Excel Tip - Clickable References within a Spreadsheet

Perhaps this is an Excel 'trick' that others know of already but I will share none-the-less! 

I spent a little time figuring this one out and wanted to share the solution to this nifty feature of Excel. I have a spreadsheet with multiple worksheets and on the Test Cases worksheet, I wanted the cell contents to be a clickable link/reference to a related cell on the Design worksheet to tie in a specific test case - to the original programming change required.

This is where the HYPERLINK function comes in very handy - it can be used to hyperlink to not only an external file or URL but also to a clickable cell reference, which is exactly what I wanted. The two parameters are the reference to the cell and an optional "Friendly Name" . The trick is to specify the full worksheet & cell address in the first parameter, enclosing with double quotes and preceding with the # symbol. The second parameter, the friendly name - is what will be displayed in source cell, if you don't want technical gobbley-gook displayed. You'll see from the two screenshots below, that I have a formula in cell B3 of the Test Cases worksheet and by specifying the "#Design!B3" as the first parameter, I've created a nifty link so that when the user clicks on it, it brings them to the related cell in the "Design" worksheet.

Test Cases Worksheet with Link to Related Cell in the Design Worksheet

Design Worksheet Referenced by Clickable Link in the Test Cases Worksheet

The Order of Things

One of the great things about computers and software is that it can very quickly and accurately alphabetize lists.  This sort of task is perfect for a processor as it can order a list of 100 names if literally the blink of an eye.  Contrast the same task to a human which will take in the order of numerous minutes to accomplish.  However, one thing that computers don’t deal well with is exceptions to rules.  I was recently setting up a computer and I had setup numerous login IDs and the problem that I faced was that the name of the primary user of the computer was in the middle of the alphabet and I wanted this user listed first as she would be the main user of the computer. 

In order to override how a computer sorts, it’s important to understand how sorting is done in the first place.  Each character on the keyboards is assigned a numeric value – and the sorting is then done by comparing two characters to see which has the lower value.  The numbers 0-9 have a lower sequence than the letters A-Z followed by a-z.  The trick is in understanding that the <space> bar generates a character value just as any displayed character does and as such the name “John Smith” actually contains 10 characters (4 for the first name a space and then 5 for the last name).  Using this knowledge, a SPACE character can be added to the beginning of a name to force it towards the top of the list. 

To illustrate, let’s consider the following list of people without any special prefix and the resulting sort order:

Bob

Jane

John

Peter

Sam

If John was to be the primary user of the computer – and the name that is desired to be at the top of the list, then adding a space to the front of his name will result in the reordered list

 John

Bob

Jane

Peter

Sam

One caveat to the above approach, sometimes software or websites will remove all leading or trailing spaces, so this technique won’t work.  The alternative in this case is to use some other character other than the space.

- John

Bob

Jane

Peter

Sam

What a Tangled Web We Weave

With apologies to Shakespeare, this month’s technology article has nothing to do with deception, but I think that the first part of this famous line is very appropriate as it relates to today’s technology. As technology becomes more sophisticated and complicated, it begins to weave itself in and out of the fabric of every aspect of our society. So much so, that it can be exceedingly difficult to unweave the technology from our daily lives. In particular, I’ve been following a couple of aspects of technology over the past year and what I am seeing concerns me as they both offer wonderful futures but at the same time, I am convinced that the impact of these technologies hasn’t been fully investigated and thought through and by the time that this has been done, it will be next to impossible to unweave these technologies from the fabric of our society.

I have been following the development of 3D printing literally since it was just a concept. I think that in general 3D printing will have phenomenal benefits in a wide variety of applications, but as we’re seeing now, once the lid of possibilities has been lifted and therein lies the concern as not all applications are good applications.

Already, manufacturers of 3D printer “plans” have distributed the schematics for a working pistol made completely from 3D generated parts. The ability for anyone who has access to a 3D printer being able to produce any type of weapon – effectively bypassing – criminal code laws is staggering.

