I predict the rise of what I call "mental obesity".
Once the need to perform physical work vanished, those who did not consciously decide to train had a much higher chance of becoming obese. I expect that the mental capacities of some people will become less by the same effect.
What we will see is a separation between those who are taught why they write and decide to comply and those who just take the easy way out.
I like this term.
It even extends to concepts like hyper-palatable foods, with the equivalent being hyper-palatable entertainment (like TikTok, or Youtube Shorts) that similarly short-circuits the brains reward loop.
Look at long term stats on mathematics ability and literacy in the rich western countries. It does not paint a good picture. Two things I know off the top of my head is that literacy scores in the SATs have trended slightly down over the past 40 years, for both low-achievers and high-achievers.[1]
Australia, one of the richest countries in the world, is experiencing a multi-decade decline in mathematical standing[2]. Australia is fabulously rich, but is doing a worse and worse job of producing citizens that are numerate and understand mathematics. I haven't looked at literacy performance in the country, but I'd guess it's declining like it is in the USA, as Australia is subject to broadly the same pressures of political-economy and technology.
On the other hand you might also see an increased interest in doing things with your brain (e.g. writing poetry or jokes) because it's rewarding, much as you see now with interest in endurance sports, climbing, etc. Or the interest in hand making things now that we produce most things with highly scaled abd automated processes.
Sure, and do you see people memorizing Oddyssey-length works and reciting them anymore? Just because you live in the world of the lost does not mean there was no loss.
For (much) more on this, look at Orality and Literacy by Walter Ong
Once the need to perform physical work vanished, those who did not consciously decide to train had a much higher chance of becoming obese. I expect that the mental capacities of some people will become less by the same effect.
What we will see is a separation between those who are taught why they write and decide to comply and those who just take the easy way out.