Uh, oh! Scientific basis for "Idiocracy"

[ryoder 1,590]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/human-intelligence-peaked-thousands-of-years-ago-and-weve-been-on-an-intellectual-and-emotional-decline-ever-since-8307101.html

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[CarpeDiem3 0]

At least we're not watering the grass with gator-ade yet.

[ryoder 1,590]

Quote

At least we're not watering the grass with gator-ade yet.

But it's got electrolytes! It's what plants crave!

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[DiverMike 5]

Quote

Life as a hunter-gatherer was probably more intellectually demanding than widely supposed, he says. “A hunter-gatherer who did not correctly conceive a solution to providing food or shelter probably died, along with his or her progeny, whereas a modern Wall Street executive that made a similar conceptual mistake would receive a substantial bonus and be a more attractive mate,” Professor Crabtree says.

Professor Crabtree does not strike me as being a reliable scientist if he asserts Financial professionals who make mistakes usually end up with substantial bonuses and attractive wives.

Quite frankly, it puts any of his stated conclusions in doubt.

For the same reason I jump off a perfectly good diving board.

[lawrocket 3]

As proof, Professor Crabtree offers himself.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[riddler 0]

This dude is snorting bath salts. His conclusions are forced, and contrary to conclusions hundreds of other anthropologists' work.

Mike Judge, on the other hand, is a bona fide genius.

Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

[ryoder 1,590]

Peter Sagal, today on NPR's "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me":
[QUOTE]
A new study by Stanford University researchers suggests that what is happening to the human race?
...
We're getting dumber.
...
The study was published in the journal Trends in Genetics, and was too hard to read because of all the big words. But here's a summary. Generation after generation, we're getting dumber, which weirdly means that as we evolve, fewer and fewer people will believe in evolution. This is the reason, and this is from, you know, geneticists. The reason is, is that there's nothing in our modern environment, compared to the prehistoric environment from which we evolved, that weeds out dumber people. In pre-history, if you were born stupid or reckless you'd get eaten, or you would starve. Now, you get to host "The Apprentice."[/QUOTE]

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[JohnMitchell 16]

I think Fat Mike sums in up nicely in one of my favorite songs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czx2p-GHBhk

[Abedy 0]

As someone who studied science I lean to saying that there isn't enough data to prove what he says and that I cannot / do not really want to follow his thoughts.

As someone working with vocational college students, especially the ones who didn't manage to find an apprenticeship, I lean to saying "right he is" on at least on an anecdotal basis...

The sky is not the limit. The ground is.

The Society of Skydiving Ducks

[Southern_Man 0]

A lack of selective pressure will generally lead to genetic drift. I understand they are stating the intelligence (and brain genetic material in general) has a higher rate of mutation but I don't think the evidence is very strong for that. I also think there is pretty good evidence there is still selective pressure for intelligence.

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[Abedy 0]

The ultimate question regarding this is whether intelligence mainly depends upon one's genes or not. As far as I know intelligence depends on genetic factors but also on environmental factors such as upbringing and education. To put it short: The German Hygiene Museum has 80-year-old posters on display that claim that - due to genetics, as "dumbasses have more kids than educated folks" - mankind faces a gloomy future(*). This future has not come. ...yet, at least

(*) I do not elaborate as this would mean to end the thread. (I forgot the name of the law...)

The sky is not the limit. The ground is.

The Society of Skydiving Ducks