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Sometimes I feel like I had the bizarre privilege (and, yes, I do count it as such, if only because I value diversity in experience) of growing up in the Dark A

Sometimes I feel like I had the bizarre privilege (and, yes, I do count it as such, if only because I value diversity in experience) of growing up in the Dark Ages... and I'm not that old (born in 1983). Up to about 15 years ago, people had to just accept not knowing things that are now easy to find on the Internet. If, to use one of the OP's examples, you had to fix a light switch, you had to call someone who knew, or figure it out through (expensive and sometimes dangerous) trial and error. As humans, we're actually becoming much more knowledgable as time progresses. Calculus used to be approached in the 3rd or 4th year of an undergraduate math major; now, people get their first exposure in high school, if not before. The average quality of knowledge among people who've "seen calculus" is probably lower, but the bulk number is much higher, and the curve seems to be improving on the whole distribution. I'm actually pretty curious to see what attitudes people born around now (who'll have had iPads or similar products for 15 years by age 18) end up having to education and knowledge. We came of age in a time when it was usual to tolerate not knowing a great deal of stuff. They have a lot more access. Are they going to have a great deal more confidence, or will they succumb instead to apathy as they take it for granted?

larrys 12y ago
I'm a fair bit older than you are and remember thinking when the internet came about that I had lost a big advantage over other people since I was someone that was always really good at self teaching and figuring out how to do things given the lack of information out there. (Exactly what you said above basically). When you were barely in pre-school I learned on my own how to fly a gas style rc helicopter (a 60 size which is big) back when if you crashed it you had to rebuild it. And you did crash it. Now I have an electric heli that I can fly in my outer office and it can crash into the wall and not even get damaged. [1][2] The ability to learn like that is amazing. It's almost to easy. The gas heli would chew itself up when it crashed. It was also very expensive (about $2,000 in 80's dollars). Anyway my fear of losing an advantage was not really correct. Things did change. But today the game seems to be "to much information" and deciding what to learn and what opportunities to take advantage of both business and mental. I won't even get into how dating has changed since prior to the internet. [1] (Not to mention all the how to videos on the entire subject in addition to electric (didn't exist back then) and greatly falling prices). [2] Add: And of course all the gyros and electronics that today practically fly the craft themselves didn't exist. I did have one gyro for the tail but you typically self corrected that with the stick anyway on takeoff.

larrys 12y ago

I'm a fair bit older than you are and remember thinking when the internet came about that I had lost a big advantage over other people since I was someone that was always really good at self teaching and figuring out how to do things given the lack of information out there. (Exactly what you said above basically). When you were barely in pre-school I learned on my own how to fly a gas style rc helicopter (a 60 size which is big) back when if you crashed it you had to rebuild it. And you did crash it. Now I have an electric heli that I can fly in my outer office and it can crash into the wall and not even get damaged. [1][2] The ability to learn like that is amazing. It's almost to easy. The gas heli would chew itself up when it crashed. It was also very expensive (about $2,000 in 80's dollars). Anyway my fear of losing an advantage was not really correct. Things did change. But today the game seems to be "to much information" and deciding what to learn and what opportunities to take advantage of both business and mental. I won't even get into how dating has changed since prior to the internet. [1] (Not to mention all the how to videos on the entire subject in addition to electric (didn't exist back then) and greatly falling prices). [2] Add: And of course all the gyros and electronics that today practically fly the craft themselves didn't exist. I did have one gyro for the tail but you typically self corrected that with the stick anyway on takeoff.