We can only pray that these jokers choose a decent writer and director for like the first time in their lives.
You may not have liked his work, but Christopher Nolan would generally be thought of in the "decent" director category.
What if somebody is a brilliant theoretician but they easily lose focus when people nearby do distracting things? Still a weak-minded, unmotivated individual?
Um, yeah. Of course, back then, a tight sweater would have been a hell of a lot more distracting than a laptop screen saver.
If you easily lose focus, that's your issue. Learn to concentrate. Banning laptops won't take care of your problem anyway. Lectures don't all take place in dark, windowless rooms -- something distracting will always happen.
Work expands to fill the time available. -- Cyril Northcote Parkinson, "The Economist", 1955