The old dictionary definition of illiteracy was "a person who cannot read or write." In our current era, however, illiteracy is defined as "a person who cannot understand the meaning of a text even if they can read the words." In the near future, this standard will become even more stringent. An illiterate person will be someone "who has not learned how to think, cannot speak English fluently, and cannot leverage the full potential of computer tools and artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance their work efficiency." The definition of illiteracy has become exponentially more demanding and restrictive. The future is approaching faster and faster, but education is not keeping up with the demands of the market, causing a significant gap.
The Reality Shown by Calculators and Excel
Let's consider a specific example. In the past, students were made to solve math problems by hand in school. Calculators were not allowed. You had to memorize multiplication tables and write out the calculation process yourself to prove your mathematical knowledge. Today, however, most people use Excel for basic calculations. An interesting fact is that 95% of Excel users only use 10 to 20 of its over 450 functions, which is just about 5% of the total features. When you look at an Excel spreadsheet someone has created, you can gauge their logical thinking ability and their understanding of modeling concepts by how they structured the file and how many functions they used. We have advanced, but we still have a long way to go to reach our full potential.
The Democratization of Information, and Illiteracy
Never before in human history has such a vast amount of information been available for free. In ancient times, only a handful of sages could read and write, and books were only in libraries accessible to the elite. Today, the internet provides infinite information for free. Information has been perfectly disseminated and democratized, creating an era where anyone can engage in self-improvement. However, a fundamental limitation still exists. If you cannot train your "logical and critical thinking," develop "judgment," and cultivate the ability to distinguish between (1) outright lies, (2) half-truths, and (3) consistent truths, then even if information is available with a single click, you will not become more competent.
In other words, today's illiterate are people who only read words without truly understanding them, are easily misled by videos from unclear sources, and flounder in a flood of contradictory information. They are the perfect prey for the fake news that algorithms perpetuate. They are nothing more than 'virtual space bumpkins' filled with dubious information.
The Correlation Between Technology and Thinking Skills
The new tools of the digital age can exponentially boost an individual's capabilities, but they are also becoming more difficult to use. This is because these tools are designed to optimize logical thinking. In other words, using them requires the ability to think and reason. Technology is very inexpensive and easily accessible. It has never been easier to think with diverse methodologies, combine knowledge from various fields, and leverage software. Cognitive flexibility has now become more important than simple rote memorization. However, these powerful modern tools are constrained by people's "cyber literacy levels."
Even a person's physical location is no longer important. Digital nomads change their country of residence based on quality of life and tax benefits. They sell their brainpower from anywhere.
Time: The Most Democratic Resource
The ultimate goal is to optimize 'time,' the most democratic resource in the universe and, at the same time, the greatest constraint on our lives. We are all given the same 24 hours a day. The ability to ask the right questions, find legitimate sources, and weave the most solid logic together in the shortest possible time is the pure talent that manifests as overwhelming productivity. As the global talent shortage intensifies, the value of skilled labor is skyrocketing. The cost of human resources is no longer important; only their efficiency and effectiveness matter. This is the challenge we face right now.
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