Knowledge We Assume Everyone Has (and Don't)

[West of the Rockies]

I don't know that this thread will have legs, but I was thinking about bits of info those of us of a certain age assume everyone possesses.  For instance, doesn't everyone know the name Manfred Richthofen?  D.B. Cooper?  Humphrey Bogart?  Can't we all play the tapes of Columbia and Challenger in the theater of the mind?  When I hear the word "guppy" I think first of the huge cargo plane. 

Teapot Dome Scandal... The Corps of Discovery... Jaclyn Smith (perhaps the most beautiful creature to have walked the earth).  Waterloo.  Rhodesia, Siam, Prussia...I daresay a majority of teens and older would not know these terms.

But no... Many (most?) of today's 20-something's have no idea.  I once had a student in my college freshman comp class who'd never heard of Adolph Hitler; the name meant nothing to her.

I am getting old....

[FightTheFuture]

I don't know that this thread will have legs, but I was thinking about bits of info those of us of a certain age assume everyone possesses.  For instance, doesn't everyone know the name Manfred Richthofen?  D.B. Cooper?  Humphrey Bogart?  Can't we all play the tapes of Columbia and Challenger in the theater of the mind?  When I hear the word "guppy" I think first of the huge cargo plane. 

Teapot Dome Scandal... The Corps of Discovery... Jaclyn Smith (perhaps the most beautiful creature to have walked the earth).  Waterloo.  Rhodesia, Siam, Prussia...I daresay a majority of teens and older would not know these terms.

But no... Many (most?) of today's 20-something's have no idea.  I once had a student in my college freshman comp class who'd never heard of Adolph Hitler; the name meant nothing to her.




I am getting old....

I pretty much agree with you WOTR. Although, while I think Jaclyn Smith was a goddess, the SUPREME Goddess was Maureen O`Hara.

[maureen]

A bit of Ogden Nash:

Whales have calves,
Cats have kittens,
Bears have cubs,
Bats have bittens,
Swans have cygnets,
Seals have puppies,
But guppies just have
... little guppies!

[Kelt]

I don't know that this thread will have legs, but I was thinking about bits of info those of us of a certain age assume everyone possesses.  For instance, doesn't everyone know the name Manfred Richthofen?  D.B. Cooper?  Humphrey Bogart?  Can't we all play the tapes of Columbia and Challenger in the theater of the mind?  When I hear the word "guppy" I think first of the huge cargo plane. 

Teapot Dome Scandal... The Corps of Discovery... Jaclyn Smith (perhaps the most beautiful creature to have walked the earth).  Waterloo.  Rhodesia, Siam, Prussia...I daresay a majority of teens and older would not know these terms.

But no... Many (most?) of today's 20-something's have no idea.  I once had a student in my college freshman comp class who'd never heard of Adolph Hitler; the name meant nothing to her.

I am getting old....

The grand irony is that today there is access to more information than ever before, yet kids don't bother with any of that 'learning' shit.

Noses are constantly stuck in devices that open up more information than any public library ever contained, and yet that time is spent Facebooking, Tweeting, Vining, Instagramming, and taking selfies.

Just the basic level of literacy on display is depressing. 

"I hat Zak and Brittney, there stuped"

Someone on this site wrote, "The internet has made it clear just how many dumb cunts there are." Unfortunately those dumb cunts, in terms of literacy and basic knowledge, appear to be people under 25.  This is the generation that will take over the running of this doomed planet when we're gone.

Jesus.

EDIT: Oh, right.. things you assume people know.  I lost focus when I started shaking my fist and yelling, "You pesky kids!"

Umm...

Bombs don't whistle, and aircraft don't whine when they're attacking ground forces... those were devices employed by the Germans on their Stuka Dive Bombers, the JU87, to create panic in the enemy.  It had such an impact on the human psyche that to this day people still expect whistling bombs and whining dive bombers. 

http://youtu.be/LCB8ZVxKqyI

[Eddie Coyle]

      I'm always stunned by geographic ignorance. People who refer to Afghanistan as being in the Middle East, etc. Or calling anything east of Calais "Eastern Europe".

     Ties into demography/numerics. I've worked with TEACHERS, who literally think the USA has a billion people, or 50 Million.

[The General]

Basic math.

[Kelt]

[PB the Deplorable]

      I'm always stunned by geographic ignorance. People who refer to Afghanistan as being in the Middle East, etc. Or calling anything east of Calais "Eastern Europe".

     Ties into demography/numerics. I've worked with TEACHERS, who literally think the USA has a billion people, or 50 Million.

I second this.  Anytime geography or numbers (especially any statistics) are involved, nearly everyone seems utterly confused.

[FightTheFuture]

Look, it`s all very simple; the majority of Americans (this all true) are incapable of naming their representative in congress, their state`s senators, more than one supreme court justice, or the speaker of the house.

HOWEVER, these same folks can tell you more than you want to know about some bulbous-butt slut named, Kardashian.

Thank God my days on this planet are soon to expire.

[Eddie Coyle]

I second this.  Anytime geography or numbers (especially any statistics) are involved, nearly everyone seems utterly confused.

    When news of Roger Goodell's 44 Million salary was released, I asked my father "Guess how much Goodell makes?"

    He answered, "Probably a couple of hundred thousand, maybe a million". That was his honest guess.

[GeorgieForPresident2216]

    When news of Roger Goodell's 44 Million salary was released, I asked my father "Guess how much Goodell makes?"

    He answered, "Probably a couple of hundred thousand, maybe a million". That was his honest guess.

My father still thinks $10 is a ridiculous amount to pay for a new shirt.

[Eddie Coyle]

My father still thinks $10 is a ridiculous amount to pay for a new shirt.

   I hear ya. It's why I grew up eating Hydrox.

