Death by GPS

[Mirage35]

... a provocative title, but it's the one used in the article I'm linking to here: Death by GPS | Ars Technica.

It's a subject that has interested me for some time in the context of automotive GPS - there is more and more evidence that people who use GPS extensively lose the ability to navigate without it, or apparently in some cases to reason effectively.

I'm not experienced with chartplotters and all the other modcons for sailing, although this summer is when I hope to change that. I know how paper charts and compasses work, and can use a GPS to confirm a fix, but beyond that I'm a Luddite.

(Which is interesting when I think about it. When I took flying lessons my instructor had to keep telling me to look out the window - my instinct was to try to fly by instrument.)

So I'm curious what the more experienced among you think. Is the same phenomenon happening in sailing? How do you balance the use of the technology with the need to be aware of your physical surroundings? Or is it just such a different environment that it's not an issue?

Not just a random question - as I approach learning to use the electronics it's something I want to understand in order to find the approach that will work for me.