Given that Pirate Bay has recently announced that they will support and administer a 3D Design file-sharing repository, I have significant concerns that there will be not only be issues with there being various designs of weapons, but also the doors will be opened wide for counterfeit parts and the mass production of items and parts that are currently protected by copyright. This technology will either be a lawyer’s dream or nightmare.

The other area where I have concerns is with the rapidly developing prototype of autonomous – or self-driving – cars. Again, this sounds wonderful in concept and in some aspects, our roads will be safer as – in theory – a vehicle can make decisions quicker and more accurately but there’s a plethora of issues that I’m not convinced have been thought through properly.

First and foremost – to what extent will the driver still be responsible for the operation of the vehicle and any ensuing accidents? Although the current generation of autonomous automobiles is predicated on the premise that the driver has to be actively engaged and ready to take control, I wonder how much an individual’s attention will be on the road if their hands aren’t on the steering wheel and constantly – and actively – observing conditions and reacting accordingly. One of the theories of a society where there are autonomous vehicles is that they will be able to communicate with each other which will make roads safe. If 4 autonomous vehicles approach an intersection with a 4 way stop then the cars could communicate with each other and the order of precedence could be evaluated and shared, but what if one of the vehicles is driven by a human, how will this factor in the collective’s decisions as to how to proceed.

My primary concern though is that with the advent of technology, there will always be those that will exploit any level of security to compromise the device. We’re seeing it with any technology currently on the marketplace, so how can we put our lives in the balance with a vehicle that’s infected with malware?



There’s no question that our society benefits from technology, but as in these two cases, technology is being developed without the proper foresight and protocols in place to ensure that the risks are minimized. It’s next to impossible to unweave this technology from the fabric of the society, it’s in everyone’s best interest that the pros and cons have been weighed and evaluated and contingencies developed.

Addicted to...Technology

As I was pondering a topic for this month’s technology article, I read a story in the local newspaper that piqued my interest. The news story is about a family in Guelph who has shunned technology for a time and are trying to live as if it were 1986. The title for this month’s article comes from one of the hit songs in 1986 “Addicted To Love” which I have taken creative liberties as it seems completely appropriate to use “Addicted to Technology” as the headline.

I started to read what I considered to be a light-hearted article and as I did so, I realized that this thought of being addicted to technology is a very fundamental theme for my blog. I not only appreciate technology but in a lot of ways, I’d be completely lost without it. The technologies that the family refused to use such as cellphones, email, Google or a GPS, well, it makes me shudder at the thought of being without it.

The question isn’t if we could live without technology – humans and society evolves. Should there be a catastrophe and there was no technology, then people would adapt and innovate. A case in point is during the recent ice storm and the lack of power that so many families endured. I read another article about a man who was creative enough to garner power from his electric car to run some basic electricity into his house. Although a complete and permanent meltdown of our society’s power grid would be completely catastrophic, through time, people would adapt.

How easy we would adapt is another issue though. As a “boomer”, it might be easier for myself to adapt when I have a history of an earlier (and much younger!) life where technology was not so prevalent. I can make change from a $5.00 bill, I know how to read a paper map and after adjustment, I’d be okay. My biggest fear would be that I’ve have to resort to pen and paper to write – either that, or find some nifty manual typewriter, reams of paper and plethora of liquid paper for the inevitable mistakes!

Each of us would probably have our own particular challenges but I wonder how difficult it would be for the younger generation when all that they know is technology. I can’t even begin to imagine how difficult an eFree society would be for those 35 years old and younger.

In this power-free scenario, the current infrastructure of our society would be devastated and completely useless. For some aspects, the chaos would be short term and in other respects it could take years and even decades to “rebuild”. Give it 25-30 years though, mankind – being as resilient as they are – would pick up the pieces and find alternative ways to run society.

Pity be the current generations should this occur though – the current blackouts in Toronto during the snowstorm has truly illustrated how dependent we are on this technology which remains – a double sided coin of the good and the bad.

