Music Discovery Begins to Stagnate When We Turn Thirty ⇥ statsignificant.com
Reading these studies proved an existential body blow because I am 31, apparently on the precipice of becoming a musical dinosaur. I like to think I’m special — that my high-minded dedication to culture makes me an exceptionally unique snowflake — but apparently I’m just like everybody else. I turned 30, and now I’m in a musical rut, content to have an AI bot DJ pacify me with the songs of my youth.
Patterns like these seem to be everywhere. Our learning capabilities fossilize, and everything from music to food to society begins to feel uncomfortable. It seems important, I think, for us to fight that tendency for ourselves and be willing to embrace new and different things. Music seems like as good a place as any to start. Keep trying new stuff.
Update: Only slightly related but just read, Lydia Davis’ “How He Changed Over Time”.