Quote:
Originally Posted by pennsiveguy
Yeah, just tinkering and fixing and tweaking stuff was/is second nature for guys of our generation. I was sent out to mow the lawn at about 12 or 13 and was pissed that it took so long. I took the muffler off the old 2-cycle Lawn Boy and saw that the exhaust port was about 75% clogged. Got that cleared up, and the mower had at least double the power and was actually fun to use. Next week I rebuilt the carb and got another big gain. The need or impulse to do that is completely natural for me.
But to today's generation, they've been taught that "you don't know anything about that" or "only an expert can fix that sort of thing, and you're not an expert" and they've given up. There's no escaping the fact that the increasing complexity of the world means that we're all experts in an increasingly smaller chunk of it. But that's no excuse to withdraw into helplessness. Don't even get me started about the intellectual tyranny of academia and the helplessness and docility they've so diligently cultivated.
My ex's 20-something sons - both very high IQ academic superstars (older one started his freshman year at Northwestern at the age of 16) and very successful in their fields - have no sense of agency or confidence regarding fixing anything or solving problems that aren't in their fields of study or wheelhouses. On a visit to them a couple of years ago I had to show the older son - a partner at a big international law firm - how a C13/C14 PC power cord was compatible with a large variety of other appliances/devices, not just the one it came with; I found this to be mind-boggling, even given that he's an Apple fanboy and has never owned a device that wasn't a Macbook or an iPhone. If his Volvo didn't start tomorrow morning and the SA at the dealership told him it was caused by the license plate frame being out-of-square, he would 100% believe it. Very sad and depressing. It's really pervasive. Kids have been indoctrinated to mistrust their own intellect and creativity.
|
Eh man I don't think that's really an "issue". I'm sure just like how me and my good friend enjoys doing all sorts of work your ex's sons doesn't. My mom always says I took apart almost every little electronic thing to see how it worked and I completely believe it it's something I still do today. My dad's an electrical engineer and my mom's an anesthesiologist so I know being smart isn't an issue but I've also never seen either of them fix anything themselves, it generally ends up at my hands or a technician's if I'm not around. A few months back my dad ran into some issues with his laptop and I asked that friend to go to my place and help him out.
Keep in mind he went to college in the 80s when PCs were becoming a thing yet can't "fix" his own computer. But he can talk your ears off about blood cell separation and a bunch of other extremely cool medical stuff
Hell just the other day I finally wired a start/stop button from a Renault Megane to open my computer with the help of that good friend. Ordering a BMW one shortly and designing a 3D printed desk thing for it, too. Our 3rd friend in that group goes to Tufts, graduating in May with a dual degree in CS and Econ. I've built both of his desktops because he just doesn't know how to and has no interest in learning it. But just like that I have no interest in learning how to code