"""It's not a reality based generalization though, it's unfounded nonsense - like the thought that black people can jump really high compared to white people, you can die if you leave a fan on while you sleep, or that you can identify criminals by measuring their skulls."""
"Completely unfounded nonsense", how? Because, people just don't know enough teenagers to generalize that they aren't in general that motivated?
He is comparing the general teenager with a 16 guy who learned programming on his own, built an app people want to use in hundreds of thousands, and even got an investment for it. It's only reasonable to deem him quite apart from the average teenager in the motivation department. And judging from the success of GTD methodologies and such crap, even from the average adult.
"""All of these beliefs have been shared by millions of people at some time, but that does not make them true and certainly does not make them suitable for reprinting as implied fact by a state-backed, high quality, supposedly objective news organization."""
The reporting that a kid that managed SUCH AND SUCH is more motivated than the average kid, is nothing like Lombroso's theory or some urban legend about dying when sleeping with a fan on. It's a simple observation and statement of fact.
As for the report on the extra politeness of the kid --compared to the average kid--, do you really believe that a reporter cannot spot a polite kid when he sees one? Or, do you think that he hasn't seen enough kids in his life to be able to discern any difference in politeness levels?
(Note: I've worked as an teacher for a spell, and I know that there are kids that are far more motivated than the average kid, and kids far more polite than the average kid. I also know one when I see one).