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Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

economist.com

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Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#101

Post by one-more-minute »

ldx1024 wrote: post #79

It may just be a pet peeve, but it rankles me a bit when the term "epidemic" is used to describe widespread conditions that are not communicable/infectuous. Looking at the dictionary it appears the usage here is legitimate, but my guess would be that it is a misuse that has become accepted, like using the term "begging the question" to mean suggesting the question.

Epidemiologists study health at the population level in general, not just communicable diseases. So at least in that sense the "epidemi-" prefix isn't limited to infection. Is there any better term for a health issue with rapidly increasing prevalence?

A dictionary of medicine from 1882 suggests that common usage of the word has become more narrow, not less, and that there was some level of debate about the technical meaning [1]. Stedman's Medical Dictionary (1920) gives a more modern definition, "a disease attacking nearly simultaneously a large number of people", without restriction to infectious diseases.

[1] https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/A_Dictionary_of_Medic...

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#102

Post by OrwellianTimes »

zeroth32 wrote: post #8

Quoted post unavailable.

Agree man! Lockdown was just really unjustified on society.

It made no sense for such a minor disease which I'm sure would have been dismissed as flu 60 years ago.

I don't know what caused this overreaction, sure for 30-40 days but this thing has devastated billions of lives, left millions jobless and ruined an entire generation.

It's sometimes necessary to have pandemics and diseases like this to control the population of society.

Europe practically had a renaissance after the black death.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#103

Post by simonh »

Asraelite wrote: post #97
simonh wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All novel linguistic constructs are 'misuses' in some sense or another that have become accepted. In this case that's not so though, the etymology is from the Greek '(upon|near|against) the people, and does not necessarily refer only to disease.

Etymology in interesting, but has almost zero relevance in determining how acceptable a use of a word is.

That's precisely the point of the first line of my comment.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#104

Post by knob »

chronci2901 wrote: post #68
inglor_cz wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If we manage to have a kid, long walks everyday are planned :) More movement, less screen time is always good for health, parents' and kids' alike. Also, getting used to all sorts of weather improves the immune system. By spending too much time indoors we are becoming glasshouse flowers.

> By spending too much time indoors we are becoming glasshouse flowers. Efficiency vs anti-fragility. Pick one, but not both.

I love that you used anti-fragility correctly! =)

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#105

Post by HidyBush »

ldx1024 wrote: post #79

It may just be a pet peeve, but it rankles me a bit when the term "epidemic" is used to describe widespread conditions that are not communicable/infectuous. Looking at the dictionary it appears the usage here is legitimate, but my guess would be that it is a misuse that has become accepted, like using the term "begging the question" to mean suggesting the question.

>but it rankles me a bit when the term "epidemic" is used to describe widespread conditions that are not communicable/infectuous

but short sightedness caused by lack of sunlight exposure is infectuous.

why do you think kids are being kept at home? because of their parents. and why do the parents keep them at home? because of a cultural and societal shift in behavior. and why is this shift happening? because some ideas floating around have infected a large enough number of people.

human ideas (or memes if you like) are precisely like viruses, and if short-sightedness is caused by some ideas being spread then it's no different than it being an actual virally caused disease.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#106

Post by frereubu »

b112 wrote: post #31
frereubu wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My daughter’s primary school teacher recently got a “beach teaching” qualification and she now has one school day a week on the beach, rain or shine. I was really pleased about that anyway as the school doesn’t have a lot of outdoor space for the kids to run around, but this gives me even more reason to be happy.

I scoffed at first, but I guess the qualification is about water safety and things, just in case?

I know what you mean - I also had a bit of a similar reaction at first - but as I understand it's how to run lessons on a beach without classroom teaching materials to hand, how to use things on the beach in the context of certain subjects etc. Also, I said "qualification" which probably makes it sound grander than it is - she just went on a 3 or 4 day course.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#107

Post by frereubu »

vasco wrote: post #91
b112 wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I scoffed at first, but I guess the qualification is about water safety and things, just in case?

You should've stopped at the scoff. Someone qualified to handle children in a classroom and in field trips is already qualified to take them to a beach.

I think you may be misunderstanding, which is perhaps understandable given that I didn't unpack what it meant - see my sibling comment. But scoffing without asking for more information isn't a great strategy for learning.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#109

Post by Asraelite »

simonh wrote: post #103
Asraelite wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Etymology in interesting, but has almost zero relevance in determining how acceptable a use of a word is.

That's precisely the point of the first line of my comment.

Oh sorry, I misinterpreted.

Re: Shortsightedness has become an epidemic

#110

Post by ayewo »

simonh wrote: post #94
mattlondon wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good luck with the plan :) Under the age of about 1 to 1.5 then you get to call the shots of what happens when. Walk as mu h as you like. After that age, the kids start to get their own opinions and won't always just do what you want them to do. You may want to go for a long walk, but the kid wants to do something else. They'll spend 95% of the time trying to escape the buggy/stroller or trying to run off or just sit…

It very much depends on the relationship you have with your kids. Respect and trust are really important. However beyond that IMHO frankly it's critical safety imperative that children do what their parents tell them when it matters. If you're in the street near traffic a child disregarding parental instructions is a life and death issue. There are other safety critical situations too. This is why I feel it's vital t…

With respect to building respect and trust with young kids, this video might be useful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHvm1J9HVLo
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