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We can go further, though. Intelligence and tenacity are also things that were given to us. You don't choose to be smart, nor do you choose to be hardworking.
by ucarion 12y ago
We can go further, though. Intelligence and tenacity are also things that were given to us. You don't choose to be smart, nor do you choose to be hardworking.
- WalterBright 12y agoYou don't choose to be hardworking or tenacious? Really?
- ucarion 12y agoLet's say you somehow "chose" to be hardworking. Since not everyone is hardworking, it seems that not everyone makes the right choice. Did you "choose" to choose to be hardworking? It's turtles all the way down. Whether you're born rich, smart, hardworking, or adaptable is all luck. In the end, your brain is a mesh of deterministic neurons -- "choices" are impossible.
- bellcurvetopper 12y agoIf you're interested in exploring the consequences of this line of thought, check out the philosopher John Rawls. If you'd like, I can try to summarize what are quite nuanced arguments and conclusions, though you're best of reading his works directly. Michael Sandel (of Harvard fame) is the best living champion of his ideas, and his book "Justice" is thorough and approachable. Sandel also has an EdX course with the same name, and he covers John Rawls towards the end. Rawls is my favorite philosopher on the topic of social justice, and I can't recommend him highly enough.
- barry-cotter 12y agoIntelligence as measured by IQ, and conscientiousness are both quite heritable. The estimates of IQ's heritability vary between 0.4 and 0.8.