The Omniscient Red Light

Most would agree that we live in a technological age. Everyone is searching for the next big, or should I say small, thing to improve the already microscopic gadgets we crave. However how much do we really know, not to mention understand, about the myriad of devices that surround us; I'll be the first to admit that I know next to nothing about many of even the simplest gizmos, yet I think even I could have provided a better explanation than one woman. As I was exiting an airport bathroom I overheard a conversation between a little girl (six at the most) and her mother. Her question was simple, "how does the toilet know when to flush?" The mother paused and gave a response that I consider far worse than the I-told-you-so's that escape the chagrined mouths of many a parent; her reponse was, "The red light knows dear, the red light just knows." Come now! Do the words motion sensor or electrical power ring a bell? Is it that she just didn't give her child enough credit for being able to comprehend these not so complex ideas or, could it be, that she doesn't understand them herself? Both are equally as unacceptable in a society that looks nowhere but up, either our educational system needs some work or else our parenting methods do...hmm how about both.