6 ms·

An article the states something that we all know. I think the smartest people knows when to act dumb. As a comp sci master student who also go out on weekends

An article the states something that we all know. I think the smartest people knows when to act dumb. As a comp sci master student who also go out on weekends sometime to clubs, I have to say that women are not turned on by the occupation of a programmer.

onewland 17y ago
I don't think they're turned on by room-temperature IQ construction workers (not saying they all are) for their occupation either. Maybe the problem here is that you're talking about your occupation. If you meet a secretary or a doctor in a bar, do you want to hear her rattle on about her daily routine? This could be related to the problems very intelligent people have getting laid. Their interests are less accessible and more focused, and so their conversations are more boring to people who don't share those interests. Whereas everybody but the stupidest people can easily follow along in a reality TV discussion.
- astine 17y ago
  A doctor can casually drop something into the conversation about all of the lives he's saved or kids he's helped and instantly score points. That new webserver is slightly less enthralling to the uninitiated. It's easier to turn some kinds of work into an interesting story than others.
  - deleted 17y ago
    [deleted]
  - mixmax 17y ago
    I think that's a case of "the grass is greener on the other side" You can just as easily come up with fun stories, things you've done, etc. as a programmer as a doctor. - Next time you're on facebook try pressing up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, b, a, enter and see what happens. No I won't tell you but it's fun. If you can't remember it here's my number so you can text me and ask - Yeah today I've had more than half a million people come through computers I run. Without me they would be in serious trouble. Pretty wild huh? - I've helped so many kids with computers you wouldn't believe it. A little thick maybe, but you get the point :-)
    - astine 17y ago
      I've never had any success with that approach, unfortunately. :(
      - wallflower 17y ago
        Like in tennis, the point is not to try to hit a winner when the question gets asked but to stay in the game. Volley it back by focusing on something you'd like to know about her. For example: Her: "What do you do for a living?" You: "I write software that thousands of people use every day to get their own jobs done. And my real passion is cooking. I love French cooking from scratch.(pause)What do you enjoy doing?" OR Her: "What do you do for a living?" You: "I write software. Office politics aside, I like the creative aspect of building something up, from a blank screen in my editor to something that people actually use on the Internet.(pause). What do you do to exercise your creativity?"
        riahi 17y ago
        This sounds like a med school interview, in all honesty. "So tell me about yourself"
        wallflower 17y ago
        Exactly. That is a very difficult question. And the key is to answer it in a way that pertains to the interviewer's goals (which for a girl meeting a guy might be: does he have a life, will my friends like him, is he interesting). As Jerry Seinfeld says, a date is a job interview.
        euccastro 17y ago
        Or, more to the point: "I program computers to do my bidding. Great fun to do, boring to talk about." Then unapologetically move on to something more there-and-then-worthy, using any cues to --as parent suggests-- give her a chance to talk about herself and (esp.) her interests.
        yosho 17y ago
- pwnstigator 17y ago
  Few people are turned on by low intelligence. What the construction worker has on the programmer is masculinity; it's perceived as a more "manly" line of work. However, both men and women tend to be more androgynous as intelligence increases, which is a problem for both genders, but especially for men, when it comes to attracting mates.
  - onewland 17y ago
