Special issue of Swiss magazine Schweizer Monat about intelligence
With a contribution from yours truly as well
The Swiss libertarian (classical liberal) leaning magazine Schweizer Monat ('Swiss monthly') has a new issue out focused on intelligence.
For a magazine, it has a quite impressive roster of authors, including yours truly. I was also asked to contribute a piece explaining the current evidence concerning various group differences, mainly nations and ethnic groups. The articles are not paywalled, and some of them are also available in their original English language as opposed to the German (mine in German, and English). Hopefully, this issue can help bring this important topic to greater public attention and understanding, also in the German speaking world.
Your article is a nice roundup of your work. But I was more surprised by Michael A. Woodley of Menie's argument against polygenic embryo selection for intelligence:
https://schweizermonat.ch/stapledons-catastrophe-how-the-new-eugenics-could-doom-us-all/
His basic arguments are that (a) improving intelligence reduces fertility, which is bad, and also (b) that most people don't want to improve intelligence - they prefer to select for extroversion and other "winning" traits in their children. The latter argument does not seem to be an argument against embryo selection for intelligence per se - instead, it's an argument against using selection for "enhancement" in general.
I'm skeptical of (b) - I think that most parents would have at least a mild preference for higher intelligence in their children. But I had never seriously considered (a) and I'd be curious what you think about it.
Emil, thanks for the informative issue on intelligence.
“Natural intelligence can replace almost any degree of education, but no education can replace natural intelligence.”
Arthur Schopenhauer
Excellent aphorism by one of my favorite philosophers. Here are some more:
"With people of limited ability, modesty is merely honesty.
But with those who possess great talent, it is hypocrisy."
Arthur Schopenhauer
"The wise have always said the same things,
and fools, who are the majority, have always done just the opposite."
Arthur Schopenhauer
"Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see."
Arthur Schopenhauer
The answer to the question, while not a real head-scratcher, is 36
P.S. If I might add:
"Intelligence is the most important thing of all to understand, more important than the origin of the universe, more important than climate change, more important than curing cancer, more important than anything else. That is because human intelligence is our major adaptive function, and only by optimizing it will we be able to save ourselves and other living things from ultimate destruction."
Douglas Detterman ‘16