Back in My Day: School Computers
20 years ago in science classes all around the world, mercury balls were being played with on lab tables. You could play with mercury with magnets, cover other items with it, and even set it on fire. Now that would never happen since the discovery of the effects of mercury exposure including many developmental effects.
While I wasn't in school during that time, times have definitely changed. Computer labs with Internet weren't easily accessible until high school. Though, we did have slow Windows computers with CAD in middle school and had online pen pals with a rival middle school, Western Hills Middle School. Go Hugh B. Bain Middle School! I remember using the blue iMac G3 and the older Macintosh 7600 in art class; I hated the ridiculous slow speeds and that rotten swirling color wheel! And that's not even mentioning the stubborn CD drives that had to be pried open with careful technique of a paper clip. It's a miracle that I gave Apple another chance when buying my Macbook Pro for college; it was a great decision as I'm still using it after 5.5 years and still going strong.
I'm jealous of all of children in school today. They have so much information in the palm of their kids in their phones or other device. I remember being so interested in certain subjects but couldn't find much information in the local public library. As a result, I didn't further my knowledge on those topics but now with the internet, children don't have to go through the horror I went through. And with faster computers, they don't have to witness the cruel Macintosh swirling color wheel that comes with every individual click. Kids, today, are so spoiled!
Another reason it's better to be growing up in the present day is that you don't have to settle on listening to the teacher. It's now possible to fact-check on things you don't believe (It's crazy how often I've learned incorrect information from teachers and it always seems to come to bite me in the back too). Even if they are correct, you'll probably get a better understanding on the subject by further reading about it.
Wow... After all that, I think that I'm way too young to be thinking about stuff like that...