    I am skeptical that women are really into construction workers as a whole. If they get any benefit from construction, my guess is that they are more fit on the whole. Women I've met in urban areas don't give a shit about the "manliness" of your work; in fact, I don't even think it's a great disadvantage to be unemployed if you have a good reason to be. Hm, didn't want to derail this into being really focused on construction workers. Replace that in the previous paragraph with any non-intellectually focused occupation.
  - mixmax 17y ago
    Marissa Meyer doesn't strike me as particularly androgynous http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=marissa%20mayer&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=marissa%20mayer&... :-)
    - sketerpot 17y ago
      I know you're joking, but this meme of "disproving" statistical statements with individual counterexamples really steams my clams.
      - mixmax 17y ago
        Well, even though it was intended as a joke I can only agree.
    - pwnstigator 17y ago
      She has a leadership role in a technology company. Society views leadership and technological prowess as masculine traits. So that's androgyny. An androgynous person is one who has a mixture of masculine and feminine traits, and there's nothing wrong with that. In fact, I'd generally argue that it's a good thing, because gender roles/stereotypes are limiting and generally bogus. Most people who are worth a damn are fairly androgynous, because there are plenty of worthwhile traits on both sides of the stereotypical gender divide.
- csallen 17y ago
  Uninteresting hobbies and professions are not what's truly at fault here. As the article suggests, people with higher IQs probably spend much more time realizing their ambition than they do trying to have sex. And it doesn't really matter how smart you are -- if you aren't a practiced socializer, you're going to have trouble competing with people who are. Also, it seems that intelligent people place quite a high value on, well, intelligence. I doubt most people working on startups, research, ground-breaking products, etc want a mate who doesn't understand or care for any of it.
yesimahuman 17y ago
I don't know about that. I've had good responses to being a programmer. "Oh you're so smart!" It's just how you sell it. Also, a club isn't exactly the best place to let the coolness of being a programmer show through.
- pwnstigator 17y ago
  A nightclub is not a good place to meet women who will value intelligence, period.
JeremyChase 17y ago
There will always be someone with a better job. If you want a girl like you; make her smile.
- blhack 17y ago
  If you want a girl like you; make her smile. Yes, and if you want to win a race, simply go faster. If you want to get a home run, simply hit the ball harder. If you want to be a better programmer, just write better code. If you want to make your startup succeed, just get more users. If you want to make your dog start behaving, just train it. and on and on and on.
  - pwnstigator 17y ago
    If you want to be immortal, make sure never to die.
  - JeremyChase 17y ago
    For each item on your list there is a way to make it happen. Most involve devoting more time to it or changing your strategy. For example, if you want to go faster you should probably run more. I suggest the same approach to 'making her smile'. Go talk to girls until you find one that is fun to talk to. It is important to remember that the girl you WANT to like you probably won't like you back. Get over it; don't waste your time on someone that doesn't even like you. If she doesn't like that you are a programmer, find someone who does. Rejection is part of. Get rejected today! It means you are trying....
- anc2020 17y ago
  There's more to it than that unfortunately.
  - orangecat 17y ago
    Sadly true. Being funny and nice will make her smile, but without confidence and social status that just gets you in the friend zone.
anc2020 17y ago
Where I am it really boils down to whether or not you start kissing the nearest girl in the club when drunk. You could possibly explain this in the article then with the idea that intelligent people are more likely to be either really introverted or extroverted and that the introverted ones tend not to do this sort of thing, leaving just the extroverted of the smart people to get laid? Sort of similar to the risk-aversion idea here, except with introversion. I do have smart friends who do this, they just happen to also be reasonably extroverted