[Kelt]

Look, it`s all very simple; the majority of Americans (this all true) are incapable of naming their representative in congress, their state`s senators, more than one supreme court justice, or the speaker of the house.

HOWEVER, these same folks can tell you more than you want to know about some bulbous-butt slut named, Kardashian.

Thank God my days on this planet are soon to expire.

When I moved to the United States I took it for granted that 'people' knew basic geography, such as where the Himalayas are, or where Norway is, or what the Capital of Brazil might be.

I don't know what they teach in American schools, but finding the Himalayas, Norway, or Brasilia wasn't part of the syllabus.

I take my son to Barnes and Noble on a weekend.  Their Children's section includes almost a full aisle of religious literature aimed at kids, but perhaps only one shelf of science books, and four or five books on geography in total... one of which was suitable for his age group.

[The General]

   I hear ya. It's why I grew up eating Hydrox.

Heh.  I'd never even heard of Hydrox.  Sounds like laundry detergent.

[attachimg=1]

[Yorkshire pud]

I take my son to Barnes and Noble on a weekend.  Their Children's section includes almost a full aisle of religious literature aimed at kids, but perhaps only one shelf of science books, and four or five books on geography in total... one of which was suitable for his age group.

That's scary shit. Might explain why 'Are you from London?' is a stereotypical question. They don't need the science shit, because god made it all in 6000 years, or maybe a bit more, the books will clarify it.

It's just general lack of rounded learning that frustrates me about kids these days. James Burkes 'Connections' should be compulsory in schools. 

[West of the Rockies]

I've not heard of that book before, Yorkie... Brief synopsis please!

[albrecht]

That's scary shit. Might explain why 'Are you from London?' is a stereotypical question. They don't need the science shit, because god made it all in 6000 years, or maybe a bit more, the books will clarify it.

It's just general lack of rounded learning that frustrates me about kids these days. James Burkes 'Connections' should be compulsory in schools.

"Connections" was good. I really enjoyed it. Though I thought a few were pretty tenuous on occasion. There are some better shows out there for children learning (I don't want them thinking from the "get go" that "everything is connected", lest they later turn into an Alex Jones.)

I know we are told that modern children "don't have the attention spans" and need "modern methods" of teaching, but why? What has changed physically or in the brain? Has something? Why could a child just a few decades still still, pay attention, fear the teacher, and get anxious for tests but then learn. Or read complex texts and be called to memorize passages and read them in front of the class? Or do math without weird methods for simple things like division? And now everything needs to be friendly, chaotic, "answer" doesn't matter but "how" we get there, no discipline in the classroom, "social promotion" (why not hold them back a grade or send them to summer school if they failed), etc.

Call me whatever but I think we forget social pressure and embarrassment can be a big motivator in children. Why not use it again? A kid should be embarrassed he is an idiot or is acting like a small child instead of getting accolades from his peers. A parent should praise a teacher who punished their child for cursing or acting up in school. When did the children take over the schools?

[GeorgieForPresident2216]

   I hear ya. It's why I grew up eating Hydrox.

They lumpy powdered skim milk was the best part.

[GeorgieForPresident2216]

That's scary shit. Might explain why 'Are you from London?' is a stereotypical question. They don't need the science shit, because god made it all in 6000 years, or maybe a bit more, the books will clarify it.

It's just general lack of rounded learning that frustrates me about kids these days. James Burkes 'Connections' should be compulsory in schools.

Einstein was obsessed with religion until his uncle gave him a science book.  I wonder how many Einsteins we're losing to modern culture.  What would Einstein do with a computer?  Probably create the best damned analytical site for World of Warcraft on the internet.

[albrecht]

Einstein was obsessed with religion until his uncle was given a science book.  I wonder how many Einsteins we're losing to modern culture.  What would Einstein do with a computer?  Probably create the best damned analytical site for World of Warcraft on the internet.

Yeah, though religions also inspired some of the greatest thought and scientific studies and some of our greatest scientists also had some kooky theories and side-projects.

I wonder how the internets will effect things. Is "connectivity" really such a good thing? Maybe it kills independent analysis, approaching a problem from a different direction, etc? I recall things like "calculus" being developed independently, or at least semi-independently, in different parts of the world by different people.

[Eddie Coyle]

Heh.  I'd never even heard of Hydrox.  Sounds like laundry detergent.

    Tastes like it sounds. That quarter saved with each package did not go to my college fund.

[Gd5150]

Obviously thats where the World Cup was last month. Love how those ladies of Hong Kong can dance with their big ol booties.

[Yorkshire pud]

I've not heard of that book before, Yorkie... Brief synopsis please!

It was a television series ( I Think he did three series in total) broadcast in the mid/late 70's. Episode one starts with the shut down in NY that took out nearly all the electric grid in North USA all because a relay tripped out. He goes into how alsorts of apparently disparate things are connected to that event. The series goes on like that, how ploughing fields went on to ship building etc..How the Battle of Hastings brought the long bow into being a weapon of mass destruction and decided the political landscape etc.

[b_dubb]

You shouldn't consume sugar all day everyday

[GeorgieForPresident2216]

You shouldn't consume sugar all day everyday

I know, I know, but it's cheap.

[Little Hater]

I pretty much agree with you WOTR. Although, while I think Jaclyn Smith was a goddess, the SUPREME Goddess was Maureen O`Hara.

Julie Christie.

[Foodlion]

It's ok to pee in the sink.

[Kelt]

Julie Christie.

Raquel Welch

[yumyumtree]

It's ok to pee in the sink.

Not at my place, without a good excuse.

[phrodo]

How to properly pronounce the words -- realtor, jewelry and nuclear.  Seems nine out of ten idiots pronounce them - realiter, julery, and newculer.