Another op-ed piece in the NYT lamenting how “dependence on navigation
technology is eroding our cognitive map of the world around us” (“Ignore the GPS. That Ocean Is Not a Road.” – by Greg Milner). It was prompted by – what else – the accident with
the hapless American Millennial who decided to “put his faith in the GPS.”And followed its directions for 250 miles out of
Reykjavik. One might be tempted to retort that we and our skill set are evolving,
as the wheel has. And we are developing new abilities while losing some old
ones that are no longer essential for our survival and wellbeing.
This argument
always reminds me of the penguins who once lost their ability to fly but
developed new aptitudes needed to adapt to the harsh Antarctic environment. Of
course, one could still say that the penguins are doing just fine without that
essential bird skill, thank you. Perhaps – until, say, a giant iceberg cuts them
off from the ocean, as it happened in 2010 at Cape Denison. The creatures then needed
to waddle 60 km to catch fish. Their colony has now shrunk by 150,000 - with
the remaining 10,000 penguins apparently facing a dire future.
