get any stronger, just the same or weaker. You know, like wearing glasses or hearing aids or having your arm in a sling.

The glasses help you see better, but the body becomes dependent on them and does not try harder to see better, same with hearing aids, etc. If you carry your arm in a sling, your arm will become weaker. I need not go on, you get my point, which is, the easier we get information the less we learn by ourselves or try to work things out ourselves.

I know that is true for me. I never could spell very well, but now with the aid of spell checkers, my spelling has become worse. And why should I remember anything, when with a few keystrokes I can retrieve any fact, address, telephone number, etc. that I want to know. Even when driving somewhere, my GPS system tells me where to go, even more than the wife does.

I commented on Gypsy’s blog yesterday telling her about an aid to identifying celestial objects. It is called the SkyScout by Celestron. You just aim it at any one of 50,000 objects in the sky and a 5 line text and a graphics display describes them while you listen through earbuds to stories and facts about the object.

I suppose a gadget like that will help you learn the sky. That is, if you don’t get lazy and depend on it. Which do you think would happen?

8 comments:

  1. It's not just the tools that we have, but the promise of tools that we can get can cause at best laziness and at worse, death. National parks have having a serious problem with people who either (A)rent a gps, get out the in wilderness and then find out they don't know how to use it to get back, or (B) don't realize that their smart phone gps depends on a constant data link to google maps, and fails as soon as they get into the back woods. Lots of lost hikers and emergency search and rescue missions.

    Let it be a lesson, no tool, no matter how nice, is a replacement for uncommon common sense, and no amount of knowledge can make the foolish wise.

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  2. When I used to apply for jobs (I was a certified job hopper) there is a place that says " Software you can use" I always wrote Spell check! I use it everyday as I never could spell! I got the math gene.

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  3. I know it is true that once you start wearing glasses you don't exercise your eyes nearly as much, the the same is probably true with hearing aids, etc. My dad once had a '59 Pontiac without power steering. I think it was the biggest car Pontiac ever made, and I could parallel park that thing like a champ. Now, I need all the power accessories I can get!

    I did check out SkyScout, by the way, but it's not in my nature to learn things that way - I still need to do a little work to get what I want! Thanks for the link though.

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  4. It makes sense that the more you can depend on something, or someone else,the less you need to exercise your own brain or brawn,so we have a tendency to get lazy.Creatures of comfort! Blessings jane

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  5. Even though I do rely on the Internet for a lot of it, I find that I research a lot more places and events than I used to. Part of the reason is that I can find out so much in a short time!

    I do believe that it has increased my knowledge, but by how much I don't know! Maybe just enough to be dangerous!

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  6. Grant, I never completely depend on GPS systems. I have always had the uncanny ability to park the car, go off in the woods hunting or hiking for hours and then head straight back to the car. Always come out on the road near the car.

    Frann, I, too, have the math gene. That is why spelling is so hard for me, it doesn't follow rules.

    Gypsy, I do not have a SkyScout and probably will never get one. I just like exploring the sky on my own. Sometimes I check a sky map to see where objects will be, but don't always stick to the plan.

    Jane, I am starting to really like LAZY. It feels so good.

    Hermit, Yes, we do learn from what we read and hear. My problem is retaining it. I can remember things back 60 years ago better than what I did yesterday. . .

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  7. For those who need only a mild prescription in their eye glasses and can see fairly well without them or no glasses at all; Thank God daily for your good eyesight! And your hearing as well if you don't need hearing aids.

    Glasses and hearing aids are not in the same class as tools or nice to have gadgets for locating stars.

    Other gadgets are very convenient. I listened to Gospel Blue Grass music on the way to pick up my new glasses this afternoon. What a coincidence, here we are talking about them!

    I record the BG music every Sunday morning when I'm in Church on my XM portable radio. I tucked it in my pocket and listened to an hour of great music. That is a nice to have gadget, but it ain't eye glasses or hearing aids.

    Try telling the trooper that you were trying to not be lazy by driving without your glasses if you are required to use them. Let us know how you make out!

    We use eye glasses to see, not get because we are lazy. Its the same with hearing aids.

    Without hearing aids, I hear but don't understand, it has nothing to do with laziness, but it has everything to do with a 55 % hearing loss.

    Are old folks who use a walker being lazy?

    Somethings are gadgets and they are fun to use but the things I mentioned are not just nice to have gadgets, they greatly enhance the quality of life for handicapped people.

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  8. Ernest, I, too, wear both glasses and hearing aids. Also, always listen to the blue-grass station and particulary enjoy blue-grass gospel. We have lots in common.

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