When I think about all the stupids things human beings seem to do on a regular basis, it's hard not to believe that maybe we are indeed becoming less and less intelligent, just like suggested by a new study out today. Published in the journal Trends in Genetics, the Stanford University study contends that intelligence is no longer critical for our survival and so we're slowly losing it. In fact, this has been the case since the development of agriculture and urbanization, according to the study's researchers, and things have only gotten worse since then.
Simply put, we've been our intelligence ever since we stopped having to worry about making a shelter with our bare hands or providing food by killing a wild animal. Making the wrong decision back then could mean the difference between life and death and so, to survive, intellectual development had to be maintained at all costs.
Or, as the researchers wrote in the article:
A hunter-gatherer who did not correctly conceive a solution to providing food or shelter probably died, along with his/her progeny, whereas a modern Wall Street executive that made a similar conceptual mistake would receive a substantial bonus and be a more attractive mate. Clearly, extreme selection is a thing of the past.
So, what does that mean for us and is this something that should make us freak out?
Well, that depends on whom you ask. According to other scientists not involved in the new study, the reality is that we might not posses the same type of intelligence that our ancestors did way back, but that's because we've evolved and so have our smarts. And I agree. If not, how do we explain some of the amazing technological advancements and medical breakthroughs in just the last decade, right?
Image via indi.ca/flickr
