> Except both corporations and academia require them
And so the people who are aiming to go into that kind of work will learn these skills.
Academia is a tiny proportion of people. "Business" is larger but I think you might be surprised by just how much of business you can do on a phone or tablet these days, with all the files shared and linked between chats and channels rather than saved in the traditional sense.
As a somewhat related example, I've finally caved into to following all the marketing staff I hire and started using Canva. The only time you now need to "save a picture" is... never. You just hit share and send the file directly into the WhatsApp chat with the local print shop.
> Academia is a tiny proportion of people. "Business" is larger but I think you might be surprised by just how much of business you can do on a phone or tablet these days, with all the files shared and linked between chats and channels rather than saved in the traditional sense.
And this is exactly what is meant by generational skill atrophy. You no longer own your own files or manage your own data, it's all handled in cloud solutions outside of your control, on devices you barely understand how they work and in channels controlled by companies looking to earn a profit.
When any of those links break, you are suddenly non-functional. You can no longer access your files, you can no longer work on your device. This skill atrophy includes the ability to correctly analyze and debug problems with your devices or workflow in question.