The future of cognitive tools

Psychologist Judy Fan is an expert in how physical objects facilitate learning. In the classroom, these include pencils, pens, paper, and whiteboards. But in any learning situation, the physical world provides tools for learning and communicating, often trumping the speed and reach of today’s digital technologies. These objects are cognitive tools - physical representations of human thought, she says. They help us think, solve problems, and communicate with others better and more effectively, as she tells host Russ Altman in this episode of Stanford Engineering’s The Future of Everything podcast.