is intelligence uncool?

POSTED BY: boris
UPDATED: Wednesday, January 23, 2008 12:44
VIEWED: 7460
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LYSANDER

Thursday, January 10, 2008 5:51 PM

Sorry, overlooked a few of the bad ones. The answer is no. Never have and never will.

Simon: What if he(Mal) tells you to kill me?
Zoe: (without hesitation) I kill you.

AGENTROUKA

Thursday, January 10, 2008 5:54 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by lysander:
Sorry, overlooked a few of the bad ones. The answer is no. Never have and never will.

Simon: What if he(Mal) tells you to kill me?
Zoe: (without hesitation) I kill you.

Just kidding. ;)

Though now i'm curious. The generally neutral high intelligence aside, are there good serial killer characteristics? I only find betwetting, arson, sexual abuse, brain trauma, animal cruelty and such in childhood? Are they usually all well-spoken and good-looking? I don't remember. Weren't a few also socially awkward or at least entirely boring-seeming?

JONGSSTRAW

Thursday, January 10, 2008 6:06 PM

Intelligence is a relative attribute. A person can be a brilliant scientist on one hand, and a blithering idiot about everything else. A blithering idiot might have more common sense and street smarts than a scientist. Personally, I like intelligent people, and I married one. She's like my Who Wants To Be A Mllionnaire "lifeline"...every time I need to know something I turn to her.

LYSANDER

Thursday, January 10, 2008 7:28 PM

As far as good characteristics I don't know that any can be called good. I just don't think that all of them can be considered bad. My dad left when I was 1 and my mom took control. A few years later she remarried and he turned out to be an alcoholic. He also believed in hitting as a form of punishment. I like fire, but I am not an arsonist. I am intelligent and some would say good looking(not quite sure myself). Sometimes I'm awkward but it depends on the situation. It's some of the simple things like that that I relate to. I also am a very big fan of The Catcher in the Rye which is found in most serial killers houses.

Didn't mean to confuse by what I said earlier Agent.

Simon: What if he(Mal) tells you to kill me?
Zoe: (without hesitation) I kill you.

MSB

Thursday, January 10, 2008 7:32 PM

Don't know if it's uncool, but if my students are any indication it's a dying trait... not intelligence per se, but the ability to think critically. All this emphasis on standardized testing and measurable progress discourages critical thinking skills and evaluation since those can't be tested in multiple choice

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Ain't Love GRAND!!!

CITIZEN

Thursday, January 10, 2008 7:45 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SimonWho:
Those who display intelligence or knowledge get attacked as "boffins" or "ivory tower eggheads".

Shut up boffin.

More insane ramblings by the people who brought you beeeer milkshakes!
No one can see their reflection in running water. It is only in still water that we can see.

STOWEAWAY

Thursday, January 10, 2008 9:46 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by AgentRouka:
We keep rating kids on lines from 1 to 10 instead of multi-dimensionally and then we complain when the general focus doesn't fall where we want it to.

Hear! Hear!

I'm raising two very intelligent and VERY different little boys. My youngest falls into the standard "accepted" measurement of intelligence. My oldest is a left-handed, right-brained dynamo who is struggling to walk the "line" you mention. I think there is a danger in making the category of Intelligent Folk too narrow. Too many great minds will be left by the wayside.

As to the question if intelligence is uncool....I say HELL NO! I think intelligence (not simply book-smarts) in an adult can actually be sexy.

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STRANGEBIRD

Thursday, January 10, 2008 10:00 PM

Quote:
I also am a very big fan of The Catcher in the Rye which is found in most serial killers houses.

I always got a kick out of that one. I know maybe... a half-dozen people who have read that book and still have it on the shelf. It's a classic and I would imagine most book lovers own at least one copy. I also keep multiple copies of some of my favorites, one hardcover for display and a throw away paperback(or two) for casual reading. Not The Catcher in the Rye though. I've actually never read it. Considering it though.

Also in regards to the general discussion I feel that this has been going on since the dawn of humanity. Our focus on intelligence as the end all be all is just as dangerous as a focus on being "average" or "normal". So many labels these days. It's human nature yes, but we still need to be aware that people are more than just stereotypes. Which is the heart of this discussion. Like others have mentioned above a high IQ doesn't mean your a genius.

Jongstraw has a point when saying a brilliant scientist might also be an idiot. He may make an amazing discovery, such as curing cancer or diabetes, then go home and blow his head off because he thought the lava lamp would look pretty on his stove(yes I watch too much Mythbusters). Same with someone with an average or below average IQ. Intelligence is just as misunderstood by intellectuals as it is by the rest of humanity. IQ tests are also far from infallible and I've heard of folks taking the same test twice in two weeks and receiving wildly different results.

It all boils down to with how we deal with whats going on around us. I personally believe everyone is equally equipped, it's all a matter of finding what we are good at and doing it in a way that benefits everyone else.

I'm fairly smart I guess, I read quite often but not as much as others. I love to read and consider reading a fundamental part of who I am. When people tell me they don't like to read(I am sure if your still reading this you are probably not one of them) I really can't even imagine how they could feel that way. I discovered reading because my parents cared enough to introduce me to books at a very early age. I can't even recall learning to read, tell time or even when I learned about death, among other things. Those are things I've always remembered knowing. I'm pretty sure I just figured them out on my own at a very early age, just by listening and being exposed to them in one way or another.

Anyway this discussion is getting far to long and deep for my tastes right now. I got a house to show and dogs to take care of. Have fun and I hope you unlock the mysteries of life.

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"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction." Albert Einstein

FREDGIBLET

Thursday, January 10, 2008 10:11 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Strangebird:
Quote:
I also am a very big fan of The Catcher in the Rye which is found in most serial killers houses.

I always got a kick out of that one. I know maybe... a half-dozen people who have read that book and still have it on the shelf. It's a classic and I would imagine most book lovers own at least one copy.

I love books, I buy them by the truckload (in fact I buy them faster then I read them), it's been around 50 or 60 purchases since I've last cleaned out my books and took a trip to Powell's to get rid of the crappy ones, Catcher In The Rye is one of the 4 on my "to get rid of" pile. I hate that piece of crap, I've got a picture somewhere that sums up my opinion of it, it a Photoshop of the cover with the title replaced by "224 pages of Livejournal".

GORRAMGROUPIE

Thursday, January 10, 2008 10:13 PM

Unfortunatly, I bought into that whole mindset in jr high and high school, and dumbed myself down. Wanted to be popular more than intelligent. Been kicking myself ever since. In jr high, I could have gone on and entered a pre calc class, and done well, I really understood math and enjoyed it. Now, I'd rather have a millstone around my neck at the bottom of the ocean while a dentist does 3 simultaneous root canals without pain deadeners, while someone breaks my legs over and over again than do anything higher than multiplication. Grrrr. Man I'm stupid!

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