4 ms·

A woman of beauty and intellect can go anywhere and do anything. Read his biography: Napoleon himself was starved for such a woman. But you are asking for two

A woman of beauty and intellect can go anywhere and do anything. Read his biography: Napoleon himself was starved for such a woman. But you are asking for two 99 percentiles in categories which share a pretty dubious correlation.

endtime 17y ago
Attractiveness should be totally uncorrelated to intelligence - or, if anything, have a very slight positive correlation. Also, he didn't say anything about 99th percentile. A girl who is even the 80th percentile for both looks and intelligence would be pretty desirable.
- oliveoil 17y ago
  > Attractiveness should be totally uncorrelated to intelligence Why would you think so? Isn't it the case that smarter guys make more money (or are otherwise more successful), allowing them to chose among more potential partners, some of them being physically attractive and selected for that reason? The offspring would be both smart (after the daddy) and pretty (after the mummy).
  - quizbiz 17y ago
    Could the offspring not be dumb (after the mummy) and ugly (after the daddy)?
    - chrisbolt 17y ago
      Yes, but those offspring would (theoretically) be less likely to reproduce.
      - trafficlight 17y ago
        Taking into account my trips to Walmart, I don't think that's an accurate statement.
        whughes 17y ago
        The rich wouldn't shop at Walmart.
        coderdude 17y ago
        Nonsense. The mega-rich likely do not, but people with $1-10 million still do. My boss's wife still does.
  - endtime 17y ago
    Yeah, that (or something like it) is why I added the second half of that sentence.
- gaius 17y ago
  Attractiveness should be totally uncorrelated to intelligence I'm not sure that's true - attractiveness is in a large part about facial symmetry, which is a proxy for "good" DNA.
  - xiaoma 17y ago
    Good infant health care, nutrition and a healthy childhood environment would also contribute to both looks and intellect.
- maw 17y ago
  Not uncorrelated. Consider the many guys who are into girls that wear glasses. It's not because the glasses make them look better per se, but because the stereotype (which has some truth embedded in it, but probably not all that much) correlates wearing glasses with being smart.
321abc 17y ago
Don't forget availability. So that's beauty, intellect, availability. Oh, and her reciprocal interest in you. And mutual compatibility. Quite a tall order.
- carbon8 17y ago
  "And mutual compatibility" Depends on what you are looking for, of course. One great thing about being single is that you have the opportunity to temporarily wrap your life together with someone who isn't necessarily much like you at all. It's like traveling. You can visit many places that you wouldn't want to call home.

endtime 17y ago

Attractiveness should be totally uncorrelated to intelligence - or, if anything, have a very slight positive correlation. Also, he didn't say anything about 99th percentile. A girl who is even the 80th percentile for both looks and intelligence would be pretty desirable.

oliveoil 17y ago
> Attractiveness should be totally uncorrelated to intelligence Why would you think so? Isn't it the case that smarter guys make more money (or are otherwise more successful), allowing them to chose among more potential partners, some of them being physically attractive and selected for that reason? The offspring would be both smart (after the daddy) and pretty (after the mummy).
- quizbiz 17y ago
  Could the offspring not be dumb (after the mummy) and ugly (after the daddy)?
  - chrisbolt 17y ago
    Yes, but those offspring would (theoretically) be less likely to reproduce.
    - trafficlight 17y ago
      Taking into account my trips to Walmart, I don't think that's an accurate statement.
      - whughes 17y ago
        The rich wouldn't shop at Walmart.
        coderdude 17y ago
        Nonsense. The mega-rich likely do not, but people with $1-10 million still do. My boss's wife still does.
- endtime 17y ago
  Yeah, that (or something like it) is why I added the second half of that sentence.
gaius 17y ago
Attractiveness should be totally uncorrelated to intelligence I'm not sure that's true - attractiveness is in a large part about facial symmetry, which is a proxy for "good" DNA.
- xiaoma 17y ago
  Good infant health care, nutrition and a healthy childhood environment would also contribute to both looks and intellect.
maw 17y ago
Not uncorrelated. Consider the many guys who are into girls that wear glasses. It's not because the glasses make them look better per se, but because the stereotype (which has some truth embedded in it, but probably not all that much) correlates wearing glasses with being smart.

321abc 17y ago

Don't forget availability. So that's beauty, intellect, availability. Oh, and her reciprocal interest in you. And mutual compatibility. Quite a tall order.

carbon8 17y ago
"And mutual compatibility" Depends on what you are looking for, of course. One great thing about being single is that you have the opportunity to temporarily wrap your life together with someone who isn't necessarily much like you at all. It's like traveling. You can visit many places that you wouldn't want to call home.