We often think of drawing as something that takes inborn talent, but this kind of thinking stemsfrom our misclassification of drawing as, primarily, an art form rather than a tool for learning.

Researchers,teachers, and artists are starting to see how drawing can positively impact a widevariety of skills and disciplines.

Most of us have spent some time drawing before, but at some point, most of us stop drawing.There are people who don't, obviously, and thank god for that: a world without designers and artistswould be a very shabby one indeed.

Some argue that so many adults have abandoned drawing because we've miscategorized it andgiven it a very narrow definition. In his book,Stick Figures: Drawing as a Human Practice,ProfessorD.B. Dowd argues that "We have misfiled the significance of drawing because we see it as aprofessional skill instead of a personal capacity. We mistakenly think of "good" drawings as thosewhich work as recreations of the real world, as realistic illusions.Rather,drawing should berecategorized as a symbolic tool.

Human beings have been drawing for 73,000 years. It's part of what it means to be human. Wedon't have the strength of chimpanzees(大猩猩) because we've given up animal strength tomanipulatc subtle instruments, like hammers, spears, and — later —pens and pencils. The humanhand is an extremely densc network of nerve endings. In many ways, human beings are built to draw.

Some researchers argue that doodling(涂画) activates the brain's so-called default circuit —essentially, the areas of the brain responsible for maintaining a baseline level of activity in theabsence of other stimuli. Because of this, some believe that doodling during a boring lecture canhelp students pay attention. In one study, participants were asked to listen to a list of names whileeither doodling or sitting still. Those who remembered 29 percent more of the names than those whodid not.

There's also evidence that drawing talent is based on how accurately someone perceives theworld.The human visual system tends to misjudge size, shape, color, and angles but artists perceivethese qualities more accurately than non-artists. Cultivating drawing talent can become an essentialtool to improve people's observational skills in fields where the visual is important.

Rather than think of drawing as a talent that some creative people are gifted in, we shouldconsider it as a tool for secing and understanding the world better-one that just so happens to doubleas an art from.Both absent-minded doodling and copying from life have been shown to positivelyaffect your memory and visual perception ,so complain loudly the next time your school boardslashes the art department's budget.