Information from your mind to you hand to the page

The ability to record information, words that outlast the voice, is the most important revolution in the construction of civilization. Stewart, Cohen, and Pratchett* call it “extelligence”. I’m old, I graduated from high school in 1965. In class, I always took all my high school notes with a real fountain pen. I did the same in college and grad school. I even made my own ink when I took chemistry. Over the years, the availability of fountain pens was replaced with cartridge pens (I refilled those cartridge’s too), and then ball point pens. Ball points promote sloppy penman ship. The nib wanders over the page without a feel for grain or direction. Look at 18th century writing, not just official documents, but just everyday writing. It’s often beautiful… And now the debate is, should we teach penmanship? Not to mention should we teach cursive at all. I know that the keyboard will replace the word on the page. The demise of the United States Postal Service at the hands of the Republicans is imminent so keyboards and the internet will be the only way to use text. But I also know that AI voice-to-text will replace the keyboard (it’s already on a smart phone), and from the brain directly to text will replace that. So, we’re losing it, we’ve lost it, and it’s all going away. But studies show that taking notes by hand on paper is a superior learning tool. Try using a fountain pen to write something. It’s an education in the connection of your mind to your hand to the page. Let’s not lose that. The word “pen” comes from feather, a quill, from a goose, a “penknife” is a small knife you keep about you to sharpen your pen’s nib. I personally, feel naked without a penknife in my pocket. * The Science of Discworld is a 1999 book by novelist Terry Pratchett and popular science writers Ian Stewart and Jack Cohen. Three sequels, The Science of Discworld II: The Globe, The Science of Discworld III: Darwin's Watch, and The Science of Discworld IV: Judgement Day continue their excellent explication of science and the human condition.