Does SL Have an Intelligentsia?

[Rowan Amore]

I barely squeezed by the math requirements to graduate HS.  Algebra, Geometry the Business Math for 2 years got me through.  The first 2 I passed with Ds.  Business Math was straight As.  I also took 2 years of Accounting which were a breeze.  Maybe I just have a practical brain that saw no practical reason for Algebra or Geometry?

I can do basic math, fractions, percentages, etc.  I can also find the area of something.  That's all the info I took away from traditional math classes.

Edited August 17, 2022 by Rowan Amore

[Love Zhaoying]

If there IS an intelligentsia in Second Life, why aren't they out where we can see them, letting us know how things should be and that they will help fix things?

So with that logic, either there isn't an intelligentsia in Second Life, or we should replace them.

And if there isn't an intelligentsia in Second Life, what makes us think they would do a half-arse decent job at "making things better"?

Into the abattoir with the lot of them, says I!  Down with the intelligentsia!  Long live the common Avatar!

Edited August 17, 2022 by Love Zhaoying

[Love Zhaoying]

2 minutes ago, Rowan Amore said:

I barely squeezed by the math requirements to graduate HS.  Algebra, Geometry the Business Math for 2 years got me through.  The first 2 I passed with Ds.  Business Math was straight As.  I also took 2 years of Accounting which were a breeze.  Maybe I just have a practical brain the saw no practical reason for Algebra or Geometry?

I can do basic math, fractions, percentages, etc.  I can also find the area of something.  That's all the info I took away from traditional math classes.

I also had to take Trig twice - once in High School (senior year), once in College (did poorly on that entrance exam).  I did worse the second time.

I think most people just need to be able to "count change" and fill out tax forms. Maybe count the number of kids, so they don't leave one behind like poor Kevin.

[Lindal Kidd]

2 hours ago, Seicher Rae said:

and citing Benedict Arnold as a direct ancestor.

...much becomes clear.

[Katherine Heartsong]

I would say there's some intelligentsia in SL, but not at this end of the keyboard.

It's taken me four months to finally figure out what @Love Zhaoying's avatar here in the forums is.

🤭

[Love Zhaoying]

1 minute ago, Lindal Kidd said:

2 hours ago, Seicher Rae said:

and citing Benedict Arnold as a direct ancestor.

...much becomes clear.

I like his eggs. 

[Love Zhaoying]

Just now, Katherine Heartsong said:

I would say there's some intelligentsia in SL, but not at this end of the keyboard.

It's taken me four months to finally figure out what @Love Zhaoying's avatar here in the forums is.

🤭

Part of the reason I chose those pics is, there was a time when everyone had "Muppet" forum pictures.  

My huskies in that picture, look an awfully lot like Muppets. (I did post the full picture in a "Dog" thread recently.)

[Madelaine McMasters]

52 minutes ago, Scylla Rhiadra said:

I have never done an IQ test, and never been invited to MENSA, so I've sadly never had the opportunity to splutter with laughter while ripping up the invite.

Can someone send me one via DM? I'm suddenly feeling under-privileged.

We were not invited to Mensa. By the time I heard about it, I already knew I was reasonably intelligent (certainly different), and I liked hanging out with curious people (mostly adults). I thought of Mensa as a merit badge. I brought up the idea and my parents looked into it. I think it was my excitement about joining that ultimately shut the idea down. Sometimes I need tough love.

What I didn't realize at the time is that intelligence and curiosity are two different things and curiosity takes me more places.

[Scylla Rhiadra]

Just now, Madelaine McMasters said:

What I didn't realize at the time is that intelligence and curiosity are two different things and curiosity takes me more places.

Indeed.

And that "intelligence" is not a singular, easily measured quality.

There's a reason why we very seldom rely on multiple choice, true or false, or even "fill in the blank" tests in the humanities.

[Katherine Heartsong]

2 minutes ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

What I didn't realize at the time is that intelligence and curiosity are two different things and curiosity takes me more places.

Curiosity is the sexiest word in the universe, to me anyway.

[Katherine Heartsong]

13 minutes ago, kali Wylder said:

In answer to the OP, I don't believe there is anything like an intelligentsia in SL but there are quite a few lovers of gossip.

ETA: also those overly concerned with their own importance and position.

That's what @Madelaine McMasters was saying when we were dissing @Rowan Amore behind her back.

I KIDDING!!!

[Rowan Amore]

1 minute ago, Katherine Heartsong said:

That's what @Madelaine McMasters was saying when we were dissing @Rowan Amore behind her back.

I KIDDING!!!

I'm endowed with more practical intelligence which makes me damn important, I tell you!  

[Ayashe Ninetails]

7 minutes ago, Love Zhaoying said:

it was Geometry that did me in, those Goddamn "Proofs".  I didn't really care about opposite angles and all that.

Geometry...pfft. I'm stumped by arithmetic. 4th Grade math is too much for me. Ain't that somethin'.

 

4 minutes ago, Rowan Amore said:

I barely squeezed by the math requirements to graduate HS.  Algebra, Geometry the Business Math for 2 years got me through.  The first 2 I passed with Ds.  Business Math was straight As.  I also took 2 years of Accounting which were a breeze.  Maybe I just have a practical brain the saw no practical reason for Algebra or Geometry?

I can do basic math, fractions, percentages, etc.  I can also find the area of something.  That's all the info I took away from traditional math classes.

