I must confess that for as long as I can remember, I've felt felt a tinge of loneliness; ok, more than a tinge. It isn't because I don't have tons of friends--I mean, I don't, but I don't need tons. The scant few I've got are all I need because I've never been the type of person who judges herself on popularity. That seems stupid to me, given how fleeting popularity really is.
No, the truth is that I've almost always felt lonely for one reason: the sinking feeling that there are precious few people who view the world and those in it the way I do. For some reason, this matters a great deal to me. And this is the reason that I sometimes feel like I'm miles away even while surrounded by humans.
Often, when I'm feeling alone, I like to keep moving. Specifically, I like to go for walks. Well, first I drive to a place I've either 1) never been OR 2) always go. It's the drive before the walk that allows me to let go of the day and absorb the night. These walks of mine always happen at night. I feel like that's an important detail. Don't ask me why. So this is the state of affairs that brought me to Center City Philly last Friday night. As I roamed Old City, a place I once lived, I found myself replaying some of the interactions with various people I'd had up to that point in the day. When my mind settled on one of the day's conversations--I don't remember which--I distinctly recall feeling a rising tide of frustration. And while I'm sketchy on the details of the conversation which sparked these thoughts, I know precisely what frustrated me that evening, because it's something that consistently frustrates me to no end: the realization that most people seem to have no handle on what it means to be "intelligent." Not that I feel that I have a monopoly on the definition. It's just that I feel that people throw the word around like it's a hacky sack, with little to no thought about how their use of the term speaks volumes about what they value in terms of mental capacity.
So, you guessed it. I'd like you to weigh in on the subject. What does it mean to be "intelligent"? Who's the smartest person you've ever known? What is it that makes them so intelligent in your view? Be specific, cite examples and do your best to arrive at a definition. But DON'T consult a dictionary. If you absolutely can't resist the temptation to chew on someone else's thoughts on the subject, I'd like you to google quotations on intelligence and tell me if you come across one that sums up your views on the topic--or one that doesn't if playing devil's advocate is your thing. Share the quote with us and connect it with your response. Don't rush your thinking. Let it marinate...
Nowadays, intelligence is something as rare as red bananas and purple carrots (yes- they exist). It’s hard to come into contact with someone who really knows what they’re talking about. I guess to me, the true definition of intelligence is not knowing everything there is to know, but making an immense effort to learn everything there is to learn. I know of many people who truly believe that they know everything there is to know in this world. They don’t pick up a book after college. They don’t continue their research after class or work is over. They don’t make time to find a mentor.
ReplyDeleteI have had the wonderful opportunity to go to a medical camp in Boston over the summer as I already mentioned in my OP. There I met and listened to many intelligent speakers talk about how they found a more efficient way to diagnose pancreatic cancer, how they came up with a new brain scan to see if people have a healthy brain, perform full face transplants and share how they accomplished all of that. All of those people were truly intelligent. Being able to meet them and listen to their stories was such a privilege.
But, out of everyone I have met and actually have gotten to know, Lucie Pham stands out to me the most. It isn’t about her grades, her rank, her goals or her accomplishments. It’s about the way she talks and acts and thinks. She knows so much already, and she isn’t satisfied with that. She wants to go the extra mile. She wants to help others accomplish what she has already accomplished. People envy her because of her brilliant mind. She has helped me so much since the day that I met her my sophomore year. She helped me during tennis season by showing me exactly how I am supposed to volley at the net. She cheered for me when she hurt her foot and I had to take her spot for a few matches. She helped me to figure out a list of colleges that I should visit and apply to next year. She has done so much for me while doing so much for other people and herself all at the same time. I don’t know how she manages to be the all-around great person that she is, but she does it. All of those things and her humbleness has led me to believe that she is the most intelligent person I have ever gotten to know.
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ReplyDeleteTo be intelligent means you allow yourself to build upon prior knowledge even knowledge you never obtained from a teacher. An intelligent person has knowledge on all aspects of life in some way. One who is both book smart and street smart. One who is not oblivious to different aspects of the world and how things can be viewed differently. Their demeanor is impeccable and their mindset is far from provincial. Intelligence is not being able to out wit others or even being smart enough to solve the smartest equations.
ReplyDeleteThe smartest person I know is my Uncle Richard. A man who has studied aspects of Psychology, Numerology, Etymology and Astrology. My Uncle so gifted that he could have a full in depth conversation about just about anything. From apples to atmosphere, and just build from that. Him and I could talk for hours and hours and never get bored. With age comes not only wisdom but, intelligence. He's 60 years old and can talk about history like he lived during the stone age. He's so humbled about his intelligence, that he said "We'll you have to let your mind wander and get knowledge along the way."
I spend much time gaining knowledge from just speaking to people even if I'm not interested about the genre there speaking on. Because, a smart person never passes up an opportunity to learn something. I hate football with a passion never understood the game. From my prospective its a bunch of men running back and forth getting conscious. Taking hits like stunt dummies all for a goal. Just recently, I learned that a touch down is equivalent to 6 points. Go me!! Maybe, one day I'll be able to have an elaborate conversation about football. To be intelligent doesn't mean that your interested in everything that you know. It means that you have insight on many things that you don't. The definition to intelligence is being able to give insight on many aspects of information and life. Having this knowledge puts you at an advantage. Even I took the opportunity of learning how to take someones order at my job in Spanish. Although, its hard and I struggle on rolling my R's the Spanish customers still appalled me and chuckle for even trying.
