Is there a such thing as being "smart"

ThaRealness

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Yeah.. but I see how the line can get blurred. Let's say 10% of the population is highly intelligent .. and like 30-40% falls short of that 100 IQ median . That leaves 50% in the middle of the pack, which is where the theory of multiple intelligences comes in to play.
 

Poitier

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Yeah.. but I see how the line can get blurred. Let's say 10% of the population is highly intelligent .. and like 30-40% falls short of that 100 IQ median . That leaves 50% in the middle of the pack, which is where the theory of multiple intelligences comes in to play.

That doesn't even make sense.

A person can have top notch verbal intelligence but be damn near retarded spatially. You can't compare Jorge Luis Borges to Tesla.
 

daboywonder2002

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great topic. you know i hate when we give engineers and doctors all these props. oh you're so smart. well a lot of peeople can be smart in science but they may not have a clue how to operate a computer or fix a car. everyone is smart in a PARTICULAR AREA. think about this. is a doctor smarter than a mechanic or a chef? one is an expert on cars. one is an expert on the human body. any one of us here could be a doctor or lawyer if we wanted it bad enough. now some people grasp information better than others but thats it.
 
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I think the ability to look beyond your personal experience and question your surroundings is the greatest sign intelligence. That's what leads somebody to an interest in photosynthesis, or pancakes :confused: or what have you.
 

Ciggavelli

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I used to think IQ was the way to measure intelligence. It's still the best thing we have, but IQ isn't everything. There's something else there. I dunno what it is, but just having high general intelligence (from a testing standpoint) is not enough. I think thinking outside the box and creativity may play a part, but how do you measure that? (Abstract thinking maybe? I dunno...)
 

you're NOT "n!ggas"

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Mannnn fukk that, I take what I said back. Nearly EVERYTHING we have today, everything that's made life easier, helped us live longer, etc is the result of discoveries made by a select few scientists. So yeah... that more than anything is a gauge for intelligence. That's not to say there's no such thing as intelligence beyond it, but that's definitely the benchmark.
 

ThaRealness

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That doesn't even make sense.

A person can have top notch verbal intelligence but be damn near retarded spatially. You can't compare Jorge Luis Borges to Tesla.
:patrice:

It's true that there are specialized areas of intelligence, but to truly excel even in just one area takes a high level of cognition.

Let's say Tesla had a high level of logical-mathematical and visual spatial intelligence. Just off the strength of those two areas, he was able to reach a more sophisticated understanding of the world around him. To me, that makes him objectively intelligent :yeshrug:
 

daboywonder2002

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I used to think IQ was the way to measure intelligence. It's still the best thing we have, but IQ isn't everything. There's something else there. I dunno what it is, but just having high general intelligence (from a testing standpoint) is not enough. I think thinking outside the box and creativity may play a part, but how do you measure that? (Abstract thinking maybe? I dunno...)

what about people with a high iq who cant cook or draw? i think you have diff forms of intelligence .picture this right. lets say you can draw very well. it comes naturally to you. now, me i cant draw a lick. but i go to school for art and learn how to draw. now i can draw just as good as you. what im tryin to say is that some things come naturally to people. some things we can learn and train ourselves to be intelligent in that subject area.
 

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:patrice:

It's true that there are specialized areas of intelligence, but to truly excel even in just one area takes a high level of cognition.

Let's say Tesla had a high level of logical-mathematical and visual spatial intelligence. Just off the strength of those two areas, he was able to reach a more sophisticated understanding of the world around him. To me, that makes him objectively intelligent :yeshrug:

True but there is no way to use that in a comparison.

I can't compare Stevie Wonder to Neil DeGrasse Tyson. Both obviously genius.
 

No1

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Well basically, what is the scale of "smartness"? What do you need to know to be "smart"? Like lets say if someone knew a lot about photosynthesis but I knew a lot about pancakes who would be smarter? Would it be the other guy because knowing a lot about pancakes is "silly".

What is being smart to you?
There's a difference between being intelligent and being knowledgeable. Someone can know a lot about photosynthesis because they have great rote memorization skills, but have terrible critical thinking skills. In other words, being informed does not equal being intelligent. Also, people have high aptitudes for different things. There's also the problem with cultural bias in regards to a lot of the typical measurements of intelligence.
 
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