No I can't tell the difference between a tomato and a potato, but have you considered the deep symbolism embedded in Karate Kid II, and how that contributed to normalizing relations between rival karate schools in real life?
I think that's exactly the way to frame it. What's considered smart or even worthy of memorizing/being knowledgeable about evolves with society's needs and expectations. I definitely no longer remember people's phone numbers these days, and if you throw me into remote wilderness, I won't last a day.
But I consider myself reasonably smart about the technologies and knowledge areas that have direct utility in my life, both digital and otherwise.
Perhaps it's more useful to look at things less through a "smart" vs. "dumb" lens and more through a "practical" vs "abstract" knowledge and how the demand for each has shifted over time.
Also, the "dogs vs. rabbits" question has an obvious answer: Both of them appear in people's nightmares as talking Cronenbergian abominations that chase us through narrow alleys while reciting passages from The Bible.
I can't say enough good things about Cronenberg's "The Fly", or at least the way I remember it. We had vomit on a hand, vomit on a foot, sideboob, and - best of all, for me - it aired on regular TV during the late 80s, so I got to see a horror movie very nearly intact, from my bedroom (I think I had inherited a black and white TV by this time).
You're spot-on about the actual thing IQ tests measure: general utility knowledge about today's world.
These two initially and understandably were suspicious of each other, and the dog did chase the rabbit in a hunter-like way. However, their differences have largely been put aside in favor of their joint ethical pursuit of justice (though with different modus operandi).
And just like that, anyone reading the comments now has an additional layer of carefully crafted fiction to read next, should they be so inclined. This is the sort of intellectual torch-passing that's very good for the world.
I think you're good at the game. You don't try to hog the spotlight or anything like that - you make an observation and move on, and it's always thoughtful and personal to you. Then, someone else can weigh in - I love that about this place.
I don’t need Flynn or Russian hunting dogs to answer this one. There’s a young version of me living in my house, and I am definitely smarter than him. He cant drive a stick shift, he can’t work my 35mm camera, he doesn’t even know what THWIP means! Kids nowadays are soooooooo stupid.
I got the game cube on sale from GameStop so we interjected retroactively into the Nintendo universe. But it’s so cute, and I couldn’t resist the bongo drum controller. Fanciful design. Controllers are orange.
That game cube is my one and only. Actually wait, I fished a parachute Nintendo out of my garage and I had a Spiderman game boy cartridge. Nintendo wins
“Smarter” and “dumber”, “more” or “less” seems to imply a dualistic framework of thinking. Perhaps we are disassembling the old paradigm of thought and reassembling something new, while incorporating elements of the old…
Agree. Our survival skills are rubbish. Heck, even general life skills like cooking are diminishing and yet the abstract contnues to grow.
No I can't tell the difference between a tomato and a potato, but have you considered the deep symbolism embedded in Karate Kid II, and how that contributed to normalizing relations between rival karate schools in real life?
Probably not since I made that one up.
KarateKid LEGENDS
I think that's exactly the way to frame it. What's considered smart or even worthy of memorizing/being knowledgeable about evolves with society's needs and expectations. I definitely no longer remember people's phone numbers these days, and if you throw me into remote wilderness, I won't last a day.
But I consider myself reasonably smart about the technologies and knowledge areas that have direct utility in my life, both digital and otherwise.
Perhaps it's more useful to look at things less through a "smart" vs. "dumb" lens and more through a "practical" vs "abstract" knowledge and how the demand for each has shifted over time.
Also, the "dogs vs. rabbits" question has an obvious answer: Both of them appear in people's nightmares as talking Cronenbergian abominations that chase us through narrow alleys while reciting passages from The Bible.
It's not just me, right? Right?
I can't say enough good things about Cronenberg's "The Fly", or at least the way I remember it. We had vomit on a hand, vomit on a foot, sideboob, and - best of all, for me - it aired on regular TV during the late 80s, so I got to see a horror movie very nearly intact, from my bedroom (I think I had inherited a black and white TV by this time).
You're spot-on about the actual thing IQ tests measure: general utility knowledge about today's world.
Another thing dogs and rabbits have in common is that they are both anthropomorphic superheroes I write about. (E.G. https://davidperlmutter.substack.com/p/international-dog-day, https://davidperlmutter.substack.com/p/international-rabbit-day AND https://davidperlmutter.substack.com/p/call-off-the-doctor.)
These two initially and understandably were suspicious of each other, and the dog did chase the rabbit in a hunter-like way. However, their differences have largely been put aside in favor of their joint ethical pursuit of justice (though with different modus operandi).
And just like that, anyone reading the comments now has an additional layer of carefully crafted fiction to read next, should they be so inclined. This is the sort of intellectual torch-passing that's very good for the world.
Intellectual torch passing is what I want to do…
I think you're good at the game. You don't try to hog the spotlight or anything like that - you make an observation and move on, and it's always thoughtful and personal to you. Then, someone else can weigh in - I love that about this place.
I don’t need Flynn or Russian hunting dogs to answer this one. There’s a young version of me living in my house, and I am definitely smarter than him. He cant drive a stick shift, he can’t work my 35mm camera, he doesn’t even know what THWIP means! Kids nowadays are soooooooo stupid.
I was gonna say he probably doesn't even know how to get to the Warp Zone in Super Mario Bros, but... maybe I'm the only one here who knows this.
He's pretty good at Donkey Konga
Donkey Kong is like Mario Bros' grandpa!
I got the game cube on sale from GameStop so we interjected retroactively into the Nintendo universe. But it’s so cute, and I couldn’t resist the bongo drum controller. Fanciful design. Controllers are orange.
I love retro elements - that's probably the only sort of experience I want these days, I think. I'm turning into a boomer!
What's your favorite retro system?
That game cube is my one and only. Actually wait, I fished a parachute Nintendo out of my garage and I had a Spiderman game boy cartridge. Nintendo wins
I'm such a sucker for the old 8-bit NES. I also owned a 16 bit SNES, but no Game Boy (still, everyone got to play Tetris back then).
“Smarter” and “dumber”, “more” or “less” seems to imply a dualistic framework of thinking. Perhaps we are disassembling the old paradigm of thought and reassembling something new, while incorporating elements of the old…