4 ms·

> Herschel was considered to have average intelligence at best. I just looked the guy up and he seems like he was well above average intelligence... what's you

by mmmpop 5y ago

> Herschel was considered to have average intelligence at best. I just looked the guy up and he seems like he was well above average intelligence... what's your source? I feel like people here often are disengaged with "average" people. Think of the "dumbest" person you know in your day-to-day; I bet they're actually fairly average.

dotancohen 5y ago
> I just looked the guy up and he seems like he was > well above average intelligence... what's your source? University professor. Reading Herschel's wikipedia page, I see that the guy was exceptionally curious. I don't see mention of his intelligence going one way or the other.
- perl4ever 5y ago
  "In addition to the oboe, he played the violin and harpsichord and later the organ. He composed numerous musical works, including 24 symphonies and many concertos, as well as some church music." (emphasis mine) Obviously he wasn't Newton, but who is? It's kind of amusing that Uranus could have ended up named "George" if it wasn't for the French.
  - dotancohen 5y ago
    Such interest in music was not uncommon for someone of Herschel's social standing in his time. Note that we're not listening to Herschel's Ninth. This is like saying today "In addition to Python, he coded in Javascript and PHP, and later in C#. He wrote numerous scripts, including 24 websites and many text-processing utilities, as well as some CRM plugins for his local church."
    - perl4ever 5y ago
      No, it isn't like that. People are engineers, scientists, or programmers, and also have musical interests today. Usually they're way above average in their STEM career.
      - cyberbanjo 5y ago
        I agree, I think it's more like being good at golf
        perl4ever 5y ago
        >Note that we're not listening to Herschel's Ninth Apparently the assumption that the music he wrote has vanished is wrong. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNJXE8jk5mM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNJXE8jk5mM I noticed a picture of a telescope, so I think it's the right guy.
    - mmmpop 5y ago
      > This is like saying today "In addition to Python, he coded in Javascript and PHP, and later in C#. He wrote numerous scripts, including 24 websites and many text-processing utilities, as well as some CRM plugins for his local church." You think writing a symphony is like writing a Python script? "Salieri was just an average composer... my source? Why, the Mozart film of course!"

by mmmpop 5y ago

dotancohen 5y ago

> I just looked the guy up and he seems like he was > well above average intelligence... what's your source? University professor. Reading Herschel's wikipedia page, I see that the guy was exceptionally curious. I don't see mention of his intelligence going one way or the other.

perl4ever 5y ago
"In addition to the oboe, he played the violin and harpsichord and later the organ. He composed numerous musical works, including 24 symphonies and many concertos, as well as some church music." (emphasis mine) Obviously he wasn't Newton, but who is? It's kind of amusing that Uranus could have ended up named "George" if it wasn't for the French.
- dotancohen 5y ago
  Such interest in music was not uncommon for someone of Herschel's social standing in his time. Note that we're not listening to Herschel's Ninth. This is like saying today "In addition to Python, he coded in Javascript and PHP, and later in C#. He wrote numerous scripts, including 24 websites and many text-processing utilities, as well as some CRM plugins for his local church."
  - perl4ever 5y ago
    No, it isn't like that. People are engineers, scientists, or programmers, and also have musical interests today. Usually they're way above average in their STEM career.
    - cyberbanjo 5y ago
      I agree, I think it's more like being good at golf
      - perl4ever 5y ago
        >Note that we're not listening to Herschel's Ninth Apparently the assumption that the music he wrote has vanished is wrong. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNJXE8jk5mM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNJXE8jk5mM I noticed a picture of a telescope, so I think it's the right guy.
  - mmmpop 5y ago
    > This is like saying today "In addition to Python, he coded in Javascript and PHP, and later in C#. He wrote numerous scripts, including 24 websites and many text-processing utilities, as well as some CRM plugins for his local church." You think writing a symphony is like writing a Python script? "Salieri was just an average composer... my source? Why, the Mozart film of course!"