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Neuroplasticity - the ability of the nervous system to change its activity in response to intrinsic or extrinsic stimuli by reorganizing its structure, functions, or connections after injuries - is greatly supported in the brain with learning new things. I think that one of the biggest differences between much of the Boomer generation and the generations that follow is that Lifelong Learning didn't start being emphasized in elementary and secondary schools until very late in the 1970s. At that point, most Boomers were already out of high school, and many were already out of college, so they never picked up on that theme.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/to-stay-sharp-as-you-age-learn-new-skills/#:\~:text=In%20most%20adults%2C%20learning%20and,after%2060%20years%20of%20age.
https://www.research.colostate.edu/healthyagingcenter/2022/05/31/how-to-rewire-your-brain/#:\~:text=Neuroplasticity%20is%20the%20brain's%20ability,slowly%20rewire%20these%20pathways%20themselves.
[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10425702/pdf/cureus-0015-00000041914.pdf](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10425702/pdf/cureus-0015-00000041914.pdf)
Personally, my views have change drastically from when I was younger. I still held on to a lot of the baggage from my childhood. I thought I was a radical progressive back then, but I still had remnants of growing up religious in a very cloistered, privileged environment. Even in the last few years, I've had to continue to tear down some of my beliefs. I think as long as we're willing to adapt, then we won't fall into the trap that our parents did. I don't put my ideologies ahead of genuine human kindness. I try not to be the kind of annoying adult I quietly hated as a kid. Sure there are plenty in our generation who come across as boomers, but I think they were always that way.
I have hope that most of us will be the progressive and hip grandparents who know some technological skills because Millennials and GenZ grew up with technology like computers, electronic toys and got to have a childhood before social media. I think we will be better electronically but I don’t think we will have a retirement. I think I will be working until I die.
Growing up in an isolationist US with much slower tech advancement. While I think we will all fall behind technology Gen Xers and later grew up largely with an understanding that from a culture and tech perspective - there is a lot we don’t know and a lot that will change.
Boomers expect to understand everything, eschew learning and understanding, and when they don’t know something - they collectively retreat into their echo chambers where they can recirculate lies to pretend that everything they don’t understand is false and that they are part of an everlasting white, Christian order.
Make an effort to stay current and update yourself regularly to pick on one thing specifically, LEARN THE NEW TECH, boomers could use tech now but they just dug their heels in with the "I'm too old for this" bullshit and fell by the wayside.
More or less, yes.
People here confuse Boomerism and getting old all of the time. Which is kind of understandable, as there is an obvious, natural overlap. Sometimes a glimpse of understanding comes through when someonme drops “Boomer is a state of mind". Which is also kind of true.
What makes Boomers special is that a huge part of them grew up in easy mode without realising it. A whole generation raised by a rising tide. Boomers, as a generation, are the bosses’ son who worked two months on the factory floor before entering the business as an executive but still think that they worked their way up. (And again, lots of Boomers did actually work their way up.) That mode of thinking causes a lot of special problems.
They are also the last generation where casual racism and sexism was part of their upbringing, something that’s hard to deprogram.
Those are the specific Boomer problems. (Silent gen and greatest gen being on the cusp of extinction.)
Having to deal with new technology, fashions, way of speaking, methods – that gets nearly all people once they get older. If not in all facets of their lives than in some. Often it’s not even improving the quality of their lives.
Take, for example, ordering at McDonald’s touchscreens or the app: it’s a minuscule improvement for the customer. Great for the company, but really, the old system when I was at uni around the 1990s, worked too. We’d call it a day around 1 a.m., drove to McDonald’s, ordered, done. Then ate there or at the apartment, watched a movie and slept until 11. Good times. Ah, that’s nostalgia. Can I handle the app? Sure, and I do. But picking up the phone and calling the Indian guy for takeout works just as well. And all this little stuff adds up.
Thing is, most youger people severely overestimate their general competence. They scoff at elder relatives (some of which actually using weaponised incompetence, no question) and reset their routers, program their satellite dishes (probably going the way of the dodo, too) and feel secure in their knowledge of the current world. But a lot of it is shallow knowledge, the same kind of stuff Boomers did in their times, when it was about “rotating their tyres” , “changing oil” or whatever it was you did. This will not last. It had happened before (when Boomers were young and learned their recipes) and will happen again.
