Is intelligence overrated?

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conjur

No Lifer
Jun 7, 2001
58,686
3
0
Originally posted by: Moonbeam
My personal take on Reagan was that he was half brain dead and lacked the capacity for self reflection. It's reported that he almost never seemed to have any awarness of himself. That's a really powerful attribute in a polititian because it equates, visually, to profound self confidence. Since what people don't have and are attracted to like moths to a flame, is self confidence, they flock like sheep to any source that implies it. There the vicariously partake of the delusion. All this happens, naturally, because we are not who we are supposed to be, that baby I mentioned earlier.

Well...he attained fame via Hollywood as an actor.

Need anything more be said?

BTW, I'm thinking the red pill seems tastier each day.
 

gopunk

Lifer
Jul 7, 2001
29,239
2
0
i don't think it is overrated at all... who gets more better treatment, britney spears, or some college professor?

i think the exact opposite is true, our society underrates intelligence, and places too much of an emphasis on soft skills. if you think about it, our society would be a lot better off if we glorified intelligence like we do to money, power, and fame. however, i don't think there is any way around this... just human nature... we're not machines so we have emotions and feelings, and as such, we are not completely rational.
 

J Heartless Slick

Golden Member
Nov 11, 1999
1,330
0
0
Originally posted by: Riprorin
Provided that you have some minimal level intelligence it seems that there are a lot of other factors that determine success such as integrity, honesty, dedication, drive, desire to succeed and common sense.

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.

How do you define intelligence?

 

FeathersMcGraw

Diamond Member
Oct 17, 2001
4,041
1
0
Originally posted by: Riprorin

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.

I'm not sure where this society which glorifies intelligence is. Seems a lot more common that people are derided as nerds than elevated for possessing, say, critical analysis skills.
 

her209

No Lifer
Oct 11, 2000
56,336
11
0
Originally posted by: J Heartless Slick
Originally posted by: Riprorin
Provided that you have some minimal level intelligence it seems that there are a lot of other factors that determine success such as integrity, honesty, dedication, drive, desire to succeed and common sense.

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.
How do you define intelligence?
Retaining of knowledge and use of that knowledge.

 

Krye

Senior member
Aug 26, 2001
298
0
0
Intelligence is being able to understand and figure out a concept. Being "smart" is what I consider "Retaining of knowledge and use of that knowledge."

Intelligence is underrated in this world, especially in the US.

You know the simcity effect really does apply in real society: the more bright and intelligent the population, the more advanced society as a whole gets.
 

Kadarin

Lifer
Nov 23, 2001
44,296
15
81
Originally posted by: her209
Originally posted by: J Heartless Slick
Originally posted by: Riprorin
Provided that you have some minimal level intelligence it seems that there are a lot of other factors that determine success such as integrity, honesty, dedication, drive, desire to succeed and common sense.

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.
How do you define intelligence?
Retaining of knowledge and use of that knowledge.

^^ too limited.

For example, take someone faced with a fresh problem. One form of intelligence is how that problem is analyzed, broken down, and solved, and that may have nothing to do with use of previous knowledge.
 

Indolent

Platinum Member
Mar 7, 2003
2,128
2
0
Originally posted by: IamDavid
Originally posted by: theNEOone
Originally posted by: IamDavid
I am by far the smartest man on the block but I am pretty intelligent I guess. To intelligent for the most part I think. It takes the fun out of life most of the time.



yah, i'm to intelligent also

lol, forgot the word not... opps, guess I'm NOT that intelligent after all. lol


I think he was intellegently referring to the to/too homonym.
 

her209

No Lifer
Oct 11, 2000
56,336
11
0
Originally posted by: Astaroth33
Originally posted by: her209
Originally posted by: J Heartless Slick
Originally posted by: Riprorin
Provided that you have some minimal level intelligence it seems that there are a lot of other factors that determine success such as integrity, honesty, dedication, drive, desire to succeed and common sense.

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.
How do you define intelligence?
Retaining of knowledge and use of that knowledge.

^^ too limited.

For example, take someone faced with a fresh problem. One form of intelligence is how that problem is analyzed, broken down, and solved, and that may have nothing to do with use of previous knowledge.
How can you solve something without some basic knowledge on the subject?

 

gopunk

Lifer
Jul 7, 2001
29,239
2
0
Originally posted by: her209
Originally posted by: Astaroth33
Originally posted by: her209
Originally posted by: J Heartless Slick
Originally posted by: Riprorin
Provided that you have some minimal level intelligence it seems that there are a lot of other factors that determine success such as integrity, honesty, dedication, drive, desire to succeed and common sense.

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.
How do you define intelligence?
Retaining of knowledge and use of that knowledge.

^^ too limited.

For example, take someone faced with a fresh problem. One form of intelligence is how that problem is analyzed, broken down, and solved, and that may have nothing to do with use of previous knowledge.
How can you solve something without some basic knowledge on the subject?

i know this sort of contradicts my earlier post, but i didn't quite know what def. of intelligence y'all were using. anyways, i think i would just expand your definition to include gathering of that knowledge. retention and usage isn't enough... the subject has to be able to get that knowledge.
 

