Parents are stupid but I'm smart

My mum is stupid. All she does is drink, respond slowly, moan, smoke, ask stupid questions and her income and education is low. She's just stupid in general.

My dad doesn't even work. I hardly know him but he lives in a rubbish house, lazy, has no family and lives off benefits. I don't really know him but judging by this, one would infer he's stupid, including me.

Despite all of this (and I'm not boasting because I am no genius) I don't consider myself stupid and the vast majority of those who talk to me, acknowledge my intellectual capabilities.

They say that IQ is hereditary, therefore shouldn't I be stupid? Or am I just an exception? My sister is smart: she's a quick learner and she's got a university degree. We have different fathers but her father is exactly like mine. Am I underestimating my mum or are we just lucky?

Reply 1

Jtking3000

13

I'm exactly the same, just be grateful you didn't turn out like her!

Reply 2

Astonix

14

Why does it matter that your parents aren't as intelligent?

Reply 3

Blueflare

18

Intelligence is only partially hereditary, apparently.

Reply 4

VisualKiddy

2

Original post by Personified

They say that IQ is hereditary

Uhhh... No, I think not.

Reply 5

Limitless

Original post by Personified

My mum is stupid. All she does is drink, respond slowly, moan, smoke, ask stupid questions and her income and education is low. She's just stupid in general.

My dad doesn't even work. I hardly know him but he lives in a rubbish house, lazy, has no family and lives off benefits. I don't really know him but judging by this, one would infer he's stupid, including me.

Despite all of this (and I'm not boasting because I am no genius) I don't consider myself stupid and the vast majority of those who talk to me, acknowledge my intellectual capabilities.

They say that IQ is hereditary, therefore shouldn't I be stupid? Or am I just an exception? My sister is smart: she's a quick learner and she's got a university degree. We have different fathers but her father is exactly like mine. Am I underestimating my mum or are we just lucky?

How are you measuring yours and your parents intelligence? By people saying that you are smart does not make you smart, you may just be smart in comparison to the people they know.

Reply 6

ibysaiyan

16

Intelligence, something which is debated to death.In the end it all ties with nature and nurture.I say certain experiences/situations bring forward geniuses.In other words anyone can be (excluding those unfortunate ones who are mentally less able)
I am not sure about the 'hereditary linkage' but yes there does seem to be a pattern.However it's very hard to judge ones Intelligence for it's something dynamic,there are many variables involved.For instance at situation 'X' the person may appear to have no clue on how to handle it but does brilliantly on situation 'Y' which is much harder to accomplish.

She may have a bright mind but the way she has led her life ( environment ) could be undermining her potential .

Reply 7

Personified

OP

Original post by Limitless

How are you measuring yours and your parents intelligence? By people saying that you are smart does not make you smart, you may just be smart in comparison to the people they know.

I'm measuring it from general observation. I'm measuring my intelligence by IQ tests, exam results, debates, opinions, actions, etc. I'm far from a genius but not stupid. Not like my parents who dropped out of school, smokes, drinks, argues, etc. Despite my surroundings I've maintained my mental stability. Most stupid people would inherit such poor habits such as smoking, drinking, etc.

Reply 8

perrytheplatypus

14

Simply being on benefits or uneducated doesn't correspond to a lack of intelligence.

Intelligence is only partially hereditary, apparently.

It's possible to change your level of intelligence by what you do when you're young. Or so they say nowadays.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 9

ibysaiyan

16

Original post by Personified

I'm measuring it from general observation. I'm measuring my intelligence by IQ tests, exam results, debates, opinions, actions, etc. I'm far from a genius but not stupid. Not like my parents who dropped out of school, smokes, drinks, argues, etc. Despite my surroundings I've maintained my mental stability. Most stupid people would inherit such poor habits such as smoking, drinking, etc.

That's not true and can't be said with a certainty of 100%. They may as well be geniuses if the opportunity arrives however these habits could be capping over their potential as I stated on my previous post.

Reply 10

Limitless

Original post by Personified

I'm measuring it from general observation. I'm measuring my intelligence by IQ tests, exam results, debates, opinions, actions, etc. I'm far from a genius but not stupid. Not like my parents who dropped out of school, smokes, drinks, argues, etc. Despite my surroundings I've maintained my mental stability. Most stupid people would inherit such poor habits such as smoking, drinking, etc.

Get off your high horse you will meet people who are smarter than you and who look at you as being stupid. Just because somebody drinks and smokes and argues does not make them stupid.

Reply 11

maria1291

7

Your mother and father may just be as smart and as capable as you, but they didn't make the most out of the opportuities they were given in their lives. The choices you have made is why you are who you are now. Keep making the most out of your potential because you never know where it may lead you!

