The 1970s
M any of the changes that began in the 1960s , a decade marked by social upheaval , continued to grow in the 1970s . For instance , the hippie culture , which rejected traditional social values and materialism , continued into the early part of the 1970s . Hippies were trying to change society , while experimenting with alternative lifestyles such as communal living , vegetarianism , Eastern religions such as Zen Buddhism , and using psychedelic drugs . The environmental movement also became popular in the 1970s .
The 1970s also witnessed an explosion in technology . The laser , integrated circuit , microprocessor , personal computer , floppy disk , ink-jet printer , pocket calculator , video game , microwave oven , and video cassette recorders were all developed in the 1970s . The fiber optics industry , which transformed communications forever , also had its start in the 1970s .
mind that was enormously attractive . You wouldn ’ t get away with bland statements . He refused to accept automatically perceived truths . He wanted to examine everything himself .” 24
In this manner , Steve was able to satisfy his intellectual curiosity without being forced to sit through required classes that did not interest him . Instead , he attended classes that he might not have experienced had he followed a standard course of study . For instance , he attended a calligraphy class , which influenced his idea that Apple computers have multiple fonts in the future . Jobs recalls :
After six months . . . I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out . And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life . So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK . It was pretty scary at the time , but looking back it was one of the best deci-
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