I bet they can put a condom on a banana.
did they want to go to a safe space to listen to calming music and color their little books?
People have been specializing for years. Some 30 years ago, I worked on a 3-D display at a college. One of the kids who programmed it up was very good—his code almost always worked the first time. But, he had never used a soldering iron.
Neighbor kid(28yo) didn’t know what tool to use to unscrew a screw. Video gamer. Go figure.
lack of mechanical and manual skills is very serious indeed
so is the lack of reading, writing, arithmetic, critical thinking, analysis, and research skills
in the freshman college class today
you wouldn’t believe just how deficient many of them are
(and seriously lacking in motivation to learn or to achieve)
USA is in deep, deep doo-doo and it transcends our illegall alien Transformer in Chief
I have this exact conversation with my customers almost Daily!
Millennial’s, Dumber than Dirt, but some of the Proudest Morons you will ever meet.
When I went to college to get my electrical engineering degree, there were many kids there that had no idea how to use a multimeter.
Started decades ago, ‘education’ system, ‘parenting’ and such.
We are indeed in trouble.
I believe it.
Of course, the best computer science people probably build their own systems, which would involve at least some use of a screwdriver (and possibly much more if they mod the whole setup).
But a lot of “the elite” today have virtually no skills in the real world. They are bred to be Masters of the Universe. They don’t need skills.
Meh. The modern world is disposable, screwdrivers are used to fix things, which we don’t do much of anymore. I probably go years between usages. Luckily, they ain’t that tough.
It was always fun to watch a group of Tenderfoots (feet?) try and set up a tent for the first time. Sometimes it took 2 hours. By the second year it took less than 15 minutes.
I was a facilities guy for a bank after retiring from Bell.
One day I was helping the IT Geek put together a rack.Screwdriver and cresent wrench,no biggie.
All through the process he kept saying “Righty Tighty Lefty Lucy”.
I have never heard that before and asked him WTF is up with that.He told me its how he remembers how to tighten and loose nuts and bolts.
Unbelievable but he was the same guy the had all 3 UPS units plugged in to the same outlet in the server room.
OTOH I have encountered some Mississippi farm kids that could break down a shotgun and put it back together as fast as I could. They also could trouble shoot old tractors like a licensed mechanic. It just depends on where one is in the world.
During 8th Grade shop class, most of us chose a project to fabricate a letter opener. These were all based on the prototype known as a Bowie Knife, capable of disemboweling every soldier of General Santa Anna’s Army. Our shop class instructor thought of nothing of it, as this had been the most popular project for at least the last 20 years.
Screwdriver? Naw, they that to do upgrades on electronics.
But I’ll bet quite a few have never wielded a wrench.
My son in college didn’t know how to address and mail a letter.
I just showed my 14 YO girl how to do a brake job.
Saw this in my former job. The kids were great at software development but had no idea of the hardware that it would run on (aircraft, ship, etc.) I think it has gotten better but there were a few proposals and efforts that were real doozies years ago..
When I was growing up most of my friends were gearheads. You had to be to keep those cheap 50s and 60s cars running. Now among my kid’s friends not but a few know where to check the oil. Sad. That’s how you get raped by dealers and mechanics.
I find it hard to believe these kids never put together a single piece of IKEA pressboard “furniture.”
Oh, that usually involves an Allen key.