Technology as a Pacifier

In today’s hectic world, technology is a welcome relief from the constant bombardment of the daily life of work, travel, and home – repeat and recycle. Having a mechanism to give one’s self a break from the outside world can be a welcome and necessary relief.

To a certain extent I think that this is even more so necessary in today’s world where there is a technological connection for most people from virtually the moment we wake up until the time we go to bed.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with using technology as an escape, perhaps to listen to music, play a game or read something online but I often wonder if sometimes we’d be better off just totally unplugging ourselves, even for short periods of time.

I had a conversation with my girlfriend not too long ago and she mentioned how she had noticed so many children being handed iPads or other devices on the subway by a frustrated and weary parent. It caused me to think that she was right. As a parent, I can understand and appreciate the desperation we can have with a finicky child. However, I’m really wondering if using technology as a pacifier is such a good idea.

I do think back at earlier years though and I remember a time where the parent would be taking the child on their lap to read with them or read to them, or perhaps to invent and play a travel game with the child. Call me “old school” but I think that it’s not such a bad thing to have the parent being the source of relief for the child.

It’s probably not so different from when many of us were children and we were plunked down in front of the television – the electronic baby-sitter of the day. For the most part we turned out okay, but with today’s technology at every turn of our daily lives, the temptation to rely on the technology is difficult to resist.

What message do we send to our children when they are upset, frustrated or tired and we respond by handing them the electronic device instead of paying attention to them and spending that time with them? Is this the message that we want to give them, that the best way to deal with the stress is to reach for the device?

It’s a difficult road being a parent and I’m not naïve to think that I’m not guilty of the above. In some respects a parent will – and should – use whatever tools are at their disposal to help with parenting. I’ve had those days when it is absolutely necessary to steal an hour and keep one of my kids engaged with technology, but I’d like to think that it was just enough to allow me to regroup and recharge my batteries. A parent that selectively uses technology isn’t a bad parent; sometimes it will help them to become better parents as they can have that break in the day.

I suppose that I’d feel more comfortable with this technology if I saw a parent and a child at least sharing this technology together. I’d much rather see a mother and a son on the subway cuddled in together as they play some game or the child reads a story to the mother. At least then, the parent is there, in the moment and I think that’s what this article is really all about.

What3Words - A New Way to Share Directions

One of the biggest problems with the exchange of directions is nearly similar street names, or perhaps that the directions themselves are somewhat ambiguous "Meet me at the corner of King and Yonge" bring the most basic question - WHICH corner.

Well, a new website addresses all of this, in a very unique, creative and detailed manner. What3Words.COM has divided the entire world (well - probably the vast majority of it) into 57 trillion 3mx3m squares. What they have then done is assigned three words to this physical location and this combination of three words is unique to that specific location. The beauty of this is that this means that when I'm giving directions to the family cottage, I can just reference the three words associated with it - and a link to What3Words, and they will get the precise location.

The extra little tidbit of cool information is that you can purchase your own "one word" for that location on an annual basis - basically like a vanity plate for a car - or at least to make it easier to remember the What3Words key. I am seriously pondering "buying" the key for the cottage and using the name of the cottage as it's reference. It's a really unique way to communication a physical location!

Life Through a Lens

I was down at Harbourfront with my girlfriend as we watched the Canada Day celebrations. As we stood there watching the fireworks, the one thing that really struck me was how many people were watching the fireworks, but watching them through the lens of their camera.

Although they were indeed capturing the moments for posterity, it occurred to me that by focusing (pun only partly intended) on the filming, they weren't fully experiencing the event; they were only watching the fireworks through the rectangle of their device and therefore oblivious to the surroundings. For me, half of the fun was to experience not only the fireworks, but also the reaction of the people – especially seeing the joy of the toddler on his dad’s shoulders.

Upon further reflection, it seems to me that this isn't an isolated demonstration on how we can sometimes use technology as a “filter” in terms of our real world experiences. I watch people who think that it’s necessary to tweet or text message at a movie theatre. I don’t know how many times I’ve almost been clobbered as I walk down the streets and someone turns a corner, completely immersed on their cell phone, not aware of where they are going.