Funny enough, I aced my college-level Logic class. Truth tables, Venn diagrams, etc. No problem. Ask me to add two numbers and I'm reaching for the calculator, though. Go figure.

Back to the main topic, there absolutely are intelligent people in SL, but as far as I know, they don't all gather in secret and hang out with each other or anything. Or...DO THEY?

And now I'm reminded of our secret society thread... 😳

[Love Zhaoying]

7 minutes ago, Katherine Heartsong said:

Curiosity is the sexiest word in the universe, to me anyway.

As a feline, I would have to agree!

[kali Wylder]

I'm no genius, but I had a pretty agile brain when I was younger. It's definitely showing it's age these days, takes me much longer to learn things than it used to. I'm in absolute awe of the brains displayed here in the forums. (@Amina Sopwith no , I'm not dissing you).

[Seicher Rae]

23 minutes ago, Ayashe Ninetails said:

Geometry...pfft. I'm stumped by arithmetic. 4th Grade math is too much for me. Ain't that somethin'.

 

Funny enough, I aced my college-level Logic class. Truth tables, Venn diagrams, etc. No problem. Ask me to add two numbers and I'm reaching for the calculator, though. Go figure.

Back to the main topic, there absolutely are intelligent people in SL, but as far as I know, they don't all gather in secret and hang out with each other or anything. Or...DO THEY?

And now I'm reminded of our secret society thread... 😳

I always loved math (sorry). I loved calculus. It is on my bucket-to-do list to "relearn" it just for fun. (N... E... R... D...)

HOWEVER, as to what you were saying... for some reason if you put a $ in front of a number, the leading 1 drops off my IQ # going from a 1xx to just an xx.  I wish I were kidding. Life circumstances point to "not."

sigh... and no one reads my posts... as to where they gather in sekret, I said it was behind the bar at the Forum Cartel

sheez, it is like talking to the walls around here...

Edited August 17, 2022 by Seicher Rae
e

[Seicher Rae]

25 minutes ago, Katherine Heartsong said:

Curiosity is the sexiest word in the universe, to me anyway.

So true.  I am close to a very brainy math major. Brilliant. And yet... zero curiosity. I'm like a cat with a laser pointer light. Or Dug in "Up!" with "Squirrel!" EVERYthing is fascinating. But but but... when I bring up my left of sideways 'isn't this interesting??? it is, right!" stuff math-brainy-person is like "meh." They have a very sharp focus of what they like and that is enough. I sooooooo don't get it. (And for anyone MBTI versed, it is soooooooooooo spot on: I'm INTP the math person is ESTJ)

[Seicher Rae]

35 minutes ago, Love Zhaoying said:

Part of the reason I chose those pics is, there was a time when everyone had "Muppet" forum pictures.  

My huskies in that picture, look an awfully lot like Muppets. (I did post the full picture in a "Dog" thread recently.)

They do! I didn't realize those were real animals or what animals they are until you posted the full original in that thread. Darn adorable in either picture.

[Amina Sopwith]

1 hour ago, kali Wylder said:

I'm no genius, but I had a pretty agile brain when I was younger. It's definitely showing it's age these days, takes me much longer to learn things than it used to. I'm in absolute awe of the brains displayed here in the forums. (@Amina Sopwith no , I'm not dissing you).

I'm sorry, I don't think I understand what you're saying.

[Sorciaa]

2 hours ago, Love Zhaoying said:

Nope, that's just the first historical reference most people learn about in school.

Plenty of other psychedelics out there, have been used by other cultures for longer.

 

[Rat Luv]

2 hours ago, Rowan Amore said:

I barely squeezed by the math requirements to graduate HS.  Algebra, Geometry the Business Math for 2 years got me through.  The first 2 I passed with Ds.  Business Math was straight As.  I also took 2 years of Accounting which were a breeze.  Maybe I just have a practical brain that saw no practical reason for Algebra or Geometry?

I can do basic math, fractions, percentages, etc.  I can also find the area of something.  That's all the info I took away from traditional math classes.

I'm terrible at maths (or math 🙂). I think the practical side is all you need...how to budget and measure ingredients, unless you want to design space drones?

Once in SL I was wearing the group tag 'Anarchist' and this guy started IMing me and not being rude, but a bit serious and asking "Are you an anarchist, do you know what it means?", then started sending me links to YT videos about anarchy. I couldn't understand ANY of it  I said "Oh, I think it's just a group where I bought this punk skirt" and he stopped IMing...😐

Most people I know are cleverclogs, but it never seems to rub off 

[Lindal Kidd]

54 minutes ago, Rat Luv said:

this guy started IMing me and not being rude, but a bit serious and asking "Are you an anarchist, do you know what it means?

Reply: "ANARCHIST!? OMG, I thought it said "Antichrist"!

[Coffee Pancake]

1 hour ago, Rat Luv said:

I'm terrible at maths (or math 🙂). I think the practical side is all you need...how to budget and measure ingredients, unless you want to design space drones?

Math, like programming or learning how D&D works, requires application and purpose to really make sense and stick. 

There is a huge difference between learning the rules to pass a test on the rules, and applying the rules to solve a problem and have fun.

[Lindal Kidd]

I would refuse to become a member of any intelligentsia that would have me.

[kali Wylder]

2 hours ago, Amina Sopwith said:

I'm sorry, I don't think I understand what you're saying.

After saying I was in awe of "brains displayed", I thought of your picture and wanted you to know I wasn't referring to it in my post.  Just a quirky little mental aberration of one of the voices in my head who constantly makes bad puns.