Kadarin

Lifer
Nov 23, 2001
44,296
15
81
Originally posted by: her209
Originally posted by: Astaroth33
Originally posted by: her209
Originally posted by: J Heartless Slick
Originally posted by: Riprorin
Provided that you have some minimal level intelligence it seems that there are a lot of other factors that determine success such as integrity, honesty, dedication, drive, desire to succeed and common sense.

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.
How do you define intelligence?
Retaining of knowledge and use of that knowledge.

^^ too limited.

For example, take someone faced with a fresh problem. One form of intelligence is how that problem is analyzed, broken down, and solved, and that may have nothing to do with use of previous knowledge.
How can you solve something without some basic knowledge on the subject?

Depends on the nature of the problem. Forget textbooks and schoolwork for a second and think in other terms, like, for example, basic survival or social problems.
 

sandorski

No Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
70,231
5,806
126
Intelligence is not knowledge. Intelligence is the ability to take various bits of knowledge and combine them to solve a problem in a new/unique way. Example: You're on a deserted island with no fresh water. You know:

1) you can't drink salt water, but need fresh water
2) you can get fresh water from salt water if you evaporate and condense the salt water
3) heat will cause salt water to evaporate, cooling will cause it to condense
4) sunlight can be used as a source of heat
5).....yadda yadda ya...fresh water

The unitelligent would just stand around with their mouths open waiting for the rain.
 

isaacmacdonald

Platinum Member
Jun 7, 2002
2,820
0
0
Intelligence clearly doesn't equate to economic success. The smartest man alive (according to IQ tests anyway) works as a bouncer, and certainly isn't rich.

On the other hand, just because there isn't a direct correlation between IQ and wealth, doesn't mean it isn't helpful in a predictive sense. Regardless of the impact of uncalculable factors (read: luck), intelligence will equate to a greater PROBABILITY of success. That's what's important here, because even the slightest edge in determing the probability of future events can equal to billions of dollars.
 

isaacmacdonald

Platinum Member
Jun 7, 2002
2,820
0
0
I should add that random events DO indeed have a greater impact on big picture events than quantifiable attributes like intelligence. Think chaos theory. The lack of predictability of randomness means that historical events will have less predictive value, regardless of disproportiate impact. If you look at wallstreet, you'll see this demonstrated when you look at big money managers and such.

The little things that can push you past random distribution are what make the difference.
 

melly

Diamond Member
Feb 5, 2002
3,612
0
0
not at all. but remember there are many forms of intelligence.

i can't stand dumb people, though, period.
 

WinkOsmosis

Banned
Sep 18, 2002
13,990
1
0
Originally posted by: J Heartless Slick
Originally posted by: Riprorin
Provided that you have some minimal level intelligence it seems that there are a lot of other factors that determine success such as integrity, honesty, dedication, drive, desire to succeed and common sense.

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.

How do you define intelligence?

 

her209

No Lifer
Oct 11, 2000
56,336
11
0
Originally posted by: Astaroth33
Originally posted by: her209
Originally posted by: Astaroth33
Originally posted by: her209
Originally posted by: J Heartless Slick
Originally posted by: Riprorin
Provided that you have some minimal level intelligence it seems that there are a lot of other factors that determine success such as integrity, honesty, dedication, drive, desire to succeed and common sense.

It just seems that we glorify intelligence when there are many other factors which define a human being.
How do you define intelligence?
Retaining of knowledge and use of that knowledge.

^^ too limited.

For example, take someone faced with a fresh problem. One form of intelligence is how that problem is analyzed, broken down, and solved, and that may have nothing to do with use of previous knowledge.
How can you solve something without some basic knowledge on the subject?

Depends on the nature of the problem. Forget textbooks and schoolwork for a second and think in other terms, like, for example, basic survival or social problems.
There is still some base of knowledge at work. If you or I were thrown into the wild, we'd know what we would need in order to survive. Some kind of weapon to capture food, a general concept of building or finding shelter, water purification methods, cooking food, etc. But back in the caveman days, if you were unsuccessful at survival, then well, you'd end up dead. For those who managed to survive, passed the knowledge onto their children... and so on and so forth.

Looking at it in mathematical terms, you start out with axioms. From the axioms, you can derive theorems. Using previously discovered theorems, you can derive new theorems.
 

AndrewR

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
11,157
0
0
Originally posted by: Moonbeam
You can tell that intelligence is a useless trait just from the fact that there are, apparently at any rate, quite a few people who are intelligent and vote Democrat.

Moonie, you obviously were tired or careless when you originally posted so I've corrected your statement to reflect reality. You might want to check the warning label on the red pill.
 

Marshallj

Platinum Member
Mar 26, 2003
2,326
0
0
Originally posted by: Moonbeam
You can tell that intelligence is a useless trait just from the fact that there are, apparently at any rate, quite a few people who are intelligent and vote Republican.


And if you've ever read any of Einstein?s writings on life generally, you would know that he was a genius in every dimension especially his capacity to feel.

Which brings us to the secret of life. It isn't what you think that matters, but how well you can contact who you really are through your feelings. When you see a baby giggling and laughing with delight you see embryonic form what you were intended to become.

I think I'm going to have to pull a line from Billy Madison on you:

Mr. Madison. What you've just said....is one of the most insanely idiotic things I've ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response was there anything that could even be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.
 
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