Everyone Is Amazing Except For You

The kids today are all better at playing the piano than anyone who has ever lived. The New York Times, of course, misses the logical explanation:

The overall level of technical proficiency in instrumental playing, especially on the piano, has increased steadily over time. Many piano teachers, critics and commentators have noted the phenomenon, which is not unlike what happens in sports. The four-minute mile seemed an impossibility until Roger Bannister made the breakthrough in 1954. Since then, runners have knocked nearly 17 seconds off Bannister’s time.

Child pianists be doping, people! Or, it could be a Gattaca thing. But it’s more fun to think of Shine-looking teenagers buying vials of clear liquid out of the trunk of their conductor’s car.