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Surgery students spend so much time swiping on flat, two-dimensional screens that they are losing the ability to perform simple tasks necessary to conduct life-saving operations, such as stitching and sewing up patients. As a result, students have become less competent and confident in using their hands—leading to very high exam grades despite a lack of tactile knowledge.
Roger Kneebone, professor of surgical education at Imperial College, London, argues that two-dimensional flat screen activity is substituting for the direct experience of handling materials and developing physical skills. Such skills might once have been gained at school or at home, by cutting textiles, measuring ingredients, repairing something that’s broken, learning woodwork, or holding an instrument.
Kneebone now notices that medical students and trainee surgeons are not comfortable cutting or tying string because they don’t have practical experience developing and using these skills. He also mentioned that colleagues in various branches of medicine have made the same observation.
See also this BBC news item: Surgery Students ‘Losing Dexterity to Stitch Patients’.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 27 2019, @04:16PM (4 children)
Phones don't substitute for cutting textiles, measuring ingredients, repairing objects, learning woodwork, or holding instruments in any way. The reduction in manual labour for common folk is separate from the ubiquity of touchscreens.
Consider a hypothetical world where modern phones still had physical keyboards, would students be repairing appliances or carpentering any more than they are now? Fuck no.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by sjames on Wednesday March 27 2019, @08:17PM (2 children)
Are you sure?
Kid A as a baby gets a mobile and a busy box. Then as he gets older, simple wooden puzzles, blocks, then lego (or the big vlocks for younger kids, then lego). Makes art projects involving safety scissors, felt, construction paper, and school glue or paste. Learns to tie his shoes.
Kid B starts with a tablet showing interesting (to a baby) moving shapes. Gets a busy box program where various slides and buttons (on screen) change the display. Later gets to drag shapes to matching shapes on screen (with grid snap). Gets velcro shoes and a paint program
Which kid do you suppose will have the superior neurological development for manipulation of physical objects and spatial orientation? The better hand-eye coordination?
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 27 2019, @10:12PM (1 child)
Your first kid makes more sense once you realize mobile != cell phone and busy box != busybox. :-)
(Score: 2) by sjames on Thursday March 28 2019, @05:47AM
I honestly didn't think of that at the time but now that you mention it, that could be confusing at first.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 28 2019, @02:51AM
This
These new college entrants are the first crop of the helicopter parent generation where:
When little Jonnny isn't allowed to do anything because it might be dangerous, and when literally everything else is taken care of by the hired help, is it no wonder that little Johnny just might not have developed any manual dexterity.
Hell, little Johnny likely can't tie a knot, not because of smart phone use, but simply because he has never, ever, in his entire life, tied a knot in anything because doing so was either too dangerous or was something that was considred to be beneath his status by his helicopter parents.