Anyone else have an "intelligence gap" in their family?? (children, present)
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I also disagree with the people saying intelligence "doesn't matter" or doesn't exist. It absolutely matters and it can be reasonably measured. You can take 2 random people off the street, run them both thru some tests, and ascertain +/- which one is "generally" smarter. That's just science. IQ is real. To deny that differences in intelligence exist is to start muddying the waters and getting into SJW territory.
Other factors like social skills aside, i think it's pretty reasonable to say a low-IQ person and a high-IQ person will have a hard time relating with each other or holding a conversation for very long. I don't think that's snobby at all, that's just a factual observation.
Not to derail this thread but IQ is a poor measure of intelligence. At best it measures how well you take standardized tests. And it is chronically plagued by the fact that we don't have a good definition of intelligence, and even if we use the 7 intelligences model, it really only measures 3 of them. One of the most obvious flaws with the test is that it is timed. There exists a large body of evidence that shows that a surprising number of profoundly gifted people have problems with the timing portion of the IQ test.
Besides many other factors can mimic intelligence. For example I have an above average score, but am not profoundly gifted, but I do have a photographic memory. Many people over my lifetime have mistaken this biological quirk as intelligence. It is not. I just remember things I have read in detail, it gives no advantage in problem solving, pattern recognition, or the many other types of intelligence.
I think you should read up about IQ a little more, it isn't quite the accurate measurement you seem to think it is.
People already said what I think about the OP but I have to hit one point I truly don't get. Why do (some) people think an interest in sports makes you unintelligent? What does one have to do with the other and why does it matter? You do know there's a lot of healthy debate around sports, right? Has anyone even looked at the pro sports forums here and the in-depth conversations? It boggles the mind, honestly, and people who try to claim liking sports makes a person dumber just looks silly, and less intelligent, as a result.
I agree. Sports is a great mirror for our society. Where we have been and where we are going.
This book is about the first "integrated" basketball game in 1944, between white and black teams. The backstory is not he the seeds of gr civil rights movement and day to day life during WW2.
I'll admit I am also fascinated by pop culture and I only watch low brow movies (woohoo Fast and the Furious).
This book is about the first "integrated" basketball game in 1944, between white and black teams. The backstory is not he the seeds of gr civil rights movement and day to day life during WW2.
I'll admit I am also fascinated by pop culture and I only watch low brow movies (woohoo Fast and the Furious).
I never heard of that book...thanks for linking it. Looks interesting. The best sports stories are told with historical or political context. Just look at the show 'Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel'...compelling stuff there.
I also dislike how people insult movie-goers who don't like movies they like by saying they only like Transformers or some other action movie. What makes it so that intelligent people can't 'space out' and like those kinds of movies? It's not like all smart people watch or enjoy Eraserhead
There's a ton of strategy involved in sports that I find fascinating (beyond the rules of the game). I've really gotten into football in recent years. Baseball is a whole different level entirely!
If you are a stats nerd, Moneyball is an excellent book. I haven't seen the movie, but it is not a book that felt like a movie when I read it. It was just about a new evidence based strategy for scouting players and predicting who will be a great professional. Oh and how underdogs can use unconventional strangely for success.
I consider myself to be fairly intelligent and informed on a variety of things. At the same time, i notice most of my immediate family is no where near the same wavelength intelligence-wise.
Needless to say i can feel very "alone" even when surrounded by tons of relatives at family gatherings like picnics and dinners, i just don't "have anything in common" with them other than blood/genetics. Usually i find myself off to the side or in the corner as i honestly have nothing to say or add to their conversations (sports don't interest me, and random family gossip doesn't interest me either)
This has been a source of frustration for me for QUITE some time now, although i keep this to myself and do not mention it to family members. Anyone else "the smart one" in their family? And how do you cope with this intellectual loneliness??
I mean, the internet is a great outlet for finding like-minded individuals and all, but i GOTTA admit i feel awfully lonely in the "real world" at times The reality is neither the internet nor these smartphones are a proper substitute for real, living people.... and therein lies the problem for us loner types. You can literally be in a room of like 50 family members and feel like the loneliest person in the world.
