Retroid
Slang. Applied to devotees to vintage/retro technology, fashion, movies, books, or music. Retroids believe that there are no new ideas; rather, that old ideas get re-contextualized. This re-contextualization, Retroids argue, is proof that the old idea was not fully understood or realized in the first place. The past echoes in our minds, a whisper we can't quite understand; the human brain develops now at a higher rate than the rate at which human beings are able to comprehend the information that the brain processes and stores, an imbalance responsible for the odd incongruities and general discord of modern life. This idea draws in no small part from Arthur Koestler's views in his book "The Ghost in the Machine," in which the author posits that as the human brain has grown, it has built upon earlier, more primitive brain structures, and that these are the "ghost in the machine" of the title. By re-examining discarded ideas and technologies, Retroids repair the gaps and glitches in present life.
Fueled by renewed rumors that Kurt Cobain had been murdered, retroids absorbed Nirvana's music in search of clues in the lyrics.
Retroid by An Archivist September 5, 2011
