This List is a collection of cultural references used to describe freshmen students entering Beloit College this year. Originating on the Internet, it was picked up by a teacher at Beloit. He added to it, and then other faculty members added to it, and then somebody got the idea to hand it out to the entire faculty to give them an idea of the mindset of the incoming freshman class. It made me feel very old when I read it. Here it is (minus a few selections for purposes of space, as written in the Vancouver Sun, March 13/99)


The people who are starting college this fall were born in 1980.
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They have no meaningful recollection of the Reagan era and don't know he was shot.
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There has been only one pope.  They can only remember one president.
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They were 11 when the Soviet Union broke apart and do not remember the Cold War.
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They have never feared a nuclear war.  The Day After is a pill to them, not a movie.
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They are too young to remember the space shuttle blowing up.
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Their lifetime has always included AIDS.
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Bottle caps have always been screw-off and plastic.
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Atari pre-dates them, as do vinyl records.
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The expression "you sound like a broken record" means absolutely nothing to them.
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They have never owned a record player.
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Star Wars (the movie) looks very fake to them, and the special effects are pathetic.
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There have always been red M & M's and blue ones are not new.
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They may have heard of eight-track, but probably never have actually seen or heard one.
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The Compact Disc was introduced when they were one-year old.
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They have always had an answering machine.
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Most have never seen a TV set with only 13 channels, nor have they seen a black and white TV.
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They have always had cable.
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There have always been VCRs but they have no idea what BETA is.
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They cannot fathom not having a remote control.
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Roller-skating has always meant in-line for them.
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The Tonight Show has always been with Jay Leno.
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They have no idea when or why Jordache Jeans were cool.
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Popcorn has always been cooked in a microwave.
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They have never seen Larry Bird play, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a football player.
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They never took a swim and thought about Jaws.
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The Vietnam War is ancient history to them.
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They can't imagine what hard contact lenses are.
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They never heard: "Where's the beef?" or "I'd walk a mile for a Camel."
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They do not care who shot J. R. and have no idea who J. R. is.
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The Titanic was found?  I thought we always knew where it was.
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Kansas, Chicago, Boston, America and Alabama are places, not bands.
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McDonalds never came in styrofoam containers.
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There has always been an MTV.

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