What is intelligence to you? Does a genius need to be intelligent to be considered a genius?

submitted by Zombi from self.AskSaidIt

IQ is an obvious answer, but what about the 200iq genius who's never fixed his car? Or the illiterate, but skilled mechanic? What defines a "genius" to you? There are geniuses within music, but there are also geniuses within science, but a scientist would make a lousy musician and a musician would make a shit scientist.

I guess what I'm getting at is if there's a line between genius and stupid, where does it exist? Is Peyton Manning not a genius in regards to throwing a football? Is Mozart not a genius when it comes to composition? And is intelligence required to be a genius?

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[–]Stankmango 8 insightful - 4 fun8 insightful - 3 fun9 insightful - 4 fun -  (0 children)

I wouldn't say there's any fixed standard to measure intelligence by, but rather grasping your own limitations and critically understanding your potential is how we should look at it. It's a bit antiquated now to refer to the left/right dichotomy of the brain but I can say, for certain, that I'm just not wired for ratiocinative reasoning, I'm pretty sure I've got dyscalculia because numbers just trip me up at the best of times and I'm really disordered. However, that also means I'm really good at associative thinking and intuitively understanding concepts and recognizing symbolism, etc. There's also emotional intelligence. Being empathic and compassionate is definitely a learned skill and not innate in all of us. That's more of a philosophical question for another day.

Genius comes with passion, for the most part, or having an ego defying experience or series of experiences to recalibrate your self because once you realize that there is no tangible self and that you're just an amalgamation of your own memories and influences then you can explore your own talents to the fullest extent. Also on your mulling whether there's a fine line between genius and stupid I immediately thought of Karl Pilkington. I remember somebody saying he's like an RPG character that's had all their points pooled into wisdom and none in intellect. So there's plenty of informally educated people that have reached the same conclusion as academics on many concepts but they just don't have the mental lexicon of tying it all together.

[–]sawboss 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

IMHO there are many kinds of intelligence. The one facility which separates humans from animal is capacity for deep abstract thought. That capacity may be directed toward many pursuits.

I can write computer code, but a genius painter might not. Some are accomplished dancers, and I believe that's also an expression of intelligence. All of these things demonstrate capacity for deep abstract thought.

[–]HopeThatHalps 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Maybe the concept of intelligence is unintelligent in and of itself.

[–]Mnemonic 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Both are words best used to describe someone else than oneself or an action taken by another.

When it comes to that Peyton, I wouldn't say genius if it's his throwing skills, but maybe his insight into to who to throw for is. Genius instead of intelligent because it's a real heat of the moment kind of action I would presume.

So it's more about the local context and time it is said. Something everyone would say is stupid like bonking your head on a table till you pass out 'because you think your head feel funny', might be a future genius move when you're researched in the hospital and discover a brain tumor.

Genius is in the extreme more geared to something crazy and Intelligence more to something nicely thought out (or being able to think up a well thought out plan on the spot, like a good jamming session, the plans follows are you try to figure it out almost naturally).

[–]magnora7 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Cool question. I think genius is just very high intelligence.

But intelligence is not necessarily wisdom. You can be very intelligent about a specific field, but very unwise about the larger picture. A wise person is intelligent in every domain of their life, not just hyper-good at one at the expense of other categories. The latter is a "genius" I would say. But a genius can also be wise. But those people are extraordinarily rare.

[–]Mnemonic 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

You first! What do you think?

[–]Zombi[S] 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I feel everyone is a genius when it comes to something. I don't believe you need to be "smart" to be a genius either as I've been proven wrong on that front. I think intelligence comes in many different forms. To me, our definition of what makes someone intelligent is very narrow and doesn't take into account its many forms.

As an example, it's like saying "blue" is the only thing that is a color. So in order for anything to be considered "colorful" it must have blue in it, when in reality there are far more colors than just blue. There are colors we can see and are used all the time, then there are colors we have no way of truly "seeing" like ultraviolet and infrared light. Yet even if we can't see those colors, they're still there and they're still just as valid as other colors.

I feel that genius is creatively applied intelligence. If you are intelligent in an area and you apply that intelligence in the right way, you are then a genius. Of course there are tons of intelligent people who apply it in the completely wrong way. Now what is "the right way"? I don't know, really. You just know it when you see it, there isn't a concrete definition for that.

[–]happysmash27 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Well, something one can be in a certain skill area, I guess. "Genius" itself refers to IQ, but when I think of intelligence, I think of something that varies between different types of skills.

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

"INSIGHT"i dont really like to say some1 is smart or dumb,people have different Insight quality(i hope i translate it correct)some are born with the Insight to see nrs and multiple it with easy while others cant even do that same sum with a pen and paper.other have Insight in reading people while other have problems with that and fail to build frends/relations,Others have Insight in Survivng or not,Others have high Insight how other humans feel-so sympathize-other dont have that at all and become serial killers(e.g.)some have a high imagination other dont.Its proven that there are different IQ types(Art IQ/emotional IQ Gramatic IQ etc),some can natural calculate numbers amazingly,but are bad with emotions or reading other people,i prefer to see it as a born capability to See or Feel things or not-just INSIGHT imo,so you can be Smart/have High natural Insight in some stuf and have less insight in others thing(so what they would call less smart or dumb)..............ps i had a talk with mu uncle about this,because i felt(had the Insight)that he felt he was very smart,so i asked him"Is some1 how gets a good education from young age/so basicly learns stuf(like he/my Uncle),is that person smarter then some1 who did not went to school/diddent had the oppertunity(like me- i was send to boarding school at young age)te learn that same stuf,and he said YES.which i dont agree,if some1 is learn what a difficult word means or how to culculate a different sum,that dosnt makes him smarter,he just know it because they learn/told him-while the so called dumb person just never has been told/learned what that word means/or how to calculate that difficult sum.............well my very Smart Uncle that time living in Amsterdam heaving a Mercedes from the company a nice house with his wife...guess what...suddenly he decided that he was confused about himself/his life,so he left his wife/house/job went living in a room,tryed suicide ones-at a very DUMB maner(hanging him self with tie rips)so how smart is the dumbass really,HA.........(ps.pardon for any crapy gramatic English,i never had English lessons at BOARDING school)

[–]Cydramech 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

It depends solely on the field one is considered a genius in.

[–]Nummnutzcracker 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Intelligence is for me, a concept.

We are all "stupid" and 'intelligent" at the same time, it doesn't reflect anything. Everyone has a domain where they're good at. For instance, I, am quite fluent in computer science but on the other hand, I suck real bad at mathematics (FYI, arithmophobia is a thing, and that explains a bit why I hate mathematics)

Just like perfection does not exist.

[–]currentyearplusx 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

I’m no expert, but it seems like intelligence is just how quickly you learn things. I feel like what “things” you learn quickly and which ones you don’t depend more on your upbringing.