they're in my skin and my bones

IT’S a question that probably every driver with a Garmin navigation device on her dashboard has asked herself at least once: What did we ever do before GPS? How did people find their way around, especially in places they’d never been before?

Like most questions asked in our tech-dependent era, these underestimate the power of the human mind. It is surprisingly good at developing “mental maps” of an area, a skill new research shows can grow stronger with use. The question is, with disuse — say, by relying on a GPS device — can we lose the skill, too?

This is why I refuse to get a GPS (or accept one given to me). I prefer building neural connections and don’t mind getting lost a couple times in order to have a stronger mind.

In this moment I don’t feel like the biggest nerd on earth for admitting that.