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Lots of people seem to think I'm a really clever guy.
My interests include such topics as computer programming, cryptology,
data compression, digital signal processing, fractals, music theory,
artificial intelligence, logic design, and so forth.
One time, I spent 4 hours shifting algebra, and managed to correctly
derive the binomial theorum from first principles. Another time, I sat
down and learned to program in PostScript in my lunch break, just for
the hell of it.
Lots of people think I'm clever, but am I?
My hypothesis: I'm actually not very intelligent at all. But because I
have no life and I'm too stupid to get bored, I make up for intelligence
by persistence.
Basically I'm the sort of sad loser who will spend 4 hours trying to
work out something, when normal people would give up and go do something
productive. If I were *actually* intelligent it would only take 4
minutes to work out. I don't think I figure things out more quickly than
other people, it's just that I'm too stupid to get bored. My tiny little
brain is captivated by irrelevant things like the binomial theorum for
hours on end, while any healthy individual would go find something more
entertaining.
In a directly related mannar, I'm beginning to realise that I'm not
actually very good at playing music either. Even the simplest keyboard
exercises baffle me. It seems that I can play the Widor Toccata, not so
much because of my vast skill, but because I've expended a ridiculous
amoung of time practising it. A *geniunely* talented musician would
probably pick it up in a few minutes. That's why it's marked as only
"moderate" difficulty. But it's taken me 9 months so far, and I still
haven't mastered it yet.
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Invisible wrote:
> My hypothesis: I'm actually not very intelligent at all.
That would be incorrect. Many intelligent people don't see how stupid most
people are.
> Basically I'm the sort of sad loser who will spend 4 hours trying to
> work out something, when normal people would give up and go do something
> productive.
You mean, they'd give up because they can't do it, and go off and do
something they're not too stupid to do.
> while any healthy individual would go find something more entertaining.
Nonsense. You were entertaining yourself, which is more than what most
people are capable of.
> In a directly related mannar, I'm beginning to realise that I'm not
> actually very good at playing music either.
Condoleezza Rice was recently on an interview I saw. She said she wanted to
play the concert piano when she was young. When she was 15 or so, she went
somewhere and saw 8-year-olds sight-reading music and playing it better than
she could after months of practice. So she figured she'd need a different
career.
I don't think she made a bad choice.
If you enjoy it, then you're good enough at it. I played music for years in
school, and I hated it. Be happy you've found something you can enjoy
practicing even if you aren't a natural at it.
> haven't mastered it yet.
So? :-)
--
Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
Insanity is a small city on the western
border of the State of Mind.
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On 06/10/09 10:08, Darren New wrote:
> Invisible wrote:
>> My hypothesis: I'm actually not very intelligent at all.
>
> That would be incorrect. Many intelligent people don't see how stupid
> most people are.
Because they usually hang around smart people. Classic case: A smart
graduate student feeling he's worthless.
--
"Smoking helps you lose weight -- one lung at a time!"
/\ /\ /\ /
/ \/ \ u e e n / \/ a w a z
>>>>>>mue### [at] nawaz org<<<<<<
anl
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What Darren said. Again, stop running yourself down. You enjoy your
music, so keep with it.
Jim
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Mueen Nawaz wrote:
> Because they usually hang around smart people. Classic case: A smart
> graduate student feeling he's worthless.
That too. I often mentioned how dumb some people were, and my wife never
believed me. It wasn't until we got to where we were buying something for
$12, with 60% off, and the lady at the register with the calculator couldn't
figure out whether to charge us $5 or $7 that my wife finally twigged that
there really are people who aren't too bright.
--
Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
Insanity is a small city on the western
border of the State of Mind.
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Invisible escreveu:
> My hypothesis: I'm actually not very intelligent at all. But because I
> have no life and I'm too stupid to get bored, I make up for intelligence
> by persistence.
>
> Basically I'm the sort of sad loser who will spend 4 hours trying to
> work out something, when normal people would give up and go do something
> productive.
Like getting laid? If mankind depended on such people for progress,
we'd still be living on hunting and being hunted -- they were very
needed indeed for repopulating after the tribe was slaughtered by lions.
Astute, observing, persistent people are needed for truly getting
anywhere beyond basic wilderness.
Who knows? Maybe those 4 hours on deriving algebra theorems will give
you some clue about some obscure math property?