onewland 17y ago

I don't think they're turned on by room-temperature IQ construction workers (not saying they all are) for their occupation either. Maybe the problem here is that you're talking about your occupation. If you meet a secretary or a doctor in a bar, do you want to hear her rattle on about her daily routine? This could be related to the problems very intelligent people have getting laid. Their interests are less accessible and more focused, and so their conversations are more boring to people who don't share those interests. Whereas everybody but the stupidest people can easily follow along in a reality TV discussion.

astine 17y ago
A doctor can casually drop something into the conversation about all of the lives he's saved or kids he's helped and instantly score points. That new webserver is slightly less enthralling to the uninitiated. It's easier to turn some kinds of work into an interesting story than others.
- deleted 17y ago
  [deleted]
- mixmax 17y ago
  I think that's a case of "the grass is greener on the other side" You can just as easily come up with fun stories, things you've done, etc. as a programmer as a doctor. - Next time you're on facebook try pressing up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, b, a, enter and see what happens. No I won't tell you but it's fun. If you can't remember it here's my number so you can text me and ask - Yeah today I've had more than half a million people come through computers I run. Without me they would be in serious trouble. Pretty wild huh? - I've helped so many kids with computers you wouldn't believe it. A little thick maybe, but you get the point :-)
  - astine 17y ago
    I've never had any success with that approach, unfortunately. :(
    - wallflower 17y ago
      Like in tennis, the point is not to try to hit a winner when the question gets asked but to stay in the game. Volley it back by focusing on something you'd like to know about her. For example: Her: "What do you do for a living?" You: "I write software that thousands of people use every day to get their own jobs done. And my real passion is cooking. I love French cooking from scratch.(pause)What do you enjoy doing?" OR Her: "What do you do for a living?" You: "I write software. Office politics aside, I like the creative aspect of building something up, from a blank screen in my editor to something that people actually use on the Internet.(pause). What do you do to exercise your creativity?"
      - riahi 17y ago
        This sounds like a med school interview, in all honesty. "So tell me about yourself"
        wallflower 17y ago
        Exactly. That is a very difficult question. And the key is to answer it in a way that pertains to the interviewer's goals (which for a girl meeting a guy might be: does he have a life, will my friends like him, is he interesting). As Jerry Seinfeld says, a date is a job interview.
      - euccastro 17y ago
        Or, more to the point: "I program computers to do my bidding. Great fun to do, boring to talk about." Then unapologetically move on to something more there-and-then-worthy, using any cues to --as parent suggests-- give her a chance to talk about herself and (esp.) her interests.
      - yosho 17y ago
pwnstigator 17y ago
Few people are turned on by low intelligence. What the construction worker has on the programmer is masculinity; it's perceived as a more "manly" line of work. However, both men and women tend to be more androgynous as intelligence increases, which is a problem for both genders, but especially for men, when it comes to attracting mates.
- onewland 17y ago
  I am skeptical that women are really into construction workers as a whole. If they get any benefit from construction, my guess is that they are more fit on the whole. Women I've met in urban areas don't give a shit about the "manliness" of your work; in fact, I don't even think it's a great disadvantage to be unemployed if you have a good reason to be. Hm, didn't want to derail this into being really focused on construction workers. Replace that in the previous paragraph with any non-intellectually focused occupation.
- mixmax 17y ago
  Marissa Meyer doesn't strike me as particularly androgynous http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=marissa%20mayer&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=marissa%20mayer&... :-)
  - sketerpot 17y ago
    I know you're joking, but this meme of "disproving" statistical statements with individual counterexamples really steams my clams.
    - mixmax 17y ago
      Well, even though it was intended as a joke I can only agree.
  - pwnstigator 17y ago
    She has a leadership role in a technology company. Society views leadership and technological prowess as masculine traits. So that's androgyny. An androgynous person is one who has a mixture of masculine and feminine traits, and there's nothing wrong with that. In fact, I'd generally argue that it's a good thing, because gender roles/stereotypes are limiting and generally bogus. Most people who are worth a damn are fairly androgynous, because there are plenty of worthwhile traits on both sides of the stereotypical gender divide.
csallen 17y ago
Uninteresting hobbies and professions are not what's truly at fault here. As the article suggests, people with higher IQs probably spend much more time realizing their ambition than they do trying to have sex. And it doesn't really matter how smart you are -- if you aren't a practiced socializer, you're going to have trouble competing with people who are. Also, it seems that intelligent people place quite a high value on, well, intelligence. I doubt most people working on startups, research, ground-breaking products, etc want a mate who doesn't understand or care for any of it.

yesimahuman 17y ago

I don't know about that. I've had good responses to being a programmer. "Oh you're so smart!" It's just how you sell it. Also, a club isn't exactly the best place to let the coolness of being a programmer show through.

pwnstigator 17y ago
A nightclub is not a good place to meet women who will value intelligence, period.

JeremyChase 17y ago

There will always be someone with a better job. If you want a girl like you; make her smile.

blhack 17y ago
If you want a girl like you; make her smile. Yes, and if you want to win a race, simply go faster. If you want to get a home run, simply hit the ball harder. If you want to be a better programmer, just write better code. If you want to make your startup succeed, just get more users. If you want to make your dog start behaving, just train it. and on and on and on.
- pwnstigator 17y ago
  If you want to be immortal, make sure never to die.
- JeremyChase 17y ago
  For each item on your list there is a way to make it happen. Most involve devoting more time to it or changing your strategy. For example, if you want to go faster you should probably run more. I suggest the same approach to 'making her smile'. Go talk to girls until you find one that is fun to talk to. It is important to remember that the girl you WANT to like you probably won't like you back. Get over it; don't waste your time on someone that doesn't even like you. If she doesn't like that you are a programmer, find someone who does. Rejection is part of. Get rejected today! It means you are trying....
anc2020 17y ago
There's more to it than that unfortunately.
- orangecat 17y ago
  Sadly true. Being funny and nice will make her smile, but without confidence and social status that just gets you in the friend zone.

anc2020 17y ago

Where I am it really boils down to whether or not you start kissing the nearest girl in the club when drunk. You could possibly explain this in the article then with the idea that intelligent people are more likely to be either really introverted or extroverted and that the introverted ones tend not to do this sort of thing, leaving just the extroverted of the smart people to get laid? Sort of similar to the risk-aversion idea here, except with introversion. I do have smart friends who do this, they just happen to also be reasonably extroverted