Nassim Taleb on IQ

#1

Post by ptbello » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 12:58 AM UTC

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#2

Post by ronilan » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 2:58 AM UTC

When someone asks me a question in real life I don’t focus on “Why”. I focus on “How” (can I help them).

Most arguments down the thread seem just as moot to me, but then again, I’m probably not smart enough for a Twitter IQ thread.

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#3

Post by microcolonel » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 2:59 AM UTC

Of course, if you submit a piece supporting any other take on these matters, it may not make it on HN.

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#4

Post by bachmeier » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 3:03 AM UTC

ronilan wrote: post #2

When someone asks me a question in real life I don’t focus on “Why”. I focus on “How” (can I help them). Most arguments down the thread seem just as moot to me, but then again, I’m probably not smart enough for a Twitter IQ thread.

Nobody's smart enough for a Taleb thread on any topic.

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#5

Post by cheez » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 3:13 AM UTC

I enjoyed reading this thread this morning. Makes some salient points, that IQ is correlated with success in a specific area (physics/academia).

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#6

Post by woodruffw » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 3:14 AM UTC

Is there a coherent train of thought in these tweets, other than Taleb's disdain for IQ[1]? I'm struggling to understand why a measurement that appears to have no value "measures best the ability to be a good slave," or why any of this entails the belief that "the only robust measure of "rationality" & "intelligence" is survival."

[1]: A position that, as far as I know, is neither controversial nor contentious in academia.

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#7

Post by techbio » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 3:15 AM UTC

The fact that some people can’t survive in the market, and other people don’t [even participate], meshes well with his “simple verbal test”: it only works if your subject is playing along. Street smarts are earned, granted. But IQ is not a measure of how many toys you die with. If the test is market survival, anyone who retires is a genius.

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#8

Post by techbio » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 3:17 AM UTC

woodruffw wrote: post #6

Is there a coherent train of thought in these tweets, other than Taleb's disdain for IQ[1]? I'm struggling to understand why a measurement that appears to have no value "measures best the ability to be a good slave," or why any of this entails the belief that "the only robust measure of "rationality" & "intelligence" is survival." [1]: A position that, as far as I know, is neither controversial nor contentious in aca…

I just see more personal liberty at the high end and therefore more variance in possible outcomes.

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#9

Post by naravara » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 3:18 AM UTC

bachmeier wrote: post #4

ronilan wrote: post #2

When someone asks me a question in real life I don’t focus on “Why”. I focus on “How” (can I help them). Most arguments down the thread seem just as moot to me, but then again, I’m probably not smart enough for a Twitter IQ thread.

Nobody's smart enough for a Taleb thread on any topic.

It's weird. Even though I agree with probably 80% of what Taleb is trying to say, he's just such a condescending prick about it that I STILL want to throw rocks at him to make him shut up.

I'm not saying I agree with burning Galileo at the stake, but reading Taleb and knowing how Galileo conducted himself. . . I understand.

Re: Nassim Taleb on IQ

#10

Post by ellius » Tue, Dec 25, 2018, 3:20 AM UTC

I like Taleb's work. It's always good food for thought and frequently insightful. That said, his posture towards academia of late seems a bit juvenile and not a little annoying. Which isn't to say that he doesn't have a point, but it gets pretty frustrating when I pay good money for a book (Antifragile) and every other page is taking potshots at "fragilistas" and talking about how those dumb intellectuals don't actually know anything. In my book you win arguments by winning arguments, not by reframing the discussion so as to portray all of your opponents as hopelessly deluded cowards and fools.