Handwriting

Reading this Lifehacker post about cursive handwriting (and the related comments) has made it clear that I've been ignorant about the current status of script writing. Is it seriously not taught anymore? I already know that most people in my own generation gave up on it, which I assume is due to a lack of use (or a motor cortex compromised by crack addiction), but... yeesh.

It was taught when I was in elementary school. In fact, my 5th grade teacher had a sign on the classroom wall stating "Cursive writing is a must!" I don't remember any other teacher making a big deal out of it. It was kind of an unspoken expectation that good students wrote in script, and that we would be doing it for the rest of our lives. Of course, starting in the 7th grade we had a computer lab available to us, so some teachers started the expectation that larger assignments (reports, etc.) would be typed. Fortunately for me, I was a spoiled little geek and had a computer at home.

Segue: In the television series Babylon 5, there was a group of people called the Technomages. They had methods of integrating technology with their bodies in such a way that they appeared capable of magical feats. That's beside the point though. The point is this: Foreseeing battle and hardship in the very near future, they chose to seek out a hiding place where they could preserve their secrets/way of life. I sometimes think that would be a good idea for humans... like the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, but for knowledge.

Our technological and sociological evolution is taking place at an incredible pace. Less useful things will get left behind, and I accept that. It's supposed to be that way. Roman numerals lost their place in society and, given enough time, I'm sure handwriting will as well.

A lot of things are worth preserving: handwriting, making a radish rosette to garnish your plate, properly holding a fork and knife, or using chopsticks. These things are inessential when you think about survival, but they make us interesting. Every time we forget something like that I feel like we become a little less refined.