Turn signals: The power is at your fingertips...

Consider the index finger. The one you point with. What a wonderful mechanism it is; sensitive enough to read tiny bumps of braille, yet strong enough to kill a man with a well-placed stab.

It can say "you" and "there" and "come hither" in every known language, and with such subtlety that if all you could see was the beckoning finger, you would know whether it belonged to a headmaster brandishing a cane or a girl in a singles bar with some other kind of corporal punishment in mind.

It can operate with enough dexterity for microsurgery, to paint a masterpiece or play a piano concerto, guide a dart, type a letter, use a smart phone, turn on a light, programme the washing machine, add emphasis to a speech, select a volunteer; it helps children count and get to the very bottom of a yoghurt pot and clinches multi-million dollar deals at an auction.

It also undertakes a job that every man, woman and child on planet earth indulges in; the one that leads to the saying that “inside any perfectly clean nostril you will find...a fingerprint!”
I'm not aware of any society that actually regards this activity as either an art form or a criminal offence, and the nearest man-made gadget for the job is a power tool that runs on compressed air. It's called a handkerchief. Perhaps there's no need for technical intervention, because the index finger way is so darned easy.

Indeed, there is only one other index-finger task that is less mentally or physically less strenuous: Using your car's indicator switch.

In normal driving position, your index finger is much nearer to the indicator lever than it is to your nose. If this is not the case, I suggest you move the seat further back and sit up straight. The switch can be easily reached with less physical movement or effort than it takes to nod. In fact, there's only one thing on your entire car that's physically easier to use (the rear view mirror; which requires only a minor rotation of the eyeballs).

DIM LIGHTS

So. Indicator switch. Index finger. No sweat. But if it's so easy, then why do so many motorists fail to press the lever when it would be appropriate to do so for the safety and convenience of others and themselves?

As it cannot be the physical difficulty, perhaps there's the problem of knowing where the finger is and/or when to use it.

But then how does anybody with that degree of learning and retention difficulty remember to turn the steering wheel when they want to turn?

Perhaps they could use whatever trick they have for remembering to do that, and to also remember to look in the rear view mirror (eyeball roll) and indicate (index finger) a little bit in advance of the steering wheel part.

No, the only reason I can think of for not indicating is that the index finger is otherwise engaged. Meanwhile, know this; from now on, if you turn without indicating, the people in the car behind you will be singing in chorus: “Nose! Picker!”
 And again, for the same reason, if you forget to dim your lights.

[email protected]