> If I were *actually* intelligent it would only take 4
> minutes to work out.
That's a lie:
http://creatingminds.org/quotes/effort.htm
an excerpt:
spare me if you don't know the guy.
> In a directly related mannar, I'm beginning to realise that I'm not
> actually very good at playing music either. Even the simplest keyboard
> exercises baffle me. It seems that I can play the Widor Toccata, not so
> much because of my vast skill, but because I've expended a ridiculous
> amoung of time practising it. A *geniunely* talented musician would
> probably pick it up in a few minutes.
*Genuinely* talented musicians like, say, Liszt or Mozart, began to play
keyboard very early on their lifes, before they even learned to read.
They were downright forced by their parents to be prodigious child.
So, if you have not been training 8 hours a day since you were 3 or 4,
don't get pissed at your parents for not being hard enough...
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On Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:50:49 -0300, nemesis wrote:
> They
> were downright forced by their parents to be prodigious child.
There also has been research recently (I heard about on the radio) that
also suggests that there is an innate ability, probably relating to the
way the brain processes sound. If Mozart's brain hadn't worked the way
it did, he might've been a mediocre musician.
Jim
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Jim Henderson escreveu:
> On Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:50:49 -0300, nemesis wrote:
>
>> They
>> were downright forced by their parents to be prodigious child.
>
> There also has been research recently (I heard about on the radio) that
> also suggests that there is an innate ability, probably relating to the
> way the brain processes sound. If Mozart's brain hadn't worked the way
> it did, he might've been a mediocre musician.
I'm not at all opposed to the view that people are born with innate
skills. The account by Liszt parents and professors is that the kid was
simply in awe with the piano from a very early age and naturally went on
to try it by himself, not as pressed on as Mozart.
In any case, innate skill just make it easier, not that trainining is
not necessary. Nor that someone lacking such innate skills will never
be able to gain proficient mastery by training alone.
also, I was trying to cheer up our friend... :P
--
a game sig: http://tinyurl.com/d3rxz9
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On Wed, 10 Jun 2009 14:06:08 -0300, nemesis wrote:
> Jim Henderson escreveu:
>> On Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:50:49 -0300, nemesis wrote:
>>
>>> They
>>> were downright forced by their parents to be prodigious child.
>>
>> There also has been research recently (I heard about on the radio) that
>> also suggests that there is an innate ability, probably relating to the
>> way the brain processes sound. If Mozart's brain hadn't worked the way
>> it did, he might've been a mediocre musician.
>
> I'm not at all opposed to the view that people are born with innate
> skills. The account by Liszt parents and professors is that the kid was
> simply in awe with the piano from a very early age and naturally went on
> to try it by himself, not as pressed on as Mozart.
>
> In any case, innate skill just make it easier, not that trainining is
> not necessary. Nor that someone lacking such innate skills will never
> be able to gain proficient mastery by training alone.
Well, that's hard to say. One of the questions that is asked of
comedians quite frequently (I've heard James Lipton ask it many times on
Inside the Actor's Studio) is whether comedy is innate or can be
learned. The general consensus seems to be that there's something
innate, and if you don't have it, you can't be an effective comedian.
Some might cite Beethoven as a counterexample, since he was deaf, but he
wasn't always deaf. He learned to play and compose music before he lost
his hearing.
But the research in question wasn't just saying it was innate skill, but
that there may be physiological reasons why a very talented musician can
do what they do.
> also, I was trying to cheer up our friend... :P
Oh, yes, I understand that. And having seen his playing, I think he has
got some skill, but he also has this "instant gratification" need (my
stepson has this, as does my wife, for that matter) that is really quite
unrealistic for 99.999% of the population. Not everyone is a Mozart, for
most professional musicians, it only comes with a lot of work. A Mozart
or Lizst is extremely rare.
Jim
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Jim Henderson escreveu:
> Oh, yes, I understand that. And having seen his playing, I think he has
> got some skill, but he also has this "instant gratification" need (my
> stepson has this, as does my wife, for that matter) that is really quite
> unrealistic for 99.999% of the population. Not everyone is a Mozart, for
> most professional musicians, it only comes with a lot of work. A Mozart
> or Lizst is extremely rare.
Excellent point. Instant gratification it is. A side-effect of living
in a consumerist society I believe. Kinda like a perpetual hunger...
--
a game sig: http://tinyurl.com/d3rxz9
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