There are many more examples where life is experienced vicariously through an electronic device. The irony of this is that the true and full experience is easily obtained, just put down the device from time to time and look around!

Taking pictures or filming special moments help us to capture, reminisce and cherish those moments. Photography enhances our lives just as technology can. I’ll always like my tech toys and I’ve found things like my GPS or my smartphone (and the many Android apps that are installed on it) to be a wonderful resource the enables me to get directions, find restaurants, check account balances or even to check news or sports. I’d be pretty lost without technology, it’s an intrinsic part of my daily routine.

I think of this issue as if I were using a camera that had a macro lens and I was focusing in on a flower as I was photographing it. My field of vision would be greatly reduced and I would be missing out what was no longer visible in the periphery compared to a regular lens.

I’m not suggesting that people abandon their cameras – or their devices – to get the full experience. There’s something to be said for having a record of moments in time, that’s why many of us take pictures or videos. All that needs to be done is to stop and observe and experience from time to time.

Deals Deals Deals!

Blame it on the Scottish in me but one of my favourite things to do is to find deals via the Internet.  I've used Hotwire pretty frequently over the past 6 months and have found some pretty good prices on hotel rooms that wouldn't have normally been available.  Throw into that, a few entertainment related sites where I was able to get some great deals on wine tasting tours in the Niagara region, as well as other getaways, it's definitely much better than paying list price!

HowSpamWorks

The carousel of SPAM - or Internet Marketing - is ongoing.  As we become wise consumers of information online, the gauntlet is tossed our way as the Marketeers try to find innovative ways of suckering us in.

I've been caught on this a few times, most recently today on a link that was mixed in with (legitimate) "additional articles" on CNN.  I clicked on an article that sounded interesting and proceeded to read.  At the end of it, I thought to myself "hmm, why do I feel like I'm reading a commercial and not a objective news article".  

Suspicions arose and I went through other articles on this website which appears to be another "new oriented" website with sections like: News, Health & Beauty, Financial, Jobs, etc..  My first inkling was that was no Sports tab.  I know of very few information portals that would have one.  I then proceeded to pick and choose from each tab glancing through the articles and sure enough, the vast majority appeared to be a very subtle commercial.

It's not really all that hard.  If you are reading an article, then just take a moment and ask yourself, does it appear that the article is being objective.  The answer may not tell you right away if it is SPAM or not, but it will give you a sense.

I should add that I really shouldn't be referring to this instance as SPAM, as it's not being pushed to my email address, but the intent is the same as so many email messages that we receive on a daily basis.

I guess that the long and short of it is the maxim that has predated the Information Age - Don't Believe Everything You Read.

GMAIL and Email Addresses

I’ve been using GMAIL much more frequently over the past year or so and so it is with interest that I read an article on the naming convention of GMAIL email addresses that I was not aware of.

In any other email system that I’ve dealt with, the DOT is considered an alphabetic character which can also be used to improve readability of the email address. An email address of DavidOshea@yahoo.com could be setup as David.O.Shea@yahoo.com which would be different from David.Oshea@yahoo.com.

Where GMAIL is different is that it ignores the dot and although you can create an email address such as David.Oshea@gmail.com, any email to David.O.Shea@gmail.com or DavideOshea@gmail.com would also receive these emails.

GMAIL acknowledges this and calls it a feature. However, it is important for those that are setting up their email addresses to be aware of this so that their email addresses are sufficiently unique enough.

PRISM and the Digital Refraction

By their very nature, a prism is a geometric figure that refracts (bends) incoming light and changes the direction of it.

One of the hotter stories in the technology arena the past few weeks is that of the US Government PRISM program and it seems to me that their decision to name the program as such may not have been as deliberate as how I perceive it, but to me, it’s a very appropriate moniker.

PRISM is an electronic surveillance program developed and administered by the National Security Agency in the United States. The intent of this program is to monitor websites, photos, emails, and video and chat sessions in order to protect the country from foreign threats

Last week, an NSA contractor leaked documents which seem to indicate that the scope of the program has far exceeded the original intent and it is alleged that it now has direct access to the servers (and the data contained within) of Facebook, Apple, Google, Microsoft and other major websites.

