5 ms·
If you assume humans have not evolved significantly over the past 20,000 years, you have to wonder what all the geniuses were doing. Perhaps genius is a functi
by seventhtiger 7y ago
If you assume humans have not evolved significantly over the past 20,000 years, you have to wonder what all the geniuses were doing.
Perhaps genius is a function of childhood nutrition and medicine, but if a genius is 1 in 1000, then every village must have had one at some point.
What did people just as intelligent as us but without knowledge do for their entire lives? They build on tradition.
- RcouF1uZ4gsC 7y ago>If you assume humans have not evolved significantly over the past 20,000 years, you have to wonder what all the geniuses were doing. They were mostly preoccupied trying to stay alive. Also, any physical defect could be a death sentence. Have poor vision, you get eaten by a lion that you didn’t see. Unable to keep up with the tribe, you get left behind.
- seventhtiger 7y agoThat's true, but it only redeuces the probability some. There existed well-fed healthy populations at many points in history and geography. Even if the probability is much lower, there is estimated to be over 100 billions humans that have lived. I think we intuitively underestimate ancient peoples' individual abilities because we have so much knowledge and wisdom that's been built up over millennia easily available to us. But someone had to figure out how to farm using primitive tools and develop the tradition for the community. What was medieval Von Neumann doing?