Argess

The things you find in my 1922 encyclopedia:

Anthoop

Ah, excellent. I would imagine there are many gems in that encyclopedia.
The blade of grass would seem far easier...but then that is progress for you.
http://www.wikihow.com/Whistle-Using-Grass

eddieC

My Feedback: (2)

It would be nice to go back to such times; making a whistle, building a fort, bashing a bike...,

Dirty_Vinylpusher

1922?

I grew up in the 70's/80's and we used to make stuff like that.
And slingshots, crossbows, billykarts, treehouses etc.

It's sad to see a lot of those activites disappearing as people are more interested in checking their "friends" Facebok status.
Or reading pointless Tweets from celebrities telling everyone what flavour scone they're having for lunch.

Argess

Those easy non-expensive projects from a time where money was scarce and kids had to made an effort to amuse themselves. In many ways those times were better, although admittedly in other ways they were much worse. Probably had a lot to do with whether you were a kid and only had to worry about having fun, or an adult and had to worry about putting food on the table.

I know we made go-karts, model boats, slingshots, and all that stuff too when I was a kid. But even in later life I still find those things fun. Making stuff out of old junk is always the most satisfying as you see your creation come together and hopefully at a zero, or close-to-zero cost. One of my more recent efforts was a potato cannon. I don't remember people making them when I was a kid, but they did make the tennis ball cannon out of beer cans.

And "yes", that was from a 1922 encyclopedia. If the Whistle pic didn't capture that era, here's an illustration from it about touring the roads in France and you'll get a better idea of how long ago that was:

Foxy

On the other hand, while those activities may be considered more 'wholesome' and constructive, it is the massive information sharing era and evolution that will advance the general knowledge, IQ and intellectual potential of our species. Instead of our muscles growing, our brains will grow. Sure, checking someone's facebook status isn't very educational, but settling an argument with a quick visit to Wiki is, and really they come under the same category of 'online life' as opposed to outdoor life.

Everything has its pros and cons. I try to mix it up with a bit of RC and photography, but mostly I explore the world from my desk. And I am quite effectively exporing the world doing that, something which was impossible just 15 years ago.

Dirty_Vinylpusher

All that said, we still managed just fine before the internet.
The device creates the need.

Sure it's handy and of course I use it a lot myself for finding out who starred in which movie or find out how to take my PS3 apart.
Or build RC cars from junk.

Advance the IQ and intellectual potential?
Maybe for a small percentage of the population.


All you're "exploring" is pictures and videos.
A poor substitute for visiting the location in person.


I'm not saying the internet is bad, of course not - it's awesome, but it's important to teach kids how to use tools and create physical objects and not just live in the virtual world.

Foxy

I don't just look at pictures, I read. But sure, it's not the same as being there, experience-wise, but from a knowledge perspective there's no real difference. In fact, I can learn a lot more about a place from reading about it than I can in a one or two week visit.

Just another perspective, I'm not saying one is more important than the other. Balance is important in all things.