The protection of a society is always paramount and many times it’s a delicate balance to afford this, while at the same time preserving the fundamental civil liberties. A program which tramples civil liberties (despite all of its good intentions) is as dangerous as a program where the population is at risk if the government is unaware of plots and aren’t able to intercept them.

What concerns me most is how it appears that the mandate of PRISM can grow, casting a bigger net over democracy. While they may be catching some of the bigger fish, there are too many smaller (and innocent) fish being caught up in the same net.

PRISM is not allowed to specifically target any individual unless there is reason to believe that there is direct evidence of a specific threat or plot.

In addition, there is also a “guilt by association” factor coming into play. If there is a specific “terrorist” where the NSA has significant reason to believe that there is a risk, then part of their online presence will be silently monitored. Further (and for me, this is the scary part), if there are a number of incoming emails to this individual, then the NSA can expand their scope and consider the sender to be a “person of interest” and as such, while they may not specifically monitor that person, at the very least, they could be flagged.

The danger is that with the technological age, the whole concept of “Six Degrees of Separation” has probably become more something like “3 ½ Degrees of Separation”. The number of people that we communicate with has grown exponentially in the digital age with message boards, user communities, social networking and the like.

In my mind, it’s very much like the Phacebook Phriends Phenomena which seems to be that it’s all about the number of “friends” on their profile. I find it hard to imagine that people actually have 500-600 true “friends”. I’m quite happy to keep my Facebook profile very sparse, but I digress.

Much like the prism, the PRISM program seems to be “bending” the data contained within the information superhighway to suit its purposes, assuming malevolence where there is not some.

Whether the large tech companies are permitting NSA full and unfettered access to their data remains to be seen. Even if this scandal turns out to be paranoid hyperbole, I am convinced that government agencies will not be able to resist the electronic breadcrumbs that we lay down.

The Traveling Bug

There are many aspects of technology that I find to be extraordinarily useful in my life but probably one of the biggest is the benefits of doing research on travel.  As I was reading through travel information on Greece this morning, it reminds me that there being to solicit opinion, read reviews and compare prices have made self-booking travel to be feasible.

No longer are we required to visit the travel agent, from start to stop, the whole experience can be investigated, managed and booked without human intervention if desired.   The biggest advantage of this though is that it gives the prospective traveler the opportunity to play "what if" and look at the myriad of options available in terms of costs, itineraries, flights and accommodations and to build the best package for them!

A Break from Technology

During a trip to Niagara Falls and Niagara-on-the-Lake on this Victoria Day weekend, I'm reminded of the importance of taking breaks from technology.  I find that so often that I am so immersed in technology with text messages, emails and surfing, that I forget the simple joys of going for walks and enjoying nature.

Lying in a park on the grass and watching families playing, it helped to recall that there's much more to connections and families was just a perfect ending to a wonderful weekend away from technology.

Alien Invasions?!?!

Google has announced that there have been 900,000,000 devices that have been activated with Android since 2010!  Wow, that's kind of mind boggling.  That's a whole lot of devices!

Password Security - Lock It Down!

By now, most people are aware of the concept – and the importance – of having strong passwords. Generally a strong password is one that is difficult for an individual to guess or a system to crack. There are too many instances where security has been breached and in the case of a corporate breach in security, this is a big problem as confidential client information can be exposed and obtained.

One of the bigger challenges is how to make passwords stronger without making it more difficult to remember.

Intel has a website[s1] where you can enter a password and it will estimate how long it would take for the password to be cracked given the complexity of it.

In a simple case, take the password Twinkletoes76. Many would think that this is moderately strong as it’s not a dictionary term and the numbers at the end just add to the complexity. The Intel webpage (http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/security/passwordwin.html) estimates that this password would take 0.007 seconds for an automated system to crack.

