Laser pointers can be very shaky, this might be more practical for him.
Also a professor of mine said she avoids it because some veteran students get twitchy when they see it.
Took me too long to realize “veteran students” aren’t just very experienced students
“You’re going to set off the grad students’ PTSD if you keep using that thing!”
Fiftieth year retaking this module.
Plus laser pointers don’t work well on some reflective surfaces like TVs
Casts the finger from the front to smack the laughing kid
Reels finger back in
Continues to point.
Now try doing that with a laser pointer!
They just need a bigger laser:
Turns up the laser power to
smackvapourize the laughing kidTurns power back down
Continues to point.
As someone that works at a university, this perfectly summarises the childish stubbornness that is academics’ resistance to change. It is impossible to tell an idiot they’re an idiot when their entire identity is groomed in a niche echo chamber of praise for knowing what’s best.
“I’m excellent at one thing. Therefore I am excellent at all things. Therefore things I don’t like must be stupid. This fishing pole and foam hand is not stupid, laser pointers are, as are all those that advocate them. I will not participate in… points to word and appears to attempt an underscoring action…stupidity.”
A different take, the professor doesn’t give a shit one way or another about laser pointers but knows a ridiculous foam finger will get attention and help students remember important stuff.
Google von Restorff effect.
Yeah, and it is absolutely more visible. If I had to take notes during this lecture, I would absolutely appreciate not having to search for the dot every time I looked up.
We do have those academics. It’s funny, they’re the most paid and don’t seem to give a shit about it all, where as those below them seem to be constantly trying to earn more than each other to be seen as better than each other. The top academics and most of the research academics seem to all succeed because they’re connected to reality, not the academia schoolyard games.
To be fair I have accidentally lasered people during a speech. Laser pointers are great, but it can be a safety issue.
Counterpoint; You just suck.
Not like I did it on purpose. Giving a speech and following the presentation and talking points requires a bit of concentration. I do suck at doing multiple things at once, did it in a learning environment, and found out afterwards.
Suck is rarely intentional.
Depends on the context really
heh. mouth sex.
Skill issue
I kinda love this for webcasts though. We use Panopto and it shows you the digital slides and a camera view of the lecturer, so whenever the speaker uses a laser pointer the remote audience can’t see what they’re pointing at.
Hence why there’s a butt load of scientists that express opinions that go against the scientific consensus, most of the time they’re talking about stuff that’s out of their actual specialty.
As someone with protanomaly (colorblindness due to sucky red cones), this guy is a hero.
With a projector screen that big and with him that close, I can see why. That’d be a pretty bad angle for a laser pointer.
I gotta tell you Op. I just don’t see the point.
I would have loved this. Laser pointers can be very hard to spot.
Agreed, plus they run out of battery or just stop working for no reason when you need them most. This only happens very rarely with the foam-hand-fishing-pole.
Sir, I didn’t get that … Can you please point it out again.
He points at you instead - “YOU, SIR! GET OUT OF MY CLASS!” he demands as he waves his foamy finger at you all in a vague gesture.
Would make for a good funny video.
.
Can’t quite make out what is being taught here. Are they doing nucluophilic acyl substitiution, or just some random resonance structures? I wish there were a few more pixels…
