Is Not Knowing the Capital of Canada a Problem?

[Craig B]

Almost certainly never. But when did I ever say that it was of practical importance?

The thing is, how on earth do you know what knowledge will ever be of practical importance? And is the only knowledge worth having that which will be of practical importance at some time in your life? Please be careful when answering that one.

Yes. This practical use attitude misses the point. People are exposed to knowledge - particularly the educated people of whom we speak in this thread - and chunks of that knowledge stick in their brains. I may not be able to recite a list of all the prime ministers the UK has ever had, but I am aware of the names of those of my adult life, and many of the others. This may be of no use to me at all, but it has lodged in my mind anyway. The same goes for the seats of government of neighbouring countries. I may never have occasion to go to Oslo in my whole life, but how could I possibly not know that it is the capital of Norway?

 

[MikeG]

.........Certainly you must agree that that isn't helping anything.

That's called a leading question.

This is clearly a cultural issue. I presume you are from the US. Over here, whilst there are many people with no idea of the world around them, most would be embarrassed to not know really basic stuff. You seem proud of not knowing it. That feeds into the European view of the stereotypical US citizen: ultra-insular and uninformed of the wider world. I try hard to avoid stereotypes, but boy, you're making it harder and harder.

Do kids in the USA do geography at school?

 

[AdMan]

Do kids in the USA do geography at school?

Yes, most do.

And some actually learn something and remember it.

And many are not proud of the fact that some don't think it's worth having some basic knowledge of the world outside the US.

Defending willful ignorance, as some posters in this thread are apparently doing, is abhorrent.

 

[Foolmewunz]

Yes, most do.

And some actually learn something and remember it.

And many are not proud of the fact that some don't think it's worth having some basic knowledge of the world outside the US.

Defending willful ignorance, as some posters in this thread are apparently doing, is abhorrent.

Bolded part.

Yep.

It's called the dumbing down of America. I are not very edumacated and I'm proud of it. It's really a sad trend.

 

[Wirelight]

Of course not. That's Victoria's Secret.

Geography has always been my favorite subject in school so I find this thread fascinating. And like a poster said earlier, I couldn't fathom going through life without knowing a little something about the world around me.

 

[This is The End]

No it jolly well isn't. Confusing "Americans" (which everyone understands to be shorthand for citizens of the USA) with "America" is forgetting those itsy-bitsy little bits of the North American continent which aren't part of the USA, such as Mexico and Canada.

America is the country, The United States of America.

North America and South America are continents.

You are "jolly well" wrong.

 

[MarkCorrigan]

But it is trivia though. When will you ever put it to use? At least you can put memorizing the multiplication table to some use, even if it is largely pointless.


It isn't just a trivial fact that has no bearing on a small number of people, it is something that has little bearing on a huge number of people. But hey, since you find so dang important how about you answer a question: When will you, MikeG, ever put knowing what the capital of Canada is to practical use?

As stated by others beforehand, just because it isn't practically useful (unless you take a career in politics; history; geography; economics; journalism or anything to do with import/export to or from the area) doesn't mean it isn't worth knowing. I am going to throw my hat into the ring of the "I has the sads" people here. It's absolutely disturbing that people are defending ignorance.


Now, before you say "but it's the capital of ONE country, it's not a big deal!" had it just been one country I wouldn't be too worried. I don't know what the capital of Moldova, or Sri Lanka, or Gabon are. There are likely dozens of countries, some quite big and important that I wouldn't know. I can't even remember right at this minute what the capital of South Africa is (is it Joburg? I at least know the locals call that city Joburg). That isn't the problem because no one person can know everything about everything. The problem is that when confronted with knowledge a number of people in this thread brush it off as being insignificant. That's just sad. There is something else to this I will get to shortly.

I'm sorry, but how is memorizing the capitals of all fifty states, plus the capitals of nations you don't even live in considered basic information?

It depends on the nation. If it is "What's the capital of the Central African Republic" I'd say it isn't that basic. If it's "What is the capital of Japan" say, I'd say it's very basic.

Further to that, this isn't what was being referred to as basic. What was being referred to as "basic" is the knowledge that Africa isn't a country. Yes, I know you want us all to drop that because you've learned but that isn't the point. The point is that this displays an absolutely shocking lack of interest in the World. How on earth does someone get to adulthood without knowing and retaining really very basic stuff like this?

Do you watch the news? Is American news so insular that you don't even get reports about major foreign events like the recent hostage taking inside a mall in Nairobi (capital of Kenya)? It was all over our news, and was the lead story of the day on at least one of the days it occurred. Having googled the eent I found numerous references to it in American news media. Did you see it reported? Did they mention that it was happening in Kenya? Was it ever a lead story on a televised news show?


Currently, the BBC News Website has selected three news stories for the feature coverage on the main website.

Firstly, a story about the last manager of the Co-Op bank who got caught trying to buy drugs, among other things.

Secondly the story of the three women who were held as slaves for 30 years in London.

