08-04-2009, 01:53 AM
Hi,
The problem with a lot of kids (and college ball players (not much difference)) is that too many people tell them they're good, but not enough people tell them they're not good enough.
BTW, I've never met a kid who wanted to be a professional athlete, or rock or movie star. Used to be, lots of astronauts. Now, it's more likely to be something they've seen on TV. But even passed the kid stage, things are funny. In '64 when I started at GaTech, you had to pick a major department right off the bat. A huge number picked aerospace engineering, mostly because it was first on the alphabetic list. Then physics, chemistry, and math because people knew (or at least thought they knew) what these were. By the beginning of the junior year (when you finally started specializing in your field) the demographics were entirely different.
Kids can only want to be something they've heard of. If they come from a family that watches Cosmos they might want to be astrophysicists. If the come from a family that mostly watches WFF, they probably don't even know that astrophysics exists. And, yes, the USA is largely an anti-intellectual society. So that's what needs to be changed -- and good luck trying.
--Pete
Quote:Counting on becoming a rock star, or major league baseball player is pretty much the same as winning the mega lottery.I'm going to have to take exception to this. Winning a lottery is strictly a matter of luck. Becoming a big named athlete is a matter of talent, training, and a huge amount of effort. I can't speak to becoming a rock star -- it used to take talent, but now it seems publicity is sufficient.
The problem with a lot of kids (and college ball players (not much difference)) is that too many people tell them they're good, but not enough people tell them they're not good enough.
BTW, I've never met a kid who wanted to be a professional athlete, or rock or movie star. Used to be, lots of astronauts. Now, it's more likely to be something they've seen on TV. But even passed the kid stage, things are funny. In '64 when I started at GaTech, you had to pick a major department right off the bat. A huge number picked aerospace engineering, mostly because it was first on the alphabetic list. Then physics, chemistry, and math because people knew (or at least thought they knew) what these were. By the beginning of the junior year (when you finally started specializing in your field) the demographics were entirely different.
Kids can only want to be something they've heard of. If they come from a family that watches Cosmos they might want to be astrophysicists. If the come from a family that mostly watches WFF, they probably don't even know that astrophysics exists. And, yes, the USA is largely an anti-intellectual society. So that's what needs to be changed -- and good luck trying.
--Pete
How big was the aquarium in Noah's ark?