New York Times (February 26, 2012)
“Are people getting dumber?” Not according to four of five experts. Based on IQ tests, “the average person today would be 30 points above his or her grandparents, so we are not getting any dumber.” And yet, the increasing pace of complexity leaves many feeling left behind and technology has dulled some skills, like mathematics or spelling, once taken for granted. Moreover, “the really dumb things that people do…get amplified almost instantaneously” thanks to the internet. Still, we are far more advanced in terms of “abstract reasoning: the ability to ignore appearances and reckon in formal categories.”
“Are people getting dumber?” Not according to four of five experts. Based on IQ tests, “the average person today would be 30 points above his or her grandparents, so we are not getting any dumber.” And yet, the increasing pace of complexity leaves many feeling left behind and technology has dulled some skills, like mathematics or spelling, once taken for granted. Moreover, “the really dumb things that people do…get amplified almost instantaneously” thanks to the internet. Still, we are far more advanced in terms of “abstract reasoning: the ability to ignore appearances and reckon in formal categories.”
Tags: Complexity, Intelligence, Internet, IQ, Reasoning, Technology
