More Reflections On Intelligence
How much does money contribute towards making one intelligent?
Even though we live in a relatively abundant access to all kinds of information, there are still pockets of gated access to specialized expertise and curated knowledge.
Granted, these are mostly specialized knowledge that refines the general knowledge already out there in a way that's more structured and actionable, plus you have this bonus of having an experienced person who has gone through the same learning journey guide you through the pitfalls and shortcuts.
I did sign up for a writing course sometime in 2024 when I thought that I was severely lacking in writing know-how.
For me, most of my "writing knowledge" comes from mirroring of sorts from what I've read or rather how it's written, i.e. absorbing patterns and techniques through osmosis, with also just picking up vocabulary to increase my expressive range.
It's not unusual for me to read sentences numerous times and in a way that dissects their rhythm and construction.
Some of what I learned from the writing class were frameworks, one of them being the common problem-solution framework, which seems so obvious to me now in hindsight but I never got to have a label for it prior to taking the course.
Hooks, story weaving, cliffhanger were also put in a clearer context that I could understand on a practical level. For example, I learned that a hook can also mean making a promise to the reader that the rest of the piece will fulfill as opposed to it just being about attention-grabbing.
Paying for the course was basically a shortcut to learn what I probably would've learned eventually given more time spent on deliberate observation and trial-and-error.
Acquired or naturally gifted?
Now, can intelligence truly be a naturally gifted thing, or is what we perceive as "natural talent" simply the accumulation of earlier, less visible learning?
If we call someone naturally intelligent, what do we really mean here? Are we referring to processing speed, pattern recognition, curiosity, or perhaps just the fortunate timing of early exposure to enriching experiences?
I think a child who grows up in a home filled with books and conversations will appear innately bright right from the outset, but how much of that brightness is genetic versus environmental is where it gets muddy to discern.
The distinction between acquired and innate intelligence gets blurrier the more you examine it.
There are people who might have a genetic predisposition for certain cognitive strengths, say faster memory formation, stronger spatial reasoning. Without the environment and resources to develop those capacities, they will just remain as dormant potential. I think this category of people are seldom quantified in the traditional metrics of success.
On the flip side, someone with access to excellent education, and time to practice can develop expertise that looks indistinguishable from natural talent. It's just not much of a fair comparison to make when one runner starts at the finish line, so to speak.
Influenced by these compounding variables of access and opportunity, I'd say money, then, doesn't make one intelligent in any inherent sense, however it does work well as a tool to buy time, access, and reduction of cognitive load from survival concerns.
Money purchases the shortcut I experienced with that writing course, i.e condensed wisdom and structured feedback with a community of fellow learners.
Whether that makes someone more inherently intelligent or simply better equipped is just wordplay for the most part. The practical difference however in outcomes is undeniable.
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