I'm not sure.
I have to say that I think toys that do everything for you (and are vulgar, beeping plastic monstrosities like those my ex's pikey Kentish family buy my daughter, for example) are probably not as good for imagination development as nice, middle class wooden ones, but as for numerical calculation skills, I doubt it.

Alt: I'd like a special laser that stopped idiots posting shit on the internet.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 29 Jul 2010, 10:23, 2 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

I was thinking more of the widespread introduction of
calculators and spreadsheets mean children are more likely to work things out using one of those rather than mental arithmetic.

Would you use the laser on me?
( TGB checking Off Topic is still shit at, Thu 29 Jul 2010, 10:31, Reply)

Like any mental skill
if you don't use it, you may well lose it. The question is whether that actually matters that much. I am old enough to have been at school just at the start of calculators being allowed in maths exams and I have to say I thought 'why the fuck not'? If I ever want to divide 18965423 by 845.668 I will use a fucking calculator to do it. They're not hard to come by.

NO-ONE is safe from my laser. But there's a huge queue in front of you so don't sweat it.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 29 Jul 2010, 10:35, Reply)

What if you were in the Crystal Maze
and it was a metal challenge and there were no calculators?!

(With Richard of course not ETP he was wank)
( TGB checking Off Topic is still shit at, Thu 29 Jul 2010, 10:40, Reply)

A 'metal' challenge?
"Monty, to get the crystal you must crowdsurf on to the stage, grab that guitar and belt out some heavy riffs, and then smash it up before diving back off."
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Thu 29 Jul 2010, 10:48, Reply)

I would simply use whatever metal there was available.

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 29 Jul 2010, 10:48, Reply)

he'd use whatever you wanted ...

(Poppet some assembly required., Thu 29 Jul 2010, 10:35, Reply)

but the wealth of computer games out there that develop mental things
Like brain training and professor layton and stuff, surely they help in different ways.

The only thing that detrimentally affects kids, I think, is sitting them in front of the TV or computer and not interacting with them. My parents used to force me to use the skills I'd learnt at school whenever we did anything, I remember they used to get me and my sister to add up the bill if we went for lunch, or to name the different bird species at the park, etc. So it's probably not the technology that is hindering the children, it's their environment.

In short, I blame the parents.
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Thu 29 Jul 2010, 10:49, Reply)