The Mindset List – Obsolete Cultural References And Vintage Technologies

By now, you might have seen this video of kids guessing the function of the obsolete technologies placed before them. With more than 2 million views, it’s challenging the popularity of the Marus and Charlies of the world. It’s not only cute to see them wonder if an 8-track player is a bomb or a computer disk is a camera but it makes you wonder what will become outdated tomorrow.

Beloit College is preparing. Each year professors and faculty create The Beloit College Mindset List which compiles cultural references and facts that will be commonplace for incoming freshman but might not have been obvious to the educators preparing lessons for them. What started as a tongue-in-cheek guide has become world-wide reference with enormous popularity. Kind of like Maru.

For example, the incoming freshman class who will graduate in 2015 was born around 1993. This means that the Internet was commonplace when they were growing up, Ferris Bueller and Sloane Peterson could be their parents, music has always been available via free downloads and no state has ever failed to observe Martin Luther King Day.

For the full list of 75 references true to the class of 2015 and years past, visit Beloit.edu/mindset.

Check out this video explaining the origins and international appeal of The Mindset List.

Back In The Day…

Share your memories on what you used in your day. Any obsolete objects particularly resonate with you? Would you have wanted Ferris or Cameron as a parent? Let us know in the comments!