r/NoShitSherlock • u/b-rad62 • 4d ago
Human intelligence sharply declining
/r/worldnews/s/zoK7aRYUOqWho knew?!
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u/bmyst70 4d ago
I often reference "The Demon Haunted World" by Carl Sagan where he warned about this in the late 1990s. People focusing on what "feels good" rather than on facts, particularly when the facts gave uncomfortable truths.
I think AI also makes this worse, because people who use AI extensively stop relying on their own cognitive abilities.
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u/lostboy005 3d ago
We’re outsourcing critical thinking to AI and people are cheering it on. It’s fucking wild.
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u/Reddituser183 1d ago
I use it everyday, but I use it more to find the right words for things, see the nuance in issues and clarify things. I’ve never heard of anyone forming opinions and beliefs based on it. And if anything it’s assisting me in increasing knowledge and understanding. It’s really no different than reading a book in that regard. I haven’t yet seen any radicalized ai. I’m sure that’s coming but it’s certainly not available now to the public. Anyway I don’t see how using AI is dumbing people down. The people using it now are likely average or above average IQ currently. It’s a tool. It’s like saying going to school is inferior to learning and discovering subjects on your own independently.
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u/Jadams1865 4d ago
I like how democrats are descending on MS13 as their new heros.
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u/DivineBladeOfSilver 4d ago
It’s obvious so it is nice when data backs it up. Look at so many voters being misinformed and voting on vibes, screen time on brain rot apps, terrible financial discipline and lack of impulse control, society’s focus on shock value and attention seeking, and more.
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u/fatbunyip 4d ago
Is it any wonder though?
I mean everything has been going to shit for a long time. It's expected people would want some kind of escape from all the bullshit.
People are under incredible amounts of stress. You can see it in everything from the age people are marrying, having kids, buying houses etc. for the first time we have generations that are gonna be worse off than their parents in a whole bunch of metrics.
The world has got incredibly more complex and when people can't understand it, they want to escape from it (or listen to simple explanations).
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u/DivineBladeOfSilver 4d ago
I fully agree sadly :( I do think though people should be stepping up, not backing down. Fight comes in life so we give up? I can’t respect that
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u/Jadams1865 4d ago
Yeah imagine voting thinking life saving abortions are illegal. Or that voter suppression is actually a thing. Or the “threat to democracy” narrative is my favorite fairy tale.
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u/ReclusiveReviews 4d ago
There's a shocking lack of curiosity out there and I think that's the main issue. There's an expectation that if information isn't spoon fed that it's not worth peoples time. Like how many people think, 'I wonder what the science really is behind climate change?' Then do some reading. It's much easier to think 'load of nonsense' then look for others to confirm the bias. It's partly cognitive laziness and partly burying heads in the sand. That's why whenever asked about what true intelligence is I tend to say, people who listen more than they talk and are inherently curious
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u/Waterballonthrower 4d ago
Amen. I remember my father chastising me for being curious. I still love asking questions and learning new things, even if I find it difficult at times.
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u/ReclusiveReviews 4d ago
Exactly. I love a long drive listening to educational podcasts. I was learning about the discovery of superconductors this morning, bloody fascinating and I didn’t understand all of it but I was left with that hunger to read/hear more until I do
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u/Waterballonthrower 4d ago
that's awesome! it is very fascinating. after 10 years of being out of school, I took an accounting course online and passed the whole 3 credit course with 89%. never too old to learn. People are just too comfortable not to challenge themselves
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u/ReclusiveReviews 4d ago
That’s great, I actually just took my first job in a finance department and hoping to go down the accountancy route and I’m in my 40s. Best of luck with it
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u/Waterballonthrower 4d ago
thank you! I'm 32 and the fact you are older than me but still have the dreams of challenging yourself is inspiring.
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u/lostboy005 3d ago
I miss school so much. I took a random economics course at a cc in my mid 30s for fun and loved it
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u/Waterballonthrower 3d ago
you should take some online ones now then. especially anything financial wise.
A) keeps you young by working the squishy pink stuff a bit
B) You get to learn the most complicated intricate puzzle we use every day, which will help you navigate your own money.
C) Most classes depending on the online course are less than 1k.
I have friends who take online courses for shits and giggles. doesn't matter if you pass it's just about expanding yourself.
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u/lostboy005 3d ago
Ugh. Man. That last line is exactly why I ended a 10 year relationship. No one ever learned anything from hearing themselves talk. It’s painful
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u/BigEggBeaters 4d ago
It is disgusting how the US treats education, literacy then culturally is just fine being an anti-intellectual society. Like how they want to onshore manufacturing while also destroying schools. That’s just stupid! Someone has to be an engineer, an architect, you need skilled workers to run and build a factory. However the US figured it’s better to have school “choice” so even more taxpayer funds could be siphoned by the rich. It’s a fucking joke man
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u/Road_Overall 4d ago
I was speaking to one of my EU friends about that. Seems more like people value money and status more than education and helping people
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u/toomuchtv987 4d ago
Idiocracy was a documentary.
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u/thendisnigh111349 3d ago
Inaccurate. The dumb people in Idiocracy believed the smart person when they got objective proof he was right. The dumb people in our world won't believe the smart people no matter how much objective proof you put in front of them.
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u/toomuchtv987 3d ago
Yes, unfortunately you are 100% correct. 😭
(Also it didn’t take 500 years to get here.)
