Since it's already derailed and it's my thread, I'm going to go off on a semi-related rant.
There's a song I like with a line in it like this: "Only stupid people are breeding". And it's true. At least here. I have no numbers to back this up, but from what I've seen as a family's income level and level of education rises, their likelihood of having children drops. And when they do have children, they only have one or two, rarely more.
From what I understand of genetics and such, if you get two tall people together, they're more likely to have a tall child than two average-height people. So it follows that other traits, such as aptitude for abstract things like math and science, are likely to be passed down.
With this in mind, it worries me to see that there is an inverse relationship between intellectual prowess and likelihood to bear children.
Fortunately Canada and the 'States have lots of people who want to immigrate, and there are presumably some smart ones among them. I don't care about where someone's from or what their skin color is (although English fluency is a +1 tbh). I just hope that as scientific challenges continue to appear, we don't look back and wish all those MIT nerds that continue to amaze everyone had spent less time busy and more time getting busy.
Anyone else concerned by this?
Energy conservation hysteria
Moderator: Moderators
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
Studies say women are turned on by hairy geeks that like to cry when watching some sappy movie.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
Umbra wrote:Studies say women are turned on by hairy geeks that like to cry when watching some sappy movie.
Some guys are so hairy, like animals! 
Maybe they just want to grab that hair and style it.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
There's a study that found an increase in aspergers and autism rates among children in silicon valley because very smart people were breeding with each other and it turns out that genius might be just a weak form of autism.
This leads to two possible interpretations, either, aspergers and autistic people are actually Super-Geniuses and our society just needs to figure out a way to accept them... the other interpretation is that because Geniuses are naturally socially inept they shouldn't be breeding because, while autistic people may be super-geniuses they also tend to be super-socially inept. (My experience with autism is limited to internet research, tv specials and a few movies... I have a cousin who's diagnosed aspergers... but he seems like a perfectly normal awkward geek to me... so it's entirely possible my assessment of those with these syndromes as "super-socially inept" is unscientific.)
This leads to two possible interpretations, either, aspergers and autistic people are actually Super-Geniuses and our society just needs to figure out a way to accept them... the other interpretation is that because Geniuses are naturally socially inept they shouldn't be breeding because, while autistic people may be super-geniuses they also tend to be super-socially inept. (My experience with autism is limited to internet research, tv specials and a few movies... I have a cousin who's diagnosed aspergers... but he seems like a perfectly normal awkward geek to me... so it's entirely possible my assessment of those with these syndromes as "super-socially inept" is unscientific.)
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
I know all about autism...i saw that movie..
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
Now, do we need a special law addon, stating - not all humans are equal, and some are aspies and you shall not take them lawsuit them for insults?
:)
Most autists are not automatically brilliant, and they really suffer in a society that seems utterly complex to them. My nephew has it and he has really problems at his school for handicapped children. He is quite a nice chap if you get over that repeatative and selfreassuring conversation style most autists have.
"Is that really a tree?"
YES
That is really a tree?"
YES
"Pic, is that a tree i see?"
YES
"But, but, but if that is a tree, are you sure it is a tree?"
YES
You need good nerves, than you can get along quite well.
:)
Most autists are not automatically brilliant, and they really suffer in a society that seems utterly complex to them. My nephew has it and he has really problems at his school for handicapped children. He is quite a nice chap if you get over that repeatative and selfreassuring conversation style most autists have.
"Is that really a tree?"
YES
That is really a tree?"
YES
"Pic, is that a tree i see?"
YES
"But, but, but if that is a tree, are you sure it is a tree?"
YES
You need good nerves, than you can get along quite well.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
gogogogogo future!
edit:
as someone who spent grades 3 through 11 in a special program for geniuses, i can wholeheartedly agree. at least 2/3 of those kids were socially retarded.genius might be just a weak form of autism.
Last edited by KaiserJ on 25 Feb 2010, 21:40, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
Silicon valleyans are very smart, according to whom?SinbadEV wrote:There's a study that found an increase in aspergers and autism rates among children in silicon valley because very smart people were breeding with each other and it turns out that genius might be just a weak form of autism.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
according to a society who bascially lives from reasearch and other products of the mind alone. They maybee dont invest that mutch into there future anymore, but the effects of there past - attracting worldclass scientists, having excellent education and (long, long time ago, when the whole suxxes-story started) once good comunity services (kindergartens and such).
Maybe city developers all around the planet try to copy there recepis, sociologic theories have sprung up around that:
http://www.amazon.de/Rise-Creative-Clas ... im_sbs_b_1
Actually, people like you JohannesH, who dont think that way, are quite rare: May i use the seldom chance, to asky you how drew the conclusions, that silicon valleys population doesent differ in anyway from the next smalltown village?