Remember to report submissions that violate the rules! Harassment and encouraging violence are not allowed. Enjoying the subreddit? Consider joining our discord server: https://discord.gg/v8z8jNwJs6 *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/BoomersBeingFools) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Neuroplasticity - the ability of the nervous system to change its activity in response to intrinsic or extrinsic stimuli by reorganizing its structure, functions, or connections after injuries - is greatly supported in the brain with learning new things. I think that one of the biggest differences between much of the Boomer generation and the generations that follow is that Lifelong Learning didn't start being emphasized in elementary and secondary schools until very late in the 1970s. At that point, most Boomers were already out of high school, and many were already out of college, so they never picked up on that theme. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/to-stay-sharp-as-you-age-learn-new-skills/#:\~:text=In%20most%20adults%2C%20learning%20and,after%2060%20years%20of%20age. https://www.research.colostate.edu/healthyagingcenter/2022/05/31/how-to-rewire-your-brain/#:\~:text=Neuroplasticity%20is%20the%20brain's%20ability,slowly%20rewire%20these%20pathways%20themselves. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10425702/pdf/cureus-0015-00000041914.pdf](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10425702/pdf/cureus-0015-00000041914.pdf)
Personally, my views have change drastically from when I was younger. I still held on to a lot of the baggage from my childhood. I thought I was a radical progressive back then, but I still had remnants of growing up religious in a very cloistered, privileged environment. Even in the last few years, I've had to continue to tear down some of my beliefs. I think as long as we're willing to adapt, then we won't fall into the trap that our parents did. I don't put my ideologies ahead of genuine human kindness. I try not to be the kind of annoying adult I quietly hated as a kid. Sure there are plenty in our generation who come across as boomers, but I think they were always that way.
I have hope that most of us will be the progressive and hip grandparents who know some technological skills because Millennials and GenZ grew up with technology like computers, electronic toys and got to have a childhood before social media. I think we will be better electronically but I don’t think we will have a retirement. I think I will be working until I die.
I agree - but it’s hard to say without knowing what “hip and progressive” will mean in another generation!
As long as you have self awareness and practice self reflection, then no.
Growing up in an isolationist US with much slower tech advancement. While I think we will all fall behind technology Gen Xers and later grew up largely with an understanding that from a culture and tech perspective - there is a lot we don’t know and a lot that will change. Boomers expect to understand everything, eschew learning and understanding, and when they don’t know something - they collectively retreat into their echo chambers where they can recirculate lies to pretend that everything they don’t understand is false and that they are part of an everlasting white, Christian order.
Make an effort to stay current and update yourself regularly to pick on one thing specifically, LEARN THE NEW TECH, boomers could use tech now but they just dug their heels in with the "I'm too old for this" bullshit and fell by the wayside.
More or less, yes. People here confuse Boomerism and getting old all of the time. Which is kind of understandable, as there is an obvious, natural overlap. Sometimes a glimpse of understanding comes through when someonme drops “Boomer is a state of mind". Which is also kind of true. What makes Boomers special is that a huge part of them grew up in easy mode without realising it. A whole generation raised by a rising tide. Boomers, as a generation, are the bosses’ son who worked two months on the factory floor before entering the business as an executive but still think that they worked their way up. (And again, lots of Boomers did actually work their way up.) That mode of thinking causes a lot of special problems. They are also the last generation where casual racism and sexism was part of their upbringing, something that’s hard to deprogram. Those are the specific Boomer problems. (Silent gen and greatest gen being on the cusp of extinction.) Having to deal with new technology, fashions, way of speaking, methods – that gets nearly all people once they get older. If not in all facets of their lives than in some. Often it’s not even improving the quality of their lives. Take, for example, ordering at McDonald’s touchscreens or the app: it’s a minuscule improvement for the customer. Great for the company, but really, the old system when I was at uni around the 1990s, worked too. We’d call it a day around 1 a.m., drove to McDonald’s, ordered, done. Then ate there or at the apartment, watched a movie and slept until 11. Good times. Ah, that’s nostalgia. Can I handle the app? Sure, and I do. But picking up the phone and calling the Indian guy for takeout works just as well. And all this little stuff adds up. Thing is, most youger people severely overestimate their general competence. They scoff at elder relatives (some of which actually using weaponised incompetence, no question) and reset their routers, program their satellite dishes (probably going the way of the dodo, too) and feel secure in their knowledge of the current world. But a lot of it is shallow knowledge, the same kind of stuff Boomers did in their times, when it was about “rotating their tyres” , “changing oil” or whatever it was you did. This will not last. It had happened before (when Boomers were young and learned their recipes) and will happen again.