I recently noted how a number of technology experts are lamenting that today’s young people can handle the latest electronics expertly without understanding anything about how they work.

That message is being reinforced this week in a very high-profile venue: The Royal Institution of Great Britain.

One of the great traditions of the Royal Institution is a series called the “Christmas Lectures,” delivered each year at this time by an estimable scientific authority. The first such lecture was delivered by the legendary Michael Faraday in 1825.

This year’s honoree and lecturer is Professor Danielle George of the University of Manchester.  She is using her platform to decry the lack of scientific know-how among young people. Dr. George worries about a “lost generation” who “can no longer mend gadgets and appliances because they have grown up in a disposable world.”

A feature in London’s Daily Telegraph about this year’s Christmas Lectures gives a flavor:

Danielle George, Professor of Radio Frequency Engineering, at the University of Manchester, claims that the under 40s expect everything to “just work” and have no idea what to do when things go wrong.

Unlike previous generations who would “make do and mend” now young people will just chuck out their faulty appliances and buy new ones.

But Prof. George claims that many broken or outdated gadgets could be fixed or repurposed with only a brief knowledge of engineering and electronics.

This year’s Royal Institution Christmas Lectures are entitled “Sparks will fly: How to hack your home.” She is hoping it will inspire people to think what else they can do with common household objects. …

Prof. George said: “We’ve got a lost generation that has grown up with factory electronics that just work all of the time.

“All of these things in our home do seem to work most of the time and because they don’t break we just get used to them. They have almost become like Black Boxes which never die. And when they do we throw them away and buy something new.”

Professor George is trying to change that mindset with her opportunity to deliver the Christmas Lectures.  Starting yesterday and continuing over three days, she aims to tinker with technology to inspire people’s imaginations, including playing Tetris on a skyscraper and assembling a robot orchestra.

If we want to encourage young people to consider studying for careers in STEM fields, then it’s important to show exactly how mathematics, science, and engineering can be fun as well as challenging.

Kudos to Professor Danielle George and the Royal Institution for making big strides toward that goal.