Maybe city developers all around the planet try to copy there recepis, sociologic theories have sprung up around that:
http://www.amazon.de/Rise-Creative-Clas ... im_sbs_b_1
Actually, people like you JohannesH, who dont think that way, are quite rare: May i use the seldom chance, to asky you how drew the conclusions, that silicon valleys population doesent differ in anyway from the next smalltown village?
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
We didn't have any special programs for geniuses at most of the schools that I went to, so if you were a genius, you had to either deal with it or go somewhere else. I did go to a magnet school for students who made really high test scores once, though. Those students appeared to be different in that they were given a lot more work than the students at a regular would. They appeared to enjoy social activities too, though.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
as far as i know... in my city, they test every kid with IQ tests every year beginning in grade 2, all the way up to grade 8. you score high enough, and they offer to send you to a special program at another school.
and it's not like the school is -only- for geniuses, they just pick a school that is centralized in the region, expand it, and add the "gifted" program (as it is called) so pretty much you're stuck into a new school in a class from of crazy kids, and every other kid at the school thinks "oh hes a genius, he thinks hes better than me". and of course, the schools with the most room are the ones that nobody wants to go to because they are shit, or situated in a shit neighbourhood.
so really, it's not all the great. in retrospect i would have been better off in the regular stream of school; once i got to highschool i was a "wierd" kid, i had anger issues, strange personal habits, and generally wasn't a well adjusted person. none of the geniuses wanted to hang out with me because i liked to party, and none of the regularly streamed kids wanted to hang out with me because i was a genius.
i started making more friends around my neighbourhood parties and parks than in school; leaving the special program in grade 11 was a very good move, and one that was long overdue.
i find people these days are surprised im a "nerd"; that i read a lot, that i work on computer games for fun, that i spend a ton of time working on art and things like that. and quite frankly, im a lot more comfortable this way. all that "special" program did was perpetuate the feeling that i was different from everyone else and put undue pressure on me to be successful in school and life.
and it's not like the school is -only- for geniuses, they just pick a school that is centralized in the region, expand it, and add the "gifted" program (as it is called) so pretty much you're stuck into a new school in a class from of crazy kids, and every other kid at the school thinks "oh hes a genius, he thinks hes better than me". and of course, the schools with the most room are the ones that nobody wants to go to because they are shit, or situated in a shit neighbourhood.
so really, it's not all the great. in retrospect i would have been better off in the regular stream of school; once i got to highschool i was a "wierd" kid, i had anger issues, strange personal habits, and generally wasn't a well adjusted person. none of the geniuses wanted to hang out with me because i liked to party, and none of the regularly streamed kids wanted to hang out with me because i was a genius.
i started making more friends around my neighbourhood parties and parks than in school; leaving the special program in grade 11 was a very good move, and one that was long overdue.
i find people these days are surprised im a "nerd"; that i read a lot, that i work on computer games for fun, that i spend a ton of time working on art and things like that. and quite frankly, im a lot more comfortable this way. all that "special" program did was perpetuate the feeling that i was different from everyone else and put undue pressure on me to be successful in school and life.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
Speaking as another socially-awkward Canadian graduate of an elementary-school gifted program with a wife, two kids (well, one and a second on the way), and suburban malaise:
fist-bump.
fist-bump.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
Heh, I'm not gifted... I took the test and was borderline gifted and it was left to my home-room teacher to decide if I should be in the gifted stream or not and was left regular stream... then in middle school someone decided I had a lack of organizational skills and self advocacy skills and poor hand eye co-ordination and a problem with my memory (interfered with my ability to write down class notes from the blackboard) and something was wrong with my ability to write, I'd skip words and such... I was also still spelling at a 3rd grade level in grade 7 and had trouble reading aloud... so I ended up in the OTHER special stream... fortunately Ontario had recently implemented "de-streaming" so the gifted and special kids all had most classes together and we only had a few periods a week of either "special" or "gifted" stuff.Pxtl wrote:Speaking as another socially-awkward Canadian graduate of an elementary-school gifted program with a wife, two kids (well, one and a second on the way), and suburban malaise:
fist-bump.
All in all, I really didn't do too well with the whole school thing, but I most of my friends were labeled gifted and I got along fine with them.
-
Forboding Angel
- Evolution RTS Developer
- Posts: 14673
- Joined: 17 Nov 2005, 02:43
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
I thin the whole, special or gifted crowd rely on that status way too much. Including people here.
