IP: : Youth all thumbs?

[David Farber <dfarber () earthlink net>]

-----Original Message-----
From: Ari Ollikainen <Ari () OLTECO com>
Date: Sun, 24 Mar 2002 16:00:18 
To: farber () cis upenn edu
Subject: Youth all thumbs?

        Adaptive mutation?

Posted on Sat, Mar. 23, 2002
Thumbs are the new fingers for GameBoy youth
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/2922154.htm

LONDON (Reuters) - The use of gadgets such as mobile phones and
GameBoys has caused a physical mutation in young people's hands,
according to a British Sunday newspaper.

New research carried out in nine cities around the world shows that
the thumbs of people under the age of 25 have taken over as the hand's
most dextrous digit, said The Observer.

The change affects those who have grown up with hand-held devices
where the thumbs are used for keying in text messages and emails.

``The relationship between technology and the users of technology is 
mutual. We are changing each other,'' said Dr Sadie Plant of Warwick 
University's Cybernetic Culture Research Unit.

``Discovering that the younger generation has taken to using thumbs
in a completely different way and are instinctively using thumbs
where the rest of us are using our index fingers is particularly interesting.''

In her research, Plant noticed that while those less used to mobile
phones used one or several fingers to access the keypad, younger
people used both thumbs ambidextrously, barely looking at the keys
as they made rapid entries.

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        OLTECO                    Ari Ollikainen
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