The generation gaps problem
Technology widens age divide
Nick Olson
Issue date: 2/2/10 Section: Commentary
I have a little sister, Mary, who, I recently found out, has never bought a music CD. She's bought online albums from iTunes, of course, but never a real CD in a real CD case. So I suppose it makes sense that Mary has no concept of the CD culture I grew up in - no grasp of CD booklets or holding your favorite band's album in your hands after going out and buying it the day it's released, or having a prized possession of your CD collection. Mary has never had a CD collection - who would need one when you have an iPod storing your music?
I suppose all that shouldn't have surprised me all that much; after all, I've never bought a cassette tape, much less an LP record, and accordingly, I have no concept of the culture that goes along with a record collection.
But the generation gap between my dad's record culture and my CD culture doesn't surprise me all too much. Ever since the term "generation gap" became popular in the 60's, it's been applied to explain differences and misunderstandings between parents and their children.
What's surprising to me is that there's a generation gap between me and my little sister, who's only 10 years younger than me.
And there's more to the gap than just CDs. Ten-year-olds have never lived in a world where the vast majority of people do not have personal computers, cell phones and access to the Internet. Because of rapid technological change, the way they perceive the world and act in it can differ vastly from someone just a decade older.
And the technological gap is ever-widening. Technology, as many theorize, accelerates at an exponential rate. So not only is the gap widening, but the rate at which the gap itself is widening is also accelerating. And because modern economies operate in a process of "creative destruction," as economist Joseph Schumpeter termed it, because economies are always evolving, constantly improving and replacing its products, there is constant pressure on the gap to keep widening.
I suppose all that shouldn't have surprised me all that much; after all, I've never bought a cassette tape, much less an LP record, and accordingly, I have no concept of the culture that goes along with a record collection.
But the generation gap between my dad's record culture and my CD culture doesn't surprise me all too much. Ever since the term "generation gap" became popular in the 60's, it's been applied to explain differences and misunderstandings between parents and their children.
What's surprising to me is that there's a generation gap between me and my little sister, who's only 10 years younger than me.
And there's more to the gap than just CDs. Ten-year-olds have never lived in a world where the vast majority of people do not have personal computers, cell phones and access to the Internet. Because of rapid technological change, the way they perceive the world and act in it can differ vastly from someone just a decade older.
And the technological gap is ever-widening. Technology, as many theorize, accelerates at an exponential rate. So not only is the gap widening, but the rate at which the gap itself is widening is also accelerating. And because modern economies operate in a process of "creative destruction," as economist Joseph Schumpeter termed it, because economies are always evolving, constantly improving and replacing its products, there is constant pressure on the gap to keep widening.
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