Truthfully, it is impossible to effectively PROVE that we—in 2017, as a society/as humans—are more intelligent than those who lived centuries (or millennia) ago, or vice versa. However, if we consider a few thoughts, anecdotes and some data, we might arrive at a reasonable
Truthfully, it is impossible to effectively PROVE that we—in 2017, as a society/as humans—are more intelligent than those who lived centuries (or millennia) ago, or vice versa. However, if we consider a few thoughts, anecdotes and some data, we might arrive at a reasonable conclusion about the matter.
Each generation—with a generation typically equating to roughly 30 years—inherently believes that they are “better” and “more advanced” than their predecessors. I believe this is especially so over the course of the last 75-100 years. Prior to that, maybe this psychological phenomenon was not the case.
I am 43 year old and with developments and inventions in recent decades of the personal computer, the internet, GPS systems and the “smartphone” (to name just a few), my generation could say we are more advanced than those who lived earlier. And in being more advanced, with better technologies and innovations, we can extrapolate this to imply that we are also more intelligent than our fathers or our distant ancestors. This deduction is an oversimplification, but reasonable. (ed. note—at least perhaps in the technical realm)
Going back further, roughly to the time of my grandfather or great-grandfather, his generation can lay claim to new inventions that include the automobile, the atomic bomb, mechanical flight, penicillin, etc. Perhaps adults who lived between 1900-1950 were the smartest in human history?
We could perform this exercise for each generation going back 200 years or more, but would this solve the question?
A very compelling list/ranking of the smartest persons in human history was reported by Business Week, conducted by Libb Timms (an electrochemical engineer) in 2015 (http://www.businessinsider.com/the-40-smartest-people-of-all-time-2015-2?op=1/#40-richard-rick-rosner-1). This ranking of the Top 40 most intelligent persons took into account several criteria, including: IQ, which is a relatively recent measurement tool and not foolproof, IQ predictors, specific aptitudes, and marked life/career accomplishments.
What exactly did this seemingly impartial ranking find?
No person who lived in the past 60 years was listed in the Top 18 most intelligent persons. (There goes the “importance” of such developments as the pacemaker, organ transplants, genetically-engineered crops, the internet, etc.)
Within the Top 26 on the list, the breakdown of when those persons lived (based on year of death) is as follows:
- Nine of 26 (34.6% ) lived before the Industrial Revolution (the Industrial Revolution took place between 1760- 1840)
- Two of 26 (7.6%) are living today
- 24 of 26 (92.4%) lived before 1960
In trying to find a “golden age” of human intelligence based on this ranking and other criteria, one could argue that the timeframe of the Industrial Revolution might make sense as such an era.
What is interesting is that the world population back in 1800 was only 1.0 billion, whereas now in 2017 it is over 7.5 billion. Based on the math and probability alone, we should have several persons who are now living that would end up in the Top 10 or 20, yet this doesn’t seem to be the case.
There are many anecdotes that have been floating around for several years, possibly going back 20 years or so, in the United States. These are in regards to the intelligence—and/or the knowledge or aptitude—of teens graduating from high school, or of young adults getting out of a four-year college. Generally, what I have heard (and seen in some cases) is less than encouraging.
I’ve read many articles and also spoken directly to many business owners, and some school teachers, and the overwhelming theory is that 18-year-olds (or 22-year-olds for that matter) know less than that same age bracket did 25 or even 40 years ago.
I have heard many business owners and senior managers gripe that these “kids” don’t know much about anything, yet they want a job.
Is this an intelligence problem of this current generation, or is it an issue with the educational system and what and how we are teaching them? That’s a complicated question; I don’t know the answer. Also, I admit this paragraph has some gross simplifications and generalizations within it; I’m not seeking to pick a fight with Millennials.
I was reading an article from a college alumni magazine recently; it had the test that all prospective incoming college students would have to pass in order to be accepted into the university. The test was from 1893. I will admit that I probably could not get more than a 65% on such a test, and possibly I would fail it. I would say a good portion of the people that I know who are roughly my age would fail it. But, does that necessarily mean that people in 1893 are smarter than us?
In the end, are we—in 2017—truly smarter than other eras? If not, was there a “golden age” of human intelligence? If we are not getting smarter as a society, does that conflict with assumptions from the evolutionary theory? Is there a valid means of measuring the collective intelligence of a society, and if so, what is it? And lastly, what does this conversation mean to our national/public educational system?
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Ken Lambert is the national sales engineer for a building product manufacturer. A former licensed mortgage loan officer in Massachusetts, Maine, and New Hampshire with more than 10 years experience in real estate and financing, Ken was the developer of a patented and copyrighted mortgage loan product and software. His business/professional writings can be found via ARCHITECT magazine, U.S. Building News, The Scotsman Guide and Atlantic Publishing. He has also branched out into Christian writing as the co-author of a book on Church history–Top Ten Most Influential Christians- since the Apostles.