ok, so what is intelligence?

What does it mean to have more of it than someone else? Is it a construct, dependent on the values of a particular society, or is it an absolute?

there's an old story from the time they innovated what's now a common product

a man sees one in the store and the salesman tells him it's a thermos.
"what's it do?"
"well, it keeps preserves the temperature of whatever you put in it"

so the man buys it and puts in his soup and a soft drink.


that the product is called a "thermos" is intelligence.
that it keeps hot things hot and cold things cold is knowledge.
that it can do only one of those things at a time is wisdom.

the ability of your brain to process information and see a pattern progression for instance. Not to be confused with reasoning which is limited by your willingness to accept data which may or may not give you the answer you want. Most people have a preconceived notion about whatever and cannot/will not change their ideas to fit new data. You can have a genius level IQ but it doesn't matter if you think like a moran.

Some do it a lot better than others. Its the next best thing to being able to predict the future.

having an active, curious mind that routinely questions and seeks answers / truth always. has zip to do with schooling.

Benjamin Franklin had less than 6 months formal education.

A lot of people have curious minds and ask questions and seek answers, and still believe some pretty goofy stuff.

they are no longer questioning!

A few years ago, there was a Mensa convention
in San Francisco and a bunch of Mensa members
were lunching at a local café. They discovered
that their salt shaker contained pepper and their
pepper shaker was full of salt. How could they
swap the contents of the bottles without spilling,
and using only the implements at hand? Clearly
this was a job for Mensa! The group debated
and presented ideas, and finally came up with a
brilliant solution involving a napkin, a straw, and
an empty saucer. They called the waitress over
to dazzle her with their solution.

"Ma'am," they said, "We couldn't help but notice
that pepper shaker contains salt and the salt
shaker--"

"Oh," the waitress interrupted. "Sorry about that."
She unscrewed the caps of both bottles,
switched them, and said, "Will that be one check
or separate?"

curiosity, focus and the ability to creatively process and shape information.

Can one have more or less an insatiable curiosity?

There is always a greater intellegence than expressed.

Just a guess :)

.. that I have and you don't.

It's the Theory of Apparent Paradox, wherein two seemingly irreconcilable concepts/truths exist simultaneously.

Either you get it, or you don't. It doesn't have to do with intelligence persay, but entertaining thoughts that are in conflict with one another, or appear to be so, is a certain kind of intelligence.

as good ol' fashioned common sense.

the masses even suspected it.....

There are many ways to process and some ways are quicker and/or more efficient than others. Data may be processed differently but the results should be the same.

Social intelligence, "Book Smart" intelligence. Street smarts--that can grow from the innate need for survival, and turn into a very opportunistic type of behavior or a type of soul hunger (for lack of a better term) that transcends mere survival. It's often not nice, but it's intelligent for the socio-economic group.
Emotional empathy tempered with common sense can be a type of intelligence. I've met people while considered brilliant, really had no social skill or tact. Or are intensely focused, like one doctor I know-her topic of research is all consuming and satisfies her. Nice lady, and very, very smart, but she hardly gets out of her world.

Maybe a well rounded, intelligent person has a little of all of these, Ability to problem solve, use critical thinking skills. Empathy for fellow human beings and the human condition, a reasoned out ability to understand the "other" I would also toss a curious and questioning mind.

It's almost like trying to explain what love is. It's a bit abstract, and to me has less to do with IQ or what is considered intelligent, then how that intelligence is applied.

I've met very smart, uneducated, poor people. In another world, in another situation, they probably would have been labeled as gifted, or intelligent.

Intelligent folks can figure out how to solve problems without being given the appropriate equations, etc. Also they can know what to expect next from a given ongoing pattern.

This is what they IQ test you for. Not to be confused with common sense and/or book learning.

It can't be taught, but I think it's strongly discouraged in today's America.

but can express ideas in writing with extraordinary creativity and meaning, are they unintelligent?

edit: I'm not trying to be confrontational, just to provoke conversation. :)

versus IQ which is kind of a cold measure. I would never say unintelligent :) It's just the common measure. Goodness knows we need more people with the ability to express themselves with meaning in our society. The problem is it seems everyone is told not to listen to the few we have.

There's one type of intelligence that makes one excel at sports.

There's another that makes one excel in the arts.

There's verbal genius, mathematical genius, musical genius.

Then there's the kind that makes people very good at taking IQ tests.

You need to define what you're looking for, and them maybe someone can define it for you.

:}

:D

16. but she probably knows how to spell "ridiculous".

funny as all hell, too!! :hi:

Sometimes, it's too easy to not go for it. :D

defined it as the ability to adapt to one's surroundings.

:thumbsup:

He was a jerk but he was a great teacher. I flunked his class on purpose just to piss him off. :evilgrin:

I've never forgotten what he taught me though. Maybe someday I'll get a chance to tell him. O8)