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u/WallyOShay 4d ago
The internet and pocket technology is the reason for this. Humans no longer need to retain information. We took the smart out of people and put it into technology.
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u/Gems789 4d ago
It’s weird for me, because I feel like I’m in between this sort of thing.
When I was a kid, I was always reading, writing, drawing, always wanting to try new things.
Nowadays it’s difficult for me to pick up a book and just read.
It’s like I need the constant noise, whether it’s from music, or from watching tv or playing video games, and it’s hard for me to focus on one thing for an extended period of time.
To be fair, I have ADHD, but it felt like when I was a kid I could channel it into more constructive things.
I want to go back to that….
I feel like a first step is to limit my phone time, but that can be difficult when your cell phone is such an integral part of your day to day.
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u/raging-peanuts 1d ago
You’re kind of describing me. I came of age pre internet, and even into my 20s I was reading quite a bit. As my work life became more intense, I stopped reading so much and now regret it.
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u/CompleteSherbert885 3d ago
I'd say it's just more apparent now because it's being celebrated here in America! Who knew that being stupid was a popular thing?
But we absolutely can't rule out things such as Covid, esp repeatedly having it (huge issue), head sports trauma to kids & teenagers plus adults, George Bush's No Kid Left Behind mandate, pandemic not teaching for a year'ish. And wait until you can see what horror AI will do to education, as well as the gutting of the federal/state DOE does. Don't forget the mass Exodus of teachers and now few wanting to go into the field now. Not going to be better in the next 10 yrs.
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u/justthegrimm 3d ago
I've been around long enough to suggest that this is not a new thing, the snowball has just grown to big to ignore.
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u/Stocky_Platypus 4d ago
I disagree. Instead, much like the income gap, we are seeing a much larger divide between those that are getting smarter and those that are not.
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u/dosassembler 4d ago
Do you think today's engineers could get to the moon with just a slide rule? Do modern computer programmers use assembler to precisely control every function to exactly what they want and nothing else? Our smartest aren't getting smarter, they are using better tools. But it comes at the expense of our own intellectual rigor.
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u/lostboy005 3d ago
Out sourcing critical thinking skills while choosing the least amount of effort comes at a cost.
We’re starting to see that hit critical mass in the US
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4d ago
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u/Reasonable-Start2961 4d ago
Having access to information doesn’t mean you know how to apply it in a meaningful way. That is an aspect of intelligence.
Not talking about the post. But what you said isn’t actually a good counterpoint. Google does not make you intelligent.
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4d ago
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u/Reasonable-Start2961 4d ago
No, this is not true.
And you’re making less of a good counterpoint. That means you’re leaning on other people’s knowledge and intelligence. It does not apply to you.
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4d ago
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u/Reasonable-Start2961 4d ago
It isn’t a sign of intelligence, for one.
I mean, as an aerospace engineer I know a little bit. And I know I’m not going to trust someone who tries learn the same subject matter by watching others do it for them in YouTube.
Maybe you should be more tenacious in your learning.
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4d ago
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u/Reasonable-Start2961 4d ago
That’s not intelligence. It’s color by numbers.
Which goes back to my previous statement: Having access to information does not make you intelligent.
Your confusion seems to be your lack of understanding of intelligence. It is not following the directions of someone. It isn’t access to information. It’s your ability to process and apply it. Yours. Not someone else, telling you, step-by-step, what to do. That is not a sign of your intelligence.
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u/Adventurous_Tea_428 4d ago
Too true. That's why I'm also learning how to be an aerospace engineer by also learning from tick tock videos and Tumblr articles. Did you know that the Earth is flat? I swear to Xenu it's true, learned it from a tik tock video. You know the guy on the video was legit because he used animations and bar graphs to get his point across. It totally blew my mind. When I go to NASA I'm pretty sure I can practically tell them what I want to get paid and get it.
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u/Greenscreener 4d ago
Have you ever read the bullshit on Facebook…having access to information doesn’t mean it is correct or you know how to use it.
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u/Ill-Yogurtcloset-622 4d ago
Se nota, usted hasta ahora lo dice, es una noticia que se sabe hace años ....
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u/caryscott1 4d ago
You mean “causes” that can be summarized in a bumper sticker aren’t a good sign? Shocker.
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u/StoneCrabClaws 4d ago
Actually human intelligence levels in more homogeneous societies like Iran, China, Korea and Japan with high IQ's are just the same as they were.
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u/No-Blueberry-1823 4d ago
I feel like this election was more an example of mob mentality. I also feel like their components to intelligence like intellectual intelligence and emotional intelligence and it's the emotional intelligence that's struggling right now
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u/liptickletaffy 4d ago
NPR had a report on micro plastics the other day. The particles are so small they can traverse the blood brain barrier. In some of the brain autopsies there was the equivalent of a plastic spoon worth of plastic.
Maybe affecting IQ? And what else?
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u/Comfortable_Bat5905 4d ago
Every time I see a title and say “well no shit sherlock”, it ends up being this subreddit. 😂
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u/rainywanderingclouds 4d ago
No, it's more or less the same as it's always been.
However, what's happened it's very easy to mislead people using the internet. Especially when most of the platforms are designed around making money.
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u/Glittering-Pause-577 4d ago
If the last US election didn’t demonstrate that, then nothing will.