Reply 12

Personified

OP

Original post by ibysaiyan

Intelligence, something which is debated to death.In the end it all ties with nature and nurture.I say certain experiences/situations bring forward geniuses.In other words anyone can be (excluding those unfortunate ones who are mentally less able)
I am not sure about the 'hereditary linkage' but yes there does seem to be a pattern.However it's very hard to judge ones Intelligence for it's something dynamic,there are many variables involved.For instance at situation 'X' the person may appear to have no clue on how to handle it but does brilliantly on situation 'Y' which is much harder to accomplish.

She may have a bright mind but the way she has led her life ( environment ) could be undermining her potential .

Intelligence has very little do with nurture. There have been thousands of studies to measure intelligence such as IQ tests. For example, tests have shown that there's a huge correlation between high IQ scorers and economic success. Similarly, they have also shown low IQ scorers correlate with criminals and low success. The 'nurture' debate is also futile. For example there have been offspring from intelligent parents who were adopted and brought up in low environments and still had their parent's high IQ; whilst offspring from unintelligent parents who were adopted and brought up in high environments still had their parent's low IQ.

Reply 13

SophiaKeuning

3

Not too sure if intelligence is hereditary, it's not unheard of for kids from working class backgrounds to go to university, you know...
It's more about educational and creative stimulation children receive, which is vital in developing their intelligence, probably. If a baby plays lots of games as a child that improved his mind, he'd probably have developed greater than a kid who had little stimulation, he'd then go on to read more, have greater attention span, etc. This probably has some role in determining their memory span, educational capabilities, how he learned information and so forth. That said personality is a massive factor, some from poorer class backgrounds approach education with a similar attitude to their parents and some don't. And also, university degrees aren't entirely synonymous with intelligence, you know. My mother and my auntie (the latter had the highest IQ in her school) didn't get degrees because they came from a very working class backgrounds, it just wasn't an option-they had to get out and work. (which is, er, why EMA is ~~was~~ a god sent.

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 14

UnderTheBridge1994

1

Does it matter? Your intelligence is a social construct, not biological. The reason stupid people have stupid kids is because they indoctrinate them in their culture of stupidity. Obviously if you don't like your parents you're going to want to be less like them, so you approach the culture they're alienated from: the culture of intelligence. I bet your friends are middle class, nuclear kids, right? I know mine are.

A word of advice: don't overestimate yourself. You may be intelligent, but don't get cocky. I have no idea how old you are, but to be making a thread about something like this indicates you're young. I've blocked out my brothers, sisters and parents all my life, save my little sister, who I believe I can change. Don't do what I did - it leads to all sorts of relationship issues.

Reply 15

miser

20

Sure, IQ is partially hereditary, but early education and influences affect mental development just as much or more. Genetically, humans today are roughly equivalent to those that existed 10,000 years ago, but the quality of education now is vastly superior.

Average IQ scores in developed countries have been rising progressively in recent generations, only we don't notice it because the definition of an IQ of 100 is the average among the current population.

Reply 16

Personified

OP

Original post by Limitless

Get off your high horse you will meet people who are smarter than you and who look at you as being stupid. Just because somebody drinks and smokes and argues does not make them stupid.

Just because someone's says I'm clever doesn't mean I'm clever. I didn't say that, although it has influenced my opinion. Likewise, if was someone says you are stupid it doesn't mean you are. For example, look at men who have discovered excellent breakthroughs. Most of the time they face strong opposition and people consider them loopy.

Did I say if someone drinks or smokes it makes them stupid? There is a correlation between the use of drugs/aggression and low IQ on average. Obviously you get clever people who take drugs.

Reply 17

kerily

15

Original post by Personified

My mum is stupid. All she does is drink, respond slowly, moan, smoke, ask stupid questions and her income and education is low. She's just stupid in general.

You can't know how intelligent she originally was before the alcohol. For all you know, if she drinks a lot, that could have caused the slow responses, apparent lack of intelligence, and similar - had she lived in different situations and never drunk anything, she might have been intelligent.

My dad doesn't even work. I hardly know him but he lives in a rubbish house, lazy, has no family and lives off benefits. I don't really know him but judging by this, one would infer he's stupid, including me.

My uncle (who I've met once) is very similar to this, but he's also very intelligent and just never bothered doing any work because he could apply said intelligence to fiddling the benefits system (there are reasons why I haven't met him more than once). You can't, again, know that your dad is stupid - it's just that he isn't doing what you would have done.

However, you could also not be underestimating them, and just be peculiar. My best friend is incredibly intelligent, and yet her parents appear to have about one brain cell between the two of them :no: