August 29, 2006 3:29 PM

A generation defined?
Posted by at 3:29 PM

Today on WBUR's "Morning Edition," there was a piece about Beloit College's practice of providing staff with a sort of cheat-sheet to the mentality of incoming freshman.

"Each year, Beloit College in Wisconsin publishes a list of historical and cultural touchstones that have, and have not happened, during the lifetime of entering freshmen. Subjects range from the Soviet Union to carbon paper. Steve Inskeep talks to Adam Kennedy, a freshman at Beloit."

Mind you that I'm at least six years older than the entering freshman class (you do the math) but I remember the Soviet Union, and I've certainly sent mail involving stamps in my lifetime. But I also know who NAS is - take that, Steve Inskeep!

This leads me to believe that, given the increasing speed with which we develop new technologies, and the corresponding ways that society changes in reaction to technology, we may have to redefine the time limits for a generation.


You can listen to the piece here.