The term "Millennial" is used to describe a generation of people born from about 1982-2002. They have been and still are being heavily influenced by digital technology. That's why most researchers define the generation as beginning in 1982. It's the year when the personal computer was invented, crude cell phones were first available, television cable became more available, and video games were more affordable.

There are about 97 million Millennials in the United States. They're becoming the largest generation ever numerically and the second largest only to Boomers (born between 1946 -1960) as a percentage of the total US population. (Approximately 40 million people have been born in the States since 2002. Because they're young, their generation hasn't yet been named.)

Generations are shaped by the nurture they receive in childhood and the challenges they face coming of age. More Millennials than we would like have actually spent more time with their technology toys and tools than with their parents. Or, while they're with their parents, they're also using their digital things. They've been nurtured by television characters, video or computer games, and singers and their songs on their I-pods.

Obviously not every Millennial will be identical because many things influence them, but they have much in common. Even those who use less technology than others will behave similarly because it so permeates our culture.