Doesn't the standard IQ (I know, I know) bell-curve indicate that the majority of humans are less intelligent than the most intelligent? [1]
I suppose the question is how much less intelligent does the majority have to be for the world to look like Idiocracy? How likely is that to happen, given the communication tech and education options that are emerging?
EDIT: [1] Fair point, riffraff. Actually quite tough for me to rephrase without spending significant time on it (I'm clearly not in the minority...), how about: "the most intelligent humans (by IQ) are naturally in the minority, as with any natural distribution/bell-curve, meaning the 'less intelligent' majority already dominate, as in Idiocracy, and by definition they must always continue to do so". That's a mouthful, but I hope the point is clear enough.
I think you should rephrase your first line, as it would seem to me the majority of anything is always less anything than the top. (i.e. half of the people are of below average intelligence)
I should watch that movie, could be amusing. However I'm not sure I understand what you mean. I don't think the study reached a conclusion as to how many children someone might have, merely that the sperm quality was higher/lower.
The movie gives the view that dumber people get more kids compared to smart people. So the world will, after a point, contain more dumb people than smart people because they simply breed more.
the movie posits the dumb people reproduce faster because they start sooner (i.e. football guy gets cheerleader pregnant when 16, smart girl waits to have a career before getting pregnant) and since getting to reproductive maturity doesn't need special skills it still works out in favor of dumb people (i.e. by the time smart couple has 1 kid dumb couple has >=1 and their descendents have >=1).
I suppose the question is how much less intelligent does the majority have to be for the world to look like Idiocracy? How likely is that to happen, given the communication tech and education options that are emerging?
EDIT: [1] Fair point, riffraff. Actually quite tough for me to rephrase without spending significant time on it (I'm clearly not in the minority...), how about: "the most intelligent humans (by IQ) are naturally in the minority, as with any natural distribution/bell-curve, meaning the 'less intelligent' majority already dominate, as in Idiocracy, and by definition they must always continue to do so". That's a mouthful, but I hope the point is clear enough.