• finitebanjo@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    12
    ·
    edit-2
    19 hours ago

    There have been a number of historic events that had large measurable effects on human intelligience.

    Invention of libraries

    Invention of public schools

    Building of large universities

    Invention of leaded anti knocking compounds in fuel

    Policies which reduce or limit access to said public education

    Covid-19 longterm impact on cognitive ability

    Policies which cause intellectuals to flee to other countries


    Even if the average persons intellect is in decline, things are getting more complex. Society continues to advance in the long term, equity improves, crime and disease rates go down.

    We’re seeing bumps in the trends, not reversals.

  • civil_drive@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    10
    ·
    1 day ago

    Yes, just now everyone has multiple platforms to show everyone just how fucking moronic they are. Before the internet you’d have to be in close proximity to someone to be able to tell they were brain dead now we can just see the dumb shit these fools post from anywhere.

  • Lauchs@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    11
    ·
    1 day ago

    There’s been a significant, internationally tested drop in functional literacy skills in the last decade or so.

    • lyricanna@ttrpg.network
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      7
      ·
      19 hours ago

      Personally, I really hate this diagram. It feels like its used far more to tar a huge part of the population as “weak” and therefore not worth considering.

      Now, there us an element of truth to this in that it probably is not a coincidence that fascism is on the rise right after the generation that fought in WW2 mostly died off. But I’d much rather blame the current problems on thr handful of plutocrats who have been sabatoging things for gerations now, than claim its due to some ineitablilty with strength and generations.

      • ThePowerOfGeek@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        20 hours ago

        No, there should be a diagram there. I guess that formatting for displaying an image inline doesn’t work in forbid. I didn’t realize that.

    • 1984@lemmy.today
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      4
      arrow-down
      3
      ·
      1 day ago

      I think we are in the Good Times = Weak People box.

      Its interesting how we all see it differently.

    • samus12345@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      11
      ·
      1 day ago

      Technology has allowed stupid people to rapidly spread their stupidity all over the world like never before.

  • jjjalljs@ttrpg.network
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    4
    ·
    23 hours ago

    I feel like social media has definitely made things worse. Stupid people can find each other and make each other more stupid. Start whole “flat earth” or “anti-vaxx” groups and conventions. Before social media, you might have a couple idiots in your office or village, but they’d typically be surrounded by more average people who could level them out.

    I think the right wing has also been trying to defund education, which isn’t helping. ( For example, https://www.propublica.org/article/idaho-deteriorating-schools-repair-bonds )

    There was also a disaster in how reading was taught in the US for the past 20 years, so a lot of kids didn’t really get taught to read well. ( https://features.apmreports.org/sold-a-story/ , if you’re interested )