Strangely, even though i'm Mexican-american i notice that of the handful of good friends i do have they are all white. I don't know what it is but i'm just "drawn" to intelligent people, even if they're outside my own race, i just have this "craving" for intelligence like you wouldn't believe. When i find out someone is intelligent they AUTOMATICALLY go up a few points in terms of likeability regardless of any other flaws they might have.
Anyways, sorry to rant but i just felt like venting a bit. I just don't have much to do these last 2 weeks of the year (and no-one similarly-minded to talk to anyway ) so i'm finding myself staying up late on forums killing time etc.
Anyone else deal with a similar "intelligence gap" in their family? Any ideas?
I have a PhD, whereas my parents had only a middle school education. While I may know more textbook content, I am pretty sure they know more "life content." Our conversations are never boring, because life stories are always more valuable and interesting than anything found in a classroom textbook.
...Other factors like social skills aside, i think it's pretty reasonable to say a low-IQ person and a high-IQ person will have a hard time relating with each other or holding a conversation for very long....
If they're really "low-IQ," I can see your problem. Are they? Really? Low-IQ? Like below 80? If that's the case, your best bet is to talk on their level -- sports, their jobs or school, their hobbies and interests, etc. That's not the same as talking down to them, just talking about things that interest them. Unless you're a total bore, you'll learn something, even if it's not something you care to learn.
Or are they of average intelligence compared to your superior intelligence? If that's the case, you're just making it difficult for yourself. Either way, family get-togethers aren't usually the time for complex debates. I'm from a large family; we have doctors, truck drivers, a college professor, farmers, teachers, artists, musicians, cooks, a pharmacist and bankers. My own claim to fame was as a newspaper editor-publisher, but I've also been a shoe salesman. Guess what. I wasn't any smarter as a newspaper publisher than I was as a shoe salesman. People thought I was, but I wasn't.
My late wife was probably the smartest person I've ever known. Her IQ was 170, yet she married me, a guy with barely above average intelligence. We talked constantly and were a perfect match. People who barely knew her claimed she was their best friend. She was interested in people, listened to them, was never judgmental or critical of them -- not even to me when talking about others. She just liked and related to everyone she met.
Challenge yourself to learn interesting tidbits about your relatives. You might be surprised!
I think the OP is missing out. I've noticed at any gathering it is the dumb people that make it fun. After a drink or two, even funner. Small doses of dumbness at social gatherings lightens things up and is a welcome break from the seriousness of my life.
Not everyone finds "dumbness" fun.
Quote:
Originally Posted by wasel
None of my relatives are dumb. However, my immediate family is highly intellectual and to be honest I don't enjoy their company as much as the non-intellectual relatives. The latter are more fun loving and don't take themselves so seriously. For instance, they're the ones that are more likely to decide spontaneously to have a parade and the next thing you know the whole street has joined in.
I haven't read past this post yet, but I'd imagine responses to it won't be anything like the responses to the OP, though they basically say the same thing.
For some twisted reason, a fair amount of people seem to actually look down on intelligence.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rs1n
life stories are always more valuable and interesting than anything found in a classroom textbook.
I know what you're trying to say, but I disagree.
Lots of things in text books are fascinating and valuable.
Lots of things in life are dull.
I know what you're trying to say, but I disagree.
Lots of things in text books are fascinating and valuable.
Lots of things in life are dull.
Do you really know what I am trying to say? Because it sounds like you think I am suggesting textbooks hold nothing of value nor interest and that even the most mundane parts of everyday life are somehow more valuable or interesting. Perhaps you and I are operating on different definitions of "life stories" (i.e. stories from life, as opposed to the story of a person's entire life from dawn to dusk).
One of the reasons life stories are more valuable because not everyone is an author. And so these experiences either get passed down through sharing and human interaction, or they are otherwise forgotten (lost knowledge, if you will). Even when they are recorded into a book, though, they are life stories nonetheless. And they are more fascinating because they are told after both introspection and reflection. How many math or science textbooks can you list that do the same?
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The reality is neither the internet nor these smartphones are a proper substitute for real, living people.... and therein lies the problem for us loner types. You can literally be in a room of like 50 family members and feel like the loneliest person in the world.
) so i'm finding myself staying up late on forums killing time etc.
