5 ms·

Yes. It's a weird bunch (not in a bad way!). I went to their meetings a couple times by invitation, and it never really "clicked" - for many of their members,

by lima 6y ago

Yes. It's a weird bunch (not in a bad way!). I went to their meetings a couple times by invitation, and it never really "clicked" - for many of their members, their MENSA membership and related activities are a big part of their identity and their life, and I wasn't able to connect. I heard the same thing from a couple of friends who also met their entrance criteria, and there's certainly a lot of selection bias. Which is fine, but it's not representative by any means.

tomcam 6y ago
I joined at a young age and after a couple of meetings realized it made no sense at all to me. Joining a club because you have a high IQ is like joining a club because you have a leg or a head. I think immutable attributes in general just aren’t enough to hold a group together, or at least make it interesting. Could be wrong on this one, though.
- pizza234 6y ago
  > Joining a club because you have a high IQ is like joining a club because you have a leg or a head That's a bit too loose analogy. A more precise is like joining because one is tall. While the principle still somewhat holds, the difference is in the consequences. One may join Mensa because they're likely to find people with similar tendencies/interests, as much as tall people may like certain sports.
whatshisface 6y ago
Where are all of the satisfied Mensa members? Every time Mensa gets brought up a whole swarm of dissatisfied former members shows up to explain how it's not worth attending, and yet the organization persists. What's the other side of the story?
- giantg2 6y ago
  I know of two Mensa members. They don't seem to be dissatisfied, but they don't seem to be active in it either. Maybe it depends on the expectations one has before joining.
- nostrademons 6y ago
  At the Mensa meetings. The selection bias works the other way as well: people who are happy with their Mensa social group get their social contact from that and don't bother hanging out on HN.
- KingMachiavelli 6y ago
  Maybe it's actually HN that attracts dissatisfaction? /jk It's a well known phenomenon that people are more likely to speak on the negative/critical opinions they have than to go out of their way to give praise.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- FabHK 6y ago
  So, first, Mensa groups vary considerably across countries (US has many people that seek some activity after retirement; in Hong Kong some seem to be attracted by the mensa email they can put on their CV; in Germany it seems a fairly mixed bunch, many of which are bored in their parochial hometown). But I thought membership was well worth it. Discussions about random arcane topics, meetings and conferences, contacts when traveling, dating, a fairly open and tolerant social circle, etc.
- lima 6y ago
  The friend who invited me was (and is) a happy member - he skips the large meetings/gatherings and simply uses the network to find folk with similar interests.
giantg2 6y ago
I thought they had a network to connect less wealthy members with funding for projects or jobs? At least that was the only real benefit I remember seeing in my limited research years ago.
allenu 6y ago
To me, as an outsider, I don't see the immediate purpose of the club. I imagine most clubs are about activities or a mission. I used to go social dancing and the purpose of that group of people was to dance, and they would have various events all about dancing or improving your dancing. If you join a social justice or politically minded group, I imagine your purpose is to engage in activities to further your ideals. But to join a club where there are other smart people... your goal is to what? Share interesting puzzles with each other? :D Try to make other people smarter?
- pseudalopex 6y ago
  HN is a club for discussing "Anything that good hackers would find interesting." Is it so different?
  - allenu 6y ago
    I feel like it is because it's a group of people in the same field, which is constantly changing. There are topics related to the group that make sense to discuss. With smart people, I suppose any topic is on the table. It's not specific enough for me.
    - pseudalopex 6y ago
      It seems like most commenters are in software engineering or related jobs. But it doesn't appeal to lots of people in those fields. There are biologists and truck drivers too. And lots of people have pointed out most companies are tech companies now. Most topics here might interest people for professional reasons. But they include things like "High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders" too. People love to debate politics. And "Is the Ship Still Stuck?"[1] is the top article right now. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26585282 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26585282
- MaximumYComb 6y ago
  I think you're only looking at "smart people" as people who want to share how smart they are. You seem to be ignoring the social isolation that can come with it. Your interests might no be similar to those around you, if you're a child you might be able to meet others who are different in the same way, etc. I very rarely discuss IQ since so many people are hostile to it. A high IQ makes you different. Sometimes it's subtle, like as an adult you'll typically have different interests compared to a lot of peers, and other times it's far less subtle, like when you're a school aged kid and you're always made to feel different (FYI most school aged kids don't want to feel different).
FabHK 6y ago
> for many of their members, their MENSA membership and related activities are a big part of their identity and their life That's the case for many people that join a club, though, be it chess, functional programming, golf, gardening, or what have you, and happens naturally if that's where you spend a good chunk of your free time.