I look at it this way. Way back when in my last year of highschool, IQ tests and Aptitude tests were forced upon us. Turns out a have a very high IQ (very high as in "Gifted", not as in "OMGOMGOMG EINSTEIN!!! - Unlike some of you guys here... sheesh, some of you guys are too damn smart for your own good ;p) . I could have cared less... so what? So I'm better at processing certain types of information than others, whoopty friggidy do. I'm betting that there are some areas that those other people are good at in which I totally suck. Just having a high IQ doesn't make you any better or worse than other people, just you're capable of processing certain information possibly faster than other people would. I'm pretty sure that my buddy could build a car far better than I could, I'm relatively sure that I can't throw a baseball anywhere near as well as roger clemens (insert your favorite pitcher here).
My aptitude lies in problem solving. That's one thing that I know I am extremely good at, and imo it's a nice skill to have. I love fixing things, and I love working out solutions, which is why my business is doing as well as it is, and I'm not even through my first year, I get paid to do what I love! So in my opinion I'm doing fairly well.
But just cause I'm good at some stuff doesn't make me any better than anyone else. Even problem solving... I'm good but that doesn't mean some joe schmoe sitting next to me won't have a better idea. I'm also good at building upon the good ideas of others, and I like brainstorming sessions. To me it's fun.
I think people who are "Special" or "Gifted" commonly hear that and set themselves in a separate group. I'll bet you that very few of my customers would refer to me as a nerd or a geek, but that's because I'm just me. Trying to wedge yourself into a category is stupid imo, and I prefer to just let the chips fall where they may.
What does annoy me to no end is people that enter the room (or in this case, the forum) and attempt to act like they are the smartest and hottest shit around. Get yourself off the pedestal or someone else will take care of it for you, and you'll just end up being another kid in the corner, crying and cutting yourself.
I suppose a big difference between these forums and irl for me is that irl if someone is talking down to me, or attempting to, I'm generally very gracious and nice about it and don't address it, whereas here, I tend to address it. Were many of these conversations happening face to face I would dismiss a lot of what is said (in a demeaning manner) with an airy wave, but here I tend to address what I don't like head on. Not because it's "safe", but simply because irl I have to care because I may be talking to a client or a friend or something, and here I just don't give much of a rats ass (which is the main reason why many of you view me as a stubborn asshole - when in reality, I'm actually very nice (there are many here that can attest to that fact)).
In middle school my parents discussed sending me to a "Special" school (right before I started highschool), and long story short, I essentially told them that they could shove that idea directly up their respective assholes (I should mention that I said this all very diplomatically and still managed to be bent over a table gettin my ass whooped). Screw a bunch a that crap. Like I want to be stuck with a bunch of immature, snoody overachievers. I'll pass. Where's the vodka?
Edit: I also happen to be of the opinion that IQ tests and "IQ" in general is just dumb. I'm probably the only person on the planet who thinks this but, whatever
I look at it this way. Way back when in my last year of highschool, IQ tests and Aptitude tests were forced upon us. Turns out a have a very high IQ (very high as in "Gifted", not as in "OMGOMGOMG EINSTEIN!!! - Unlike some of you guys here... sheesh, some of you guys are too damn smart for your own good ;p) . I could have cared less... so what? So I'm better at processing certain types of information than others, whoopty friggidy do. I'm betting that there are some areas that those other people are good at in which I totally suck. Just having a high IQ doesn't make you any better or worse than other people, just you're capable of processing certain information possibly faster than other people would. I'm pretty sure that my buddy could build a car far better than I could, I'm relatively sure that I can't throw a baseball anywhere near as well as roger clemens (insert your favorite pitcher here).
My aptitude lies in problem solving. That's one thing that I know I am extremely good at, and imo it's a nice skill to have. I love fixing things, and I love working out solutions, which is why my business is doing as well as it is, and I'm not even through my first year, I get paid to do what I love! So in my opinion I'm doing fairly well.
But just cause I'm good at some stuff doesn't make me any better than anyone else. Even problem solving... I'm good but that doesn't mean some joe schmoe sitting next to me won't have a better idea. I'm also good at building upon the good ideas of others, and I like brainstorming sessions. To me it's fun.
I think people who are "Special" or "Gifted" commonly hear that and set themselves in a separate group. I'll bet you that very few of my customers would refer to me as a nerd or a geek, but that's because I'm just me. Trying to wedge yourself into a category is stupid imo, and I prefer to just let the chips fall where they may.
What does annoy me to no end is people that enter the room (or in this case, the forum) and attempt to act like they are the smartest and hottest shit around. Get yourself off the pedestal or someone else will take care of it for you, and you'll just end up being another kid in the corner, crying and cutting yourself.
