The first of the "premium cable" manufacturer, remaining anonymous because them liken to suing everyone in sight...started about 1979, just about the same time as IQ rates started falling. Now, the powers that be insisted the IQ testing was fatally flawed, but that did not affect the results even using the "updated" versions of IQ testing. So, we went from simple speaker wiring to interconnects, thru "magic boxes" up & thru "magic pebbles" & all their wild claims. Very early on, straightforward double-blind tests ensued, discovering, "You can't hear an expensive speaker from a cheap one, you can't hear an expensive "super-speaker cable" from a cheap stretch of zip-cord, you can't hear the difference from a cheap $30 DAC from a $3500 DAC..."
From every corner we hear attempts to discredit double-blind tests, just like those trying to discredit the IQ testing ...& no, even concert violinists don't covet Stradivarius violins because they can't hear any differences. Even a collection of so-called wine-connoisseurs can't even decipher a red wine from a white wine. Double-blind testing strips away all pretensions large & small.
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From every corner we hear attempts to discredit double-blind tests, just like those trying to discredit the IQ testing ...& no, even concert violinists don't covet Stradivarius violins because they can't hear any differences. Even a collection of so-called wine-connoisseurs can't even decipher a red wine from a white wine. Double-blind testing strips away all pretensions large & small.
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I'm sure those on line AIs will help. Already the joke is, if you cant figure out how to code it, just ask the Chatbot; it'll code and check that it actually runs for you. Double-edge sword, to me.
Intelligence may shift from whole-cloth creative to how to how to write the most effective query. And how to know when something's been "artificially" created.
When I saw the subject line I thought you were talking about cable TV (and later apps like Instagram) making people stupid.
That is also worthy of discussion, maybe a new thread, it may have been discussed elsewhere on this forum, I did not check.
That had my die makers's son fail high school, he barely passed the second exam with grace marks...Instagram reel addict...data is cheap here, some people use up 3 GB daily watching reels and movies.
Then he got admission in a computer engineering course, I will watch his progress with interest.
Here we can have the students give a repeat exam in July/August if they fail the first exam in March, or if they want to make a second attempt to improve their score, the higher score stands.
That prevents a year being wasted.
That is also worthy of discussion, maybe a new thread, it may have been discussed elsewhere on this forum, I did not check.
That had my die makers's son fail high school, he barely passed the second exam with grace marks...Instagram reel addict...data is cheap here, some people use up 3 GB daily watching reels and movies.
Then he got admission in a computer engineering course, I will watch his progress with interest.
Here we can have the students give a repeat exam in July/August if they fail the first exam in March, or if they want to make a second attempt to improve their score, the higher score stands.
That prevents a year being wasted.
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Me too. You need to be bored every once in a while, to give intelligence's valence for learning - curiosity - any chance to act. With the antidote to that in such ample, ample supply via electronic devices these days, one has to wonder if chip-maker slogans like "we bring good things to life" are a true benefit to the human race.
However, I'm grateful for today's easy access to practical information, like where the hidden screws are when taking apart a laptop.
IQ can certainly be criticized. Is that the same as discrediting it in your view? One point of critique is that an individual should not be reduced to a single number. That was actually brought up by Binet - the inventor of IQ.
Another point of critique is that the IQ tests can be biased in many ways. The early tests were basically acquired knowledge tests. What the test makers chose to include as the knowledge of "intelligent people" was highly culturally biased. For example, one question was, "Who discovered America?" The "correct" answer is Christopher Columbus and selecting that answer will lead to a higher IQ score. Never mind that Leif Erikson was the first European to set foot on the North American continent a few centuries before that Columbus guy. Oh, and do you think the indigenous people in North America would have a different answer to that question? Does that make them less intelligent? The list goes on...
A more modern measure of intelligence is G (generalized intelligence), which if I recall correctly has six facets.
Radiolab has a very well-researched podcast series on this topic: https://radiolab.org/series/radiolab-presents-g
Tom
Not sure double blind and IQ testing are equivalently solid. A criticism of IQ tests had always been that they test our ability to pass IQ tests and aren't a reliable measure of IQ (if such a thing can be measured).
As Tom mentioned earlier, cultural differences also play a part.
I can see the attraction of a single measure of intellect. But. The opportunities for abuse of the results are legion, there's a sizeable section of the science fiction distopia library devoted to that sort of thing.
As Tom mentioned earlier, cultural differences also play a part.
I can see the attraction of a single measure of intellect. But. The opportunities for abuse of the results are legion, there's a sizeable section of the science fiction distopia library devoted to that sort of thing.
I don't need a chart to know that worldwide intelligence is falling. It's really obvious.
I'm not a fan of AI either. First, people are lazy and stupid enough already, and second I don't trust it. And I don't need it to do ANYTHING for me either. I was 100% capable of designing and prototyping a circuit for decades before Al Gore invented the internet. And the internet should have been a wonderful thing, but it has greatly exacerbated the cognitive decline of the masses.
As far as cables, I had a handful of coupons for Ace Hardware and decided to use them to buy a Monster Cable power strip. I had just thrown out a couple ancient units and needed one for my office. I was able to get it for around $15 and it looked mighty robust. Well, within a couple months it emitted the Magic Smoke and Sparks. The switch burned up in a big way. All that ever got plugged into it was a cell phone charger and my friend's laptop.
So much for premium brand and premium product. I paid for my lesson and now I know that Monster Cable is 100% snake oil. I bought a real cheap one at Menards for around $8 (11% off!). So far so good.
I'm not a fan of AI either. First, people are lazy and stupid enough already, and second I don't trust it. And I don't need it to do ANYTHING for me either. I was 100% capable of designing and prototyping a circuit for decades before Al Gore invented the internet. And the internet should have been a wonderful thing, but it has greatly exacerbated the cognitive decline of the masses.
As far as cables, I had a handful of coupons for Ace Hardware and decided to use them to buy a Monster Cable power strip. I had just thrown out a couple ancient units and needed one for my office. I was able to get it for around $15 and it looked mighty robust. Well, within a couple months it emitted the Magic Smoke and Sparks. The switch burned up in a big way. All that ever got plugged into it was a cell phone charger and my friend's laptop.
So much for premium brand and premium product. I paid for my lesson and now I know that Monster Cable is 100% snake oil. I bought a real cheap one at Menards for around $8 (11% off!). So far so good.
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