Thirdly...well this is how it's being reported:

Deaths rise in Latvia store collapse

Latvian rescuers search for survivors in the rubble of a supermarket in the capital Riga which collapsed on Thursday killing at least 26.

This is followed up with three links, a video report showing the devastation, a series of pictures of the event and ongoing rescue mission, and the BBC's Latvia country profile, so that people can learn more about the nation this is happening in. This, to me is normal for an online news report. Is it odd that this is such major news to you, considering it happened in a country that we are only really linked to by membership in the EU?

Did you never pick up a map, or look a globe or even just google somewhere to find out about the countries mentioned in foreign reports?

Can you speak a foreign language, even just a little conversationally? Is that not taught as mandatory in American schools? It is here, and even people with little interest in the subject are usually able to at least order food and drinks for themselves in France, Germany or Spain, or find out where things like the train station or airport are. Is this basic knowledge to you, or is it something that only a handful know?

A few years back if someone had asked me what the capital of Canada was I would ask for a moment as I consult an atlas. How is that fundamentally different from using Google Earth to find the same information?

Ah, but the problem is that your (and yes, I mean you personally) severe lack of knowledge about the world is actually indicative of someone who wouldn't do either of those things. See above for exactly what I mean.

I don't consider not knowing the capital of a country you don't live in as ignorance. But I do regard judging people on not knowing it as arrogance.

Which is again, sad. If the point was simply "These people don't know X, what morons." You might have a point, but as people have pointed out it's the lack of curiosity about the World that is the problem. It's certainly odd that students in one of the top universities in the world don't know the capital of one of the most powerful countries, but it isn't in and of itself damning to them. What is damning in this thread however is the continual assertion that there is no need for information about countries outside the one you live in. You (I think it was you, forgive e if I'm mistaking you for someone else) said that you don't need to know Moscow is the capital of the Russian Federation to be friends with a Russian person. Quite true, but I suspect if you revealed to them that you didn't know, they would be...shocked to say the least.

As a Brit, I'm no longer shocked when Americans don't know the difference between England, Great Britain and the UK. That isn't because it is trivial non-important arcane knowledge, because I would be shocked if I came across a French person, or an Aussie, or a Spaniard who weren't at least aware of the differences between England and the UK. Instead it's more that I have a lower opinion of the average American. I don't think that they are any more stupid, but that they are insular and highly ignorant about everything outside their own experience.

 

[This is The End]

I'd like to see a study of the most frequently unknown US capitals. (It would have to be a broad nationwide study, to be fair.)

I bet Pierre is in the top 3. Maybe Frankfort. Maybe Montpelier.

 

[Damien Evans]

Numbering added by me.

1. I'm far from the only person who has ever made that mistake, certainly.
2. I'm pretty certain that this is well known. But as far as I know England is still its own country, like any other country in the UN.
3. I always thought it was like Australia in that it was both a nation/country and a continent.

You're joking, yes?

 

[Meed]

As stated by others beforehand, just because it isn't practically useful (unless you take a career in politics; history; geography; economics; journalism or anything to do with import/export to or from the area) doesn't mean it isn't worth knowing. I am going to throw my hat into the ring of the "I has the sads" people here. It's absolutely disturbing that people are defending ignorance.

Just because something isn't practically useful doesn't mean it isn't worth knowing - I agree.

But not all knowledge is equally worth knowing. And knowledge of "the capital of ____", while not entirely valueless, is among the least meaningful types of knowledge as far as I can tell.

Now, before you say "but it's the capital of ONE country, it's not a big deal!" had it just been one country I wouldn't be too worried. I don't know what the capital of Moldova, or Sri Lanka, or Gabon are. There are likely dozens of countries, some quite big and important that I wouldn't know. I can't even remember right at this minute what the capital of South Africa is (is it Joburg? I at least know the locals call that city Joburg). That isn't the problem because no one person can know everything about everything. The problem is that when confronted with knowledge a number of people in this thread brush it off as being insignificant. That's just sad. There is something else to this I will get to shortly.

Not "knowledge", but a specific type of knowledge.

I can name most world capitals, as well as most state capitals, I can identify almost every national flag, I can point out the location of most countries on the world map, and my ipod is full of world history lectures. So when I say knowing a capital is not a very meaningful type of knowledge, I'm not defending my own ego or "ignorance". Nor am I saying that knowledge of the world is unimportant. I just genuinely don't think knowledge of capitals is very important. I think knowing the location of countries on the map is MUCH more meaningful, for example. As in, it actually helps you understand the world better. Just like knowing the history and political trends of other countries is meaningful and helps one better understand the world.

Do you watch the news? Is American news so insular that you don't even get reports about major foreign events like the recent hostage taking inside a mall in Nairobi (capital of Kenya)? It was all over our news, and was the lead story of the day on at least one of the days it occurred. Having googled the eent I found numerous references to it in American news media. Did you see it reported? Did they mention that it was happening in Kenya? Was it ever a lead story on a televised news show?