Please note that the password(s) that you enter are not sent to their servers, or stored online anywhere, the calculations are strictly done via your local browser.  Still, they recommend making slight changes to your password for safety's sake.

The next approach in password generation is to embed special characters in the password and substitute these characters for the alphabetic characters in the password. Using the same base password as above, by simply changing the letter i to the number 1 and changing the l to an exclamation mark, then the new password of Tw1nk!etoes76 all of a sudden becomes much more secure and it would take a week to crack.

Here is where it gets fun.

A special character can be inserted in the password and it will not make it much more difficult to remember but it will significantly improve the strength. By placing a @ between the 1st and the 2nd characters so that the password is now T@w1nk!letoes76, the estimate is that it would take 1 year to guess the password.

Finally, to supersize the strength, just repeat that newly inserted special character and repeat it either one of more times so that the password is now either T@@w1nk!etoes76 or T@@@w1nk!etoes76 (with 2 or 3 @ signs respectively) and the estimates increase to 33 years for the former and 1,076 years for the latter!

In terms of memorization, it’s no harder for a human to remember the very last password than the original. Cognitively, we recognize that it’s still twinkletoes76 with character substitution with the i and the l and with 3 @ added in to the strong.

Digitized Immortality

Despite a certain appeal to the thought of being immortal, the stark reality is that time stops for no person and there are a plethora of reasons as to why immortality isn’t such a good idea.

The true “immortal” is the impact that our lives had on others and the memories and the love that we leave behind. Hopefully, these imprints of our passed life will comfort our loved ones as they recall certain aspects of our lives.

In this respect, our immortality transcends a physical body, the container as it were. I personally would never be interested in true physical immortality. I’m much more concerned with living my life in a manner that will hopefully impact others, so that my influence on part of this world will not end when I do.

I then think about how this somehow relates as it’s the person who we are that dictates how people perceive and remember us. When remembering someone who has passed before us, we may recall the physical characteristics, but it’s the person that we miss; the kindness, the love, the touch and the laughter.

Although our online personas rarely reflect our true character, for most of us, they are generally representative of who we are and how we have chosen to live our life. For the most part, our digital alter-egos are free of the trappings of the physical bias that one might have in the “in person” world.

One of the benefits of technology in terms of cultivating relationships is that we can interact with individuals in different geographic locations that simply can’t be done as easily in the “real world”. As a result, it’s possible to build more relationships than might be possible in person. In addition, we may have an in person friend or family member who is abroad and technology can be a wonderful medium to stay in touch and in this respect; technology can enable us to improve the quality of our relationships.

I was amazed to read an article on wills recently that dealt with this topic and it’s something that I hadn’t considered. In addition to the normal instructions on disposition of assets, many wills now contain specific instructions for notifications for accounts, in addition to containing email and social network passwords so that the deceased individuals “electronic estate” can be wound down as well, including not only social networks but other sites where credit card information is stored (including those where there are automatic renewals).

Mind you, the biggest problem for me would be to somehow figure out what websites that I have a login. I recently went to buy tickets at Ticketmasters and completely forgot that I had a previously setup account. Accounts such as this, I wouldn’t be too concerned if they lived on long beyond me, but there are some others such as my online art ‘portfolio’ that I’d rather have instructions for it to be closed. Somehow, my artwork is very personal to me and I don’t like the thought of it being accessible in perpetuity.

I was also reminded recently when discussing this topic that one of the other problems with these digital identities and why they need to be “wound down” is that if they are not, it may lead to more identify theft, as the person who would normally monitor their online identify, obviously can’t do so anymore.

Doing the Math, That Would Mean Approximately 99,999,900 Unhappy Users...

...as Microsoft has announced that they've sold 100,000,000 copies of Windows 8.  I'm sure it's not a stretch to think that perhaps that there are 1,000 happy users out there.

Signed

- A Disgruntled Windows 8 User

The World is at Your Feet

I was watching TV this afternoon and saw a commercial for an athletic apparel company and their slogan is "The World is at Your Feet".

