Comment by vjvjvjvjghv
2 months ago
When I was in 5th grade, calculators had become pretty affordable and there was this huge discussion whether kids should learn slide rules or use calculators. At the time it was decided we should learn slide rules and I am happy about this because it gives you some level of number intuition.
It reminds me a little of AI now. The question of whether students should use AI will probably soon go away and everybody will use AI. Not sure what the results will be.
Calculators went from something that was really expensive to something that was relatively affordable over a very short period of time. In about 1974, a 5-function TI was about $100 (in 1975 currency). By the next year a full scientific TI calculator wasn't much more and no one, at least in engineering school, was still using a slide rule though I brought one to exams as a a backup. By a couple years later, I was able to buy a discontinued HP calculator for about the same.