American news is very insular yes, and it is a problem. Hell that's just one of the many many problems with it.

 

[Damien Evans]

Yeah, but that's a bad example because everyone knows Paris as it is by far the largest city in France.

A better one would be for people to identify the capital of Switzerland. Or both capitals of The Netherlands.

I know Bern is Switzerland.

As for The Netherlands, I knew Amsterdam was, but I had to look up to see that the other was Den Haag not Rotterdam.

 

[MarkCorrigan]

Just because something isn't practically useful doesn't mean it isn't worth knowing - I agree.

But not all knowledge is equally worth knowing. And knowledge of "the capital of ____", while not entirely valueless, is among the least meaningful types of knowledge as far as I can tell.



Not "knowledge", but a specific type of knowledge.

I can name most world capitals, as well as most state capitals, I can identify almost every national flag, I can point out the location of most countries on the world map, and my ipod is full of world history lectures. So when I say knowing a capital is not a very meaningful type of knowledge, I'm not defending my own ego or "ignorance". Nor am I saying that knowledge of the world is unimportant. I just genuinely don't think knowledge of capitals is very important. I think knowing the location of countries on the map is MUCH more meaningful, for example. As in, it actually helps you understand the world better. Just like knowing the history and political trends of other countries is meaningful and helps one better understand the world.

Perfectly legitimate and reasoned response, but I would disagree on it not being particularly important.

Oh and I can do every flag (barring duplicates obviously). I'd love to find somewhere to have a flag off with you for a laugh.

 

[Damien Evans]

To be fair, even we couldn't decide which of those two to make our capital. That's why we created a new city to be our capital halfway between them. It makes it equally inconvenient for people from either one to get to.

Canberra is nowhere near halfway between Sydney and Melbourne. It's 280 km from Sydney and 660 km from Melbourne.

 

[Travis]

I'll tell you why it's important to know the name of Canada's capital city: I just put it on today's quiz as a 2-point bonus. Two students (out of 24) got it correct; both admitted to having seen this story in the news today.

Most popular answer? "Quebec"

Weirdest answer? "Denmark"

Quebec isn't that bad actually. It shows the students know that the capital isn't one of the major cities and thus chose Quebec perhaps also reasoning that it might be the capital because Quebec dates all the way back to the early days of colonialism.

 

[Damien Evans]

Quebec isn't that bad actually. It shows the students know that the capital isn't one of the major cities and thus chose Quebec perhaps also reasoning that it might be the capital because Quebec dates all the way back to the early days of colonialism.

It is that bad. Would you be happy if someone thought the capital of the USA was Florida?

 

[MikeG]

.........As for The Netherlands, I knew Amsterdam was, but I had to look up to see that the other was Den Haag not Rotterdam.

You'll know it more commonly as The Hague, which raises the interesting diversion of the anglicising of place names. For instance, if west Africans weren't such laid-back people, some of them would mention that they consider it rude that we call Cote d'Ivoire (sorry, can't do accents) the Ivory Coast.

 

[Recovering Agnostic]

No it wouldn't. Here's the fair question: How many educated Ukrainians know the capital of Belarus? How many educated Peruvians know the capital of Ecuador?

Or vice versa? Being none of the above, and in the knowledge that Minsk has already been named for Belarus, I know:

Ecuador: Quito
Peru: Lima
Ukraine: Had to think about this one, even though I know that I know it. It's Kiev (or possibly Kyiv, depending on your transliteration preference)

I don't say that to show off (alright, maybe a bit, but for all you know I just googled them), but because thinking about Kiev started to help me to understand part of the culture gap that's become very obvious in this thread. Ukraine is part of Europe, and even as a part that I didn't learn at school (because it was part of the USSR back then), that means that I pick things up through news, following stories like the Orange Revolution. But that isn't how I remembered the capital, although it might be how I initially knew it. When all else failed, I fell back on my memory that I had known it once, remembered that I knew the name before the USSR split up, and eventually traced it back via Dynamo Kiev. That's a name I've always known.

Memory's a strange thing, and if you don't reinforce known facts from time to time, you're likely to forget them. If UK news reporting was almost entirely about domestic affairs, and if the sports I followed were only really played between UK teams, I can't imagine I'd ever have known Kiev, let alone remembered it. That's not to say that it's a good thing not to know, but it's understandable if you have no reason to know.

The US-centric approach to news and sport is a whole different matter.

 

[Professor Yaffle]

I'm amazed that the capital of South Africa hasn't come up yet. Anyone know?

 

[MikeG]

SA has 3 capitals: Cape Town, Pretoria and ........not Joburg, silly me.....Bloemfontein.

This is a throw-back to SA being made up of very separate and distinct provinces, often at war, with the Dutch controlling some, and the British controlling others. It was a way of spreading the power.

 

[Polaris]

I'm amazed that the capital of South Africa hasn't come up yet. Anyone know?

Praetoria.