I suppose a big difference between these forums and irl for me is that irl if someone is talking down to me, or attempting to, I'm generally very gracious and nice about it and don't address it, whereas here, I tend to address it. Were many of these conversations happening face to face I would dismiss a lot of what is said (in a demeaning manner) with an airy wave, but here I tend to address what I don't like head on. Not because it's "safe", but simply because irl I have to care because I may be talking to a client or a friend or something, and here I just don't give much of a rats ass (which is the main reason why many of you view me as a stubborn asshole - when in reality, I'm actually very nice (there are many here that can attest to that fact)).
In middle school my parents discussed sending me to a "Special" school (right before I started highschool), and long story short, I essentially told them that they could shove that idea directly up their respective assholes (I should mention that I said this all very diplomatically and still managed to be bent over a table gettin my ass whooped). Screw a bunch a that crap. Like I want to be stuck with a bunch of immature, snoody overachievers. I'll pass. Where's the vodka?
Edit: I also happen to be of the opinion that IQ tests and "IQ" in general is just dumb. I'm probably the only person on the planet who thinks this but, whatever
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
I'm sure that there are quite a few of people out there that are considered to be gifted and are not stuck up.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
So much coolness oozing out of this discussion.
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
They offered to put me in a gifted class when I was in grade 4, along with one other kid from my school. Screw that noise, they were trying to take away my gaming time.
Helped with my first commercial game production when I was 14. Forum administration, translation, balancing, testing, support, etc. Caught their eye when I made a mod for their game's rolling demo, unlocking a bunch of cool stuff, making it bigger and longer than intended, and accidentally making a huge PR coup.
GPG employees told me they play office LAN parties of Absolute Annihilation (OTA) regularly.
AA: Spring was featured in PC Gamer alongside Supreme Commander.
I have OCD which is "give him speed and see if he does anything cool" in doctor speak.
Guys at work discovered I can run the laser engraver without any training better than the douchebag $50-an-hour contractor since I already have the requisite vector editing / modeling skills from years of modding experience. Recalibrated the laser after someone buggered with its target plate, was informed later that this was "impossible to do outside [manufacturer]'s factory" on another continent.
Family doctor wanted me to get tested to see if I have asperger's syndrome a while ago. Screw that noise, he was trying to take away my gaming time. Let's say there WAS a magic cure, what good is it going to do me? They say genius is a step away from insanity (I believe it) and I'm not risking this brain at any cost, even if it only works properly a third of the time.
Basically I haz superpowers but I'm mentally unstable at the same time. I'm waiting for a mecha to drop out of the sky which, inexplicably, only I can pilot: that's what I'm trying to say.
Helped with my first commercial game production when I was 14. Forum administration, translation, balancing, testing, support, etc. Caught their eye when I made a mod for their game's rolling demo, unlocking a bunch of cool stuff, making it bigger and longer than intended, and accidentally making a huge PR coup.
GPG employees told me they play office LAN parties of Absolute Annihilation (OTA) regularly.
AA: Spring was featured in PC Gamer alongside Supreme Commander.
I have OCD which is "give him speed and see if he does anything cool" in doctor speak.
Guys at work discovered I can run the laser engraver without any training better than the douchebag $50-an-hour contractor since I already have the requisite vector editing / modeling skills from years of modding experience. Recalibrated the laser after someone buggered with its target plate, was informed later that this was "impossible to do outside [manufacturer]'s factory" on another continent.
Family doctor wanted me to get tested to see if I have asperger's syndrome a while ago. Screw that noise, he was trying to take away my gaming time. Let's say there WAS a magic cure, what good is it going to do me? They say genius is a step away from insanity (I believe it) and I'm not risking this brain at any cost, even if it only works properly a third of the time.
Basically I haz superpowers but I'm mentally unstable at the same time. I'm waiting for a mecha to drop out of the sky which, inexplicably, only I can pilot: that's what I'm trying to say.
Last edited by Caydr on 26 Feb 2010, 07:41, edited 1 time in total.
-
Forboding Angel
- Evolution RTS Developer
- Posts: 14673
- Joined: 17 Nov 2005, 02:43
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
Honestly, what is the point of the whole gifted thing anyway? So that the smart kids can feel more like dorks than they already do? Considering that at that age, it kinda matters...
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
What's the point of high school? Or school in general? Basically just something for ivory tower liberals to lord over Real Americans, amirite Forboding?
Re: Energy conservation hysteria
It comforts me to think I'm a genius that just chose to ignore it.
I know that if i wanted to i could be something special and amazing but its so passe,instead,I prefer to just explain that whenever someone or just life itself questions my abilities.
I know that if i wanted to i could be something special and amazing but its so passe,instead,I prefer to just explain that whenever someone or just life itself questions my abilities.