Are humans getting smarter or dumber?

It seems that your discussion is two fold. On one hand you are talking about the level of intelligence of the human species on the other hand you are talking about modern invention harming our ecology. Both are valid topics but I think I will concentrate on just the issue of intelligence. Mankind has indeed made some huge leaps in technologies. These inventions make it possible for us to communicate instantly with others from all over the world. It has truly become a small world because we can travel anywhere in a fraction of the time it took our ancestors. We now have adding machines and computers to do the calculations that we used to have to do with pen and paper. And we have recording devises to record our thoughts and our history. These things are the things that are going to ruin us. Because our machines are doing a lot of the things that we used to rely on our own brains for, we run the risk of forgetting how to do them for ourselves. So in this sense I say we are losing our intelligence.

Are you serious? Technology has little to do with intelligence. All technology develops from prior ideas, and the intelligence comes in thinking up the first stage of a development. When it all boils down, the vast majority of such new ideas were created in what you seem to think of as "primitive" times. The person who first thought of a wheel led to all the developments of wheels since; the person who first harnessed fire led to all the developments of energy production since then. And so on. We are not getting more intelligent. The IQ tests, for all that they are not particularly useful, show that average IQs are the same now as when they first developed. What we have done as a species is refine all our original ideas into advanced technology, much of which causes more problems than solutions. Lash

I know what you are saying and frankly, I don't really think people are getting dumber or that they used to be smarter... I think it is more "back then" people had to think of ways to do things and invent things and everything was done by hand and that kind of thing. Now, it is nearly The Jetsons - press a button and it gets done for you so why bother to think much? Don't have to be very smart to press a button! Smarts are almost not needed in many facets of life as the inventions of today do so much for the human being I also think that since no one has to take responsibility for any of their actions, people just do whatever and it is dumb or stupid, but doesn't matter - they can blame someone else or get off in a loop hole. I think common sense is a HUGE vacancy in the ways of life these days. No one has it! No one thinks for themselves...there are buttons to do that for you! Sad, but true! I don't think there are many people that could go back in time and do what pioneers or even turn of the century folks did at their respecive times. Not to many could handle life in the mid 1800's. Back then you had to have common sense and think for yourself - there was no other way to make it through life!

In my opinion its not that humans are becoming dumb, its just that sometimes when people think they forget to consider somethings like "what if's", they usually just wanted to prove that their experiment and findings over something is good and would help a lot of people. But turns out some could really done harmful effects to us. maybe too humans are becoming too much smarter that making them insane (joke) lol.

Many get smarter but the majority starts to get very damn stupid

I think that we will become more intelligent. It is true that certain things have proved to be harmful, but when we had invented then , we did not know about the harm. So, I am aure we will be more careful in the future. Everything said and done, it is not possible to have a totally intelligent humanity. A little bit of stupidity is also required. These are the polar opposites and life in this relative realm cannot exist without these polar opposites.

I think when my 13 year old Niece has to ask me for a calculator to figure out a simple math problem...it tells me we're dumbing them down. When a kid can figure out how to program a multi-function media center but can't figure out how to do dishes without a dishwasher we're dumbing them down. When a person can drive, yell a kid and talk on a cell phone but can't get from point a to point b with out a state of the art GPS system in their car...we're being dumbed down. We've come to depend on some things so much that we can't even remember how to do basic things. Kids no longer build forts, play outside or ride their bikes...they text each other, play video games and walk around with a cell phone stuck in their head. I grew up in a much simpler time and I'm better off b/c of it. Most kids have no clue about a life without an over abundance of technology. Don't get me wrong, technology is a good thing but I think in the last 10-15 years it's been just about forced on everyone, no matter where you turn there's some new gadget for you. [b]MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! ~~AT PEACE WITHIN~~ **STAND STRONG AND TRUST IN GOD**[/b]

People are definitely getting stupider and lazier too!

Like Grandpa_lash I do not see technology as anything to do with intelligence. Each invention was a modification or improvement of a previous one not a completely knew idea. There are some like that but not many on modern day. I do not think our intelligence levels have changed at all we just make people learn more before they leave school.

well,as far as i am concerned ,it is not sure that we are becoming smart or stupid.Some people really become smart ,because their parents are very great,they have the chance to enjoy good education .techology really bring us a lot convinience ,we we can learn it works to invent more advanced machinery.On the contrary,some people just enjoyed the convinience but not do any thing about our society.For example,they use computer to caculate math problems,however to forget to use their brain.So,this kind of people will become stupid.

People are definitely getting dumber as they are also using the technologies to invent harmful things such as bombs for the fight in the future. If such this is to continue then after the third world war takes place nothing will be left. Everything is gonna be destroyed. People are eating more lazy as well as they depend on technology nowadays and do not know what is real food. They work all day in order to wat food which they buy in the super market. So people are just relying on thigs which they don't really need which makes them dumber.

One thing is certain. We are getting lazier! We don't get smarter or dumber, we only adapt ourselves to these changes...

i won't agree that people have become more intelligent rather they have degraded theselves morally inspite of high technological advancements.

Human is too smart to create robots and computers that is better than huamn brain. There will be 1 day that the robots will over human and control the world. A smart person created a smarter object to overtake him. Is he smart or dumb? Jason www.smsolar.net

I guess, people lately do not utilize every brain cell they have and the brain goes to waste which is a sad fact. I feel like I am becoming dumber lately. I have to cope with changing times and I guess I have to read alot and share the information I have so it won't become stagnant.

Many years ago,people saw that the resource like petroleum would be used out in the new future.And the scientists look for others resource (nuclear,marsh gas and etc.)Everything will be good.

I think that as the years slowly pass we as a human race will become more and more intelligent! I think that we are here to learn and grow and increase in knowledge. I love to study but I appreciate that there are a lot of people that don't like the idea of study or learning. That's ok too. I'm sure that I read somewhere that, when you study and try to improve yourself, your brain starts to expand or rather, you start growing more brain cells! I'm sure that this was mentioned as a scientific fact. Not all technology is good as you say and some future technologies may even be harmful to us but, we are on a constant learning curve and this I think is a good thing. Andrew

magojordan, If you're born in the United States, chances are your'e gonig to be dumber than the generation before. Our education system is set-up that way because dumb people are easier to control than smart people, so our government wants us dumb. It's a shame really but it's worse for those of us who are aware that it's happening. Happy MyLotting!