The Generation Gap

"School Days are the best days of your life" or so the saying goes. Clive discusses this with Sara who left school last Summer and is looking forward to going to university later this year and her future after that. It is a long time since Clive was at school and lots of things have happened for him which he thinks were better than school!

People spend on average around one third of their lives sleeping. Clive and Gabs talk about the importance of getting enough sleep which is now much more widely recognised than in the past. Gabs has to keep track on her sleep as a professional sports person and Clive does the same for health reasons. It seems that young people are much more aware of the benefits of sleep but it doesn’t stop them partying until the early hours!

Clive and Sara discuss the implications of turning 18 and becoming an adult. You can open a bank account and other financial contracts, buy alcoholic drinks in a pub and vote in elections. But it is also the time when you get to think about a career and what you want to achieve in life. Opportunities are limitless!

Baby Boomer Clive and GenZ Sara discuss the colour Pink and why it has become a dominant colour for products for women and girls. They consider what impressions we have of other colours and wonder if we have all been brainwashed  by marketing!

Conspiracy Theories have been around for many years but now spread more quickly via Social Media. Clive talks about the big conspiracy theories of the 1960s around the assassination of President John F Kennedy in Dallas and the moon landing which so many people believe was faked in Hollywood. Macie is fascinated by theories about building of the pyramids in Egypt including suggestions they were built by giants or dinosaurs. And what about mermaids then.....?

Clive and Macie explore space. The unimaginable vastness of the universe and the exploration of our solar system. Are there alien civilisations "out there"? What would it be like to live on the Moon or Mars? Young people like Macie will probably see settlements established on the Moon and Mars in their lifetimes so they will find out.

Clive and Macey discuss Films and Movies (the same thing or not?). Which do they like, what are their favourites and how do they watch them? There is a big difference now as films are available on streaming platforms so going down to the cinema is quite rare. But there are big generational differences. Clive watches films on "linear" TV and streaming but Macie prefers watching short excerpts on TikTok.

Clive and Macie consider the implications of robots and Artificial Intelligence on our way of life. Things that were science fiction just a few year ago are now daily realities.

Macie, as many people do, has an image of robots taken from Hollywood films and TV series where they can be helpful but also be evil and wanting to take over the world!

Clive explains that we are all using AI every day without realising and then discusses the implications for jobs in the future, particularly for Macie's ambition to be a journalist.

Clive and Macie discuss popular music over generations since the 1960s. Despite her age Macie is familiar with many songs from well before she was born which she describes as "classics". Clive is also familiar with many more recent songs and artists so it seems their tastes in music are more alike than you might think.

After leaving school Macie and a friend decided to go on a "Grand Tour" around central Europe by rail. They visited five countries and in this podcast Macie tells Clive about their experiences and impressions of their trip.