MIND the gap
Are the gaps in our knowledge getting worse, asks Stephanie Arthur-worsop
THEOTHERWEEKMYMUMAND I were having ourweekly video chatwhenwe started talking about travelling.
I said I would love to visitmyfriend Saara and go with her to Stockholm to see the Northern Lights.
Mumlooked confused and said, “why would you go to Stockholm to see the Northern Lightswhen you can see them in Finland?” (wheremyfriend lives).
I rolledmyeyes and said: “Mum, Stockholm is in Finland, it’s thecapital.”
No, Stephanie. It’s not.
Turns out I’ve had thecapital citiesof Finland andsweden mixedupinmyhead for years.
Goodness knows what other geographical knowledge I’m lacking.
Looking at amap right now, I’m sinking inmychair as I realise Brazil is not in Europe and Morocco is in Africa.
Whoknew! (Everybody else butme, apparently).
And sadly that’s not the only gap inmy knowledge.
Askmehowto do fractions or percentages and I will look at you blankly until you awkwardly change the subject.
Actually, askme howto do anything maths-related and I immediately revert back to that 11-yearold, trying to see the mathshomework through tears asmy frustrated dad yells “what is it you don’t understand?”
And parallel parking? Let’s just say if a venue had only parallel parking left, I would miss the whole show.
I don’t knowhowto use the airpumps at gas stations for mycar tyres (to be fair, I’m pretty cluelesswhen it comes to doing anything car-related).
And I couldn’t tell you the rules to any sportsgame (don’t ever askme to play cricket, I wouldn’t knowwhere to begin).
But as I sit here roastingmyself, I take solace in knowing others have knowledge gaps too. Afriend at university used to
With an app to do just about everything, our knowledge gaps are only going to get larger.
unironically pronounce chameleon as jama-lee-on (I never did have the heart to tell her, though I think she’s cottoned on now).
Mydear sister, bless her heart, thought you needed a passport to go to the South Island because it was in another country
(in fairness she was younger) and her sense of direction is so lacking she’ll often say she’s “coming up” to visit us in Rotorua from Auckland.
Myhusband cannot spell to save himself, making him an easy target in Bananagrams and his lack of spatial awarenessmeans he’s oftenbacking intome or knockingme over.
Then there are the generational knowledge gaps.
Our grandparents haveaplethora of skillsmany youngergenerations just never learned. Sewing, knowing thenamesof plants andwhere to put them(anotherof myknowledge gaps) cooking from scratch and just generally being self-sufficient.
Millennialsmaythink it’s ridiculous that nan can’t connect the iphone4she’s had for 10 years to thehome Wifi but herewe are not knowinghowto sewa button on to our shirts.
With an app to do just about everything, our knowledge gaps are only going to get larger.
Youmaylaugh atmenow for not knowing which capital citiesarewhere but just imagine in 50 years’ timewhenpeople don’t knowhowto tie theirownshoelaces because a robot does it for them.
Then who’ll be the dense one!