by lima 6y ago

tomcam 6y ago

I joined at a young age and after a couple of meetings realized it made no sense at all to me. Joining a club because you have a high IQ is like joining a club because you have a leg or a head. I think immutable attributes in general just aren’t enough to hold a group together, or at least make it interesting. Could be wrong on this one, though.

pizza234 6y ago
> Joining a club because you have a high IQ is like joining a club because you have a leg or a head That's a bit too loose analogy. A more precise is like joining because one is tall. While the principle still somewhat holds, the difference is in the consequences. One may join Mensa because they're likely to find people with similar tendencies/interests, as much as tall people may like certain sports.

whatshisface 6y ago

Where are all of the satisfied Mensa members? Every time Mensa gets brought up a whole swarm of dissatisfied former members shows up to explain how it's not worth attending, and yet the organization persists. What's the other side of the story?

giantg2 6y ago
I know of two Mensa members. They don't seem to be dissatisfied, but they don't seem to be active in it either. Maybe it depends on the expectations one has before joining.
nostrademons 6y ago
At the Mensa meetings. The selection bias works the other way as well: people who are happy with their Mensa social group get their social contact from that and don't bother hanging out on HN.
KingMachiavelli 6y ago
Maybe it's actually HN that attracts dissatisfaction? /jk It's a well known phenomenon that people are more likely to speak on the negative/critical opinions they have than to go out of their way to give praise.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
FabHK 6y ago
So, first, Mensa groups vary considerably across countries (US has many people that seek some activity after retirement; in Hong Kong some seem to be attracted by the mensa email they can put on their CV; in Germany it seems a fairly mixed bunch, many of which are bored in their parochial hometown). But I thought membership was well worth it. Discussions about random arcane topics, meetings and conferences, contacts when traveling, dating, a fairly open and tolerant social circle, etc.
lima 6y ago
The friend who invited me was (and is) a happy member - he skips the large meetings/gatherings and simply uses the network to find folk with similar interests.

giantg2 6y ago

I thought they had a network to connect less wealthy members with funding for projects or jobs? At least that was the only real benefit I remember seeing in my limited research years ago.

allenu 6y ago

To me, as an outsider, I don't see the immediate purpose of the club. I imagine most clubs are about activities or a mission. I used to go social dancing and the purpose of that group of people was to dance, and they would have various events all about dancing or improving your dancing. If you join a social justice or politically minded group, I imagine your purpose is to engage in activities to further your ideals. But to join a club where there are other smart people... your goal is to what? Share interesting puzzles with each other? :D Try to make other people smarter?

pseudalopex 6y ago
HN is a club for discussing "Anything that good hackers would find interesting." Is it so different?
- allenu 6y ago
  I feel like it is because it's a group of people in the same field, which is constantly changing. There are topics related to the group that make sense to discuss. With smart people, I suppose any topic is on the table. It's not specific enough for me.
  - pseudalopex 6y ago
    It seems like most commenters are in software engineering or related jobs. But it doesn't appeal to lots of people in those fields. There are biologists and truck drivers too. And lots of people have pointed out most companies are tech companies now. Most topics here might interest people for professional reasons. But they include things like "High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders" too. People love to debate politics. And "Is the Ship Still Stuck?"[1] is the top article right now. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26585282 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26585282
MaximumYComb 6y ago
I think you're only looking at "smart people" as people who want to share how smart they are. You seem to be ignoring the social isolation that can come with it. Your interests might no be similar to those around you, if you're a child you might be able to meet others who are different in the same way, etc. I very rarely discuss IQ since so many people are hostile to it. A high IQ makes you different. Sometimes it's subtle, like as an adult you'll typically have different interests compared to a lot of peers, and other times it's far less subtle, like when you're a school aged kid and you're always made to feel different (FYI most school aged kids don't want to feel different).

FabHK 6y ago

> for many of their members, their MENSA membership and related activities are a big part of their identity and their life That's the case for many people that join a club, though, be it chess, functional programming, golf, gardening, or what have you, and happens naturally if that's where you spend a good chunk of your free time.