I immediately thought of technology and with all of the good of it, the bad is that it encourages and seduces us to be virtual.

As soon as I finished watching this commercial, I thought that if I appended the saying to be "The World is at Your Feet, Not Your Fingertips", this would be a perfect slogan for TecHumanity.

Almost makes a fella want to go out kayaking or something.  Okay, maybe not, maybe we start out with taking the dog out squirrel-hunting - that'd be a start!

The Elephant In The Room

Read a very interesting article yesterday that PC sales are down significantly across the board and it's believed that the reason why is that Windows 8 is the main reason why and that many people are just migrating to tablets.

I am not convinced that there is a direct correlation between the two and it could be anecdotal but it does seem clear to me that Windows 8 definitely isn't taking the world by storm.

It seems to me that technology in terms of significant computing is at a crossroads as the industry tries to decide what our platforms will be.

I still remain very pessimistic about tablets becoming the de-facto hardware in business and heavy home usage.  If it does, then I will certainly buy stock in firms relates to products that alleviate Repetitive Strain Injury as this will be a very high growth sector.

The Vestigial Tale of Technology

ves·tig·i·al  

/veˈstij(ē)əl/

Adjective
1. Forming a very small remnant of something that was once much larger or more noticeable: "he felt a vestigial flicker of anger".

2. (of an organ or part of the body) Degenerate, rudimentary, or atrophied, having become functionless in the course of evolution.

Evolution of species is pretty much all about the development of features and body parts that enable that species to grow and become more sophisticated. An example of this would be the opposable thumb which humans and some primates have developed and has been paramount in the development of the species as it has allowed us to hold tools and therefore to build.

Similarly, there are others that are no longer required during the evolution of the species. Evolution has also decided that a species shouldn't expend energy on parts of the body that are no long needed in which case, the body part of feature becomes less significant.

Scientists believe that at all mammals had tails and that as these species evolved their need for a tail was eliminated. Through countless generations, the tail shrank until now; it’s believed that all mammals have a remnant of it – just a nub at the base of the spine that is referred to as the Vestigial Tail.

Recently, I was out with a friend and we were talking about technology and how it impacts our lives. One of the things that I mentioned to her is that one of my concerns with technology sometimes is that it becomes difficult for us to do things on our own and in some cases, we never adapt skills that might be useful as technology does it force us and we’re never forced to learn.

I’ve never learned how to drive a manual transmission because I've never needed to. Here in Canada, I’ve never had a problem getting a car with an automatic transmission. I was stymied when I went to Cuba last year and I just didn’t bother renting a car as they were all manual transmissions. The other example that I was discussing was my concern with these self-parking vehicles. It’s great that they will automatically parallel park but for the novice driver, it makes them completely dependent on a self-parking car because they do not have the skills to do so on their own. Since technology provides this function, there’s no need to learn the fundamental skill. This in turn can inhibit the growth and development of basic skills.

There are many other aspects of our lives where the technology has clearly made our lives easier but by the same token, our lack of ability to perform a task manually will impede us. I made reference to this anecdote in an article a couple of years ago but it completely gets my point across. I was in a store a couple of years ago making a minor purchase, the cost was something like $4.72 so I handed her a $5 bill. The cashier, who was an adult, was perplexed as to what to do as the till was down. She looks at my $5 and the price tag and then the moment of brilliance crosses her mind and she whips out a solar powered calculator to figure out the change. I was stunned that an adult was incapable of such a basic math exercise.

As technology advances it does wonderful things for us. It calculates much more accurately and quickly than I ever could; I still remain concerned which of our skills may become akin to the vestigial tail as a direct result of technology.

I suppose that there would be those that argue and say that these skills are old school and not worth worrying about. Perhaps they’re right. I don’t know how to use an abacus and in all of my years, I can’t remember one time when I said to myself “gosh, I REALLY wish I knew how to flip these beads on this abacus!”.

That having been said, old school is old school, I suppose. I best be more concerned about being the dog that’s able to learn new tricks than to be overly concerned with any technological vestigial tales.