Could screens be to blame? In the modern day we have surrounded ourselves with distraction machines. Some believe they are wasting not only our time, but our intellect as well.
Data shows humans losing brain power
Digital dementia: New research across countries and ages reveals a growing struggle to concentrate, and declining verbal and numerical reasoning. Glossary
Ethnography - The scientific description of peoples and cultures with their customs and habits.
Polyglot - Knowing or using several languages.
Polymath - Someone with a wide range of knowledge and learning.
Renaissance man - The Renaissance was a period of European history between the 13th and 17th centuries. "Renaissance men" are known for being skilled at a number of varied subjects, instead of specialising in just one.
OECD - The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
numeracy - The ability to understand and use numbers.
Literacy - The ability to read and write.
Atrophies - Wastes away.
Cognition - The mental processes involved in gaining knowledge and understanding.
AI Chatbots - Computer programs that simulate conversation with human end-users.
Synthesise - To combine information from multiple sources.
Analogous - Something that is similar to another thing.
Homer - Ancient Greek poet, author of the Illiad and the Odyssey. It is unknown if Homer is a single author or a name for a composite oral tradition.
Anecdotal - Based on personal accounts rather than facts or evidence.
Microplastics - Microplastics are fragments of degraded plastic that are less than five millimetres in length. They are blown into the atmosphere and transported by ocean currents.