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Apr 8, 2023·edited Apr 9, 2023

Dr. Krauss The most important take away from your article is to take sensational claims with a grain of salt even when they come from seemingly credible sources. You. would think that NASA would know better. This is the reason I read books written by people I trust including you, Richard Dawkins rather than relying on information in the press.

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Apr 7, 2023·edited Apr 7, 2023

I haven't read the full article yet (but will later), so I am just reacting to Lawrence's initial comments here.

I actually facepalmed myself while reading this. I read a good definition of WOKE yesterday "The state of mind that finds EVERYTHING 'problematic' expect your own behavior". Clown world is destroying academia and free speech. Thank Sagan for scientists like Dr Krauss.

Edit: I was actually hoping that this post was dated 1st April and that Lawrence was just having a joke with us.

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Very nice article. Although I agree with everything Dr Krauss said, I have some sympathy for or understanding of those who say that the word intelligence is tainted. I have read articles, books and debates purporting to prove that blacks and women are of inferior intelligence based on IQ and other tests, which in my opinion do not take into account the long history of limitations (to use a polite word 😀) placed on blacks and women, as well as their different experiences. I am sure many of you here believe that these differences are scientifically proven. I am not the right person to argue with you on the IQ subject. I merely note that a reason that some people would not like the word intelligence if it has been used in the past to denigrate them. But imagine that there is a planet inhabited only by women (parthenogenesis). Being inferior to white human males may be these alien women would not achieve the technological intelligence our current programs are trying to detect! I do not believe it for a moment, but think about it!

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Even with statistically significance mean differences between the "check box groups" these numbers tell you nothing about the individual. The variance within the check box groups (from idiot to genius) is much greater that the variance between the groups, which tells us nothing relevant for making a decision about an individual like hiring someone.

The word "intelligence" is only a problem for "idiots". Now that the social science's have branded many of my most intelligent and math oriented friends as Autistic, when they can see concepts is an instant that these social science types, who "believe" that check box classifications by the census bureau (sex, race, and other irrelevant classes) have meaning, can't see at all.

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I thought your first paragraph was very well put, but didn't understand your second paragraph at all (maybe it's just me).

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I also read about it and agree with what you say in the first paragraph. Can you rephrase the second paragraph? I think the second paragraph point at the problem but I think there may be "autocorrect" problems? My understanding is that supremacists misuse the stats (first paragraph) to support bigotry while at the other end extreme left/progressives(?) want to do away with the concept because it has been tainted by the supremacists.

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