I guess to me, intelligence is more than just being smart in school and getting good grades or graduating as valedictorian of your high school. Intelligence is a combination of knowledge, common sense, and wisdom from past experiences. I've come across people who have multiple degrees, but are clueless when it comes to basic tasks like communicating effectively. True intelligence is the 8th wonder of the world.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes down to it, the most intelligent person I know is probably my mom, no joke. Now, when I say intelligent, I don't mean knowledge wise. There are plenty of things she doesn't know. However, she does have something that other people might not have. Over the past 16 years of my life, she has offered me invaluable life lessons and hard advice to help me get through tough times. To me, her wisdom is worth more than a thousand books. One of my favorite quotes from all time is from Bill Gates. He said, "I will always choose a lazy person to do a difficult job, because he will find an easy way to do it." My mom's advice has shown easier ways to do everyday, normal tasks. Her advice teaches me more life tips than a book on trigonometry ever would.
To be completely honest, I do/did not know the full definition of intelligence. I always knew it was to be immensely smart but that was about it. I know I sound ridiculous but over the years I just knew the actual word rather than the meaning and definition. With the help of searching “Intelligence quotes” on google and Momma H, I have concluded that intelligence is not only having knowledge on previous subjects but being open to learn much more. There are many people (basically the whole freaking world) who consider themselves ‘intelligent’ but really when given advice/more knowledge, they turn their cheek the other way and ignore it. Intelligent people help others understand and are ready to learn when the opportunity comes a knockin’.
ReplyDeleteLena Nguyen is the most intelligent person I know (who didn’t see that coming). Yes she is book smart and she got a whole 1400 on her PSAT but you would never know it if it was the first time you met her. I always make fun of her for being extra but while doing this blog, I realized she just wants to learn. Take knitting for example. Instead of doing the same scarf pattern over and over again, she’s pinterest-ing (yep, we’re going to pretend that’s a word) new things to knit and new patterns. Currently, she’s making boot cuffs, whatever those are and she’s doing well because they look great. Whenever I need help in any subject, she always helps me even when I’m distracting her and I am very grateful for that. She also takes the time to understanding the subject, never rushing and as we all know, she is very good at basically every educational subject. During crew because she knew close to nothing about being a coxswain, she was always on different websites, reading handbooks and buying supplies to help her become a better coxswain. Her drive and determination to learn new things makes her the most intelligent person I know.
In the years of my existence, I’ve only encountered a few that defines the word “intelligent.” To me, an intelligent person is not only a book smart, but is someone who is well-rounded and ambitious. Intelligence is knowing at least a little bit of everything and knowing how to talk to different types of people. Intelligence is to have a common sense and the courage to take risks. Intelligence is the ability to get somebody’s utter attention based on the way they talk and perceive things, at the same time, they are capable of understanding other people as well.
ReplyDeleteThe smartest person I know is my step dad. My step dad reads lots of books and news articles. Every night at our dinner table, he always has something new to talk about. The first time I met him eight years ago, he has already made quite a good impression to me. I have never met someone who talks with such clarity and confidence. When he talks, he is able to hook his listener into their conversation for a very long time. My step dad is also one of those people who never runs out of things to talk about, which is why he loves to debate. It amazes me how he always has an input or a way to stir things up when he debates with somebody. I believe it is also his way of knowing the person he’s talking to. My step dad lives by common sense and aspiration. He tells my brothers and me that our grades won’t matter if we have no common sense and no goals in life. Common sense will help us through life, while numbers do not. There is a better chance to be successful with perseverance and ambition, while with numbers not so much. My step dad never stops learning; every month he would always go to a seminar, or from time to time he watches educational videos about his profession just because he wants to know more. He’s always had the desire to keep learning, in fact, last week he just told me that he wants to study law or economics after he retires.
Intelligence. I don't think intelligence is necessarily all about grades and school. Just because you're a super smart student, it doesn't make you automatically intelligent. There are people who are "naturally smart" but I don't think that automatically makes them intelligent. I think intelligence is constantly striving to learn new knowledge in different areas, not making the same mistakes over and over again and always knowing how to react. I know for a fact that some people will strongly disagree with my opinion because some people really do believe intelligence is all about getting straight A's and knowing everything.
ReplyDeleteI consider my uncle intelligent. He's the first person in my family to graduate college and become something successful in life.He isn't very old, maybe 36 and he still strives to learn or re-learn stuff. He told me his weakest subject used to be physics and he said he struggled with it so bad and he was glad to pass with a C. I don't know about other people, but I wouldn't want to learn about something I sucked at years ago. My uncle on the other hand always wants to learn or re-learn physics whenever I'm doing my homework and he's a computer engineer so he doesn't need physics at all. He's one of those people where once he makes a mistake, he'll fix it and rarely does he make that same mistake again. He catches himself before he makes the same mistake twice. My family isn't a family you would consider "perfect." There's always drama because some people don't know when or where to say things.There's ALWAYS gossiping going on. My 2 aunts gossip about my uncle and then the same aunt will go tell my uncle what the other aunt said and then there's a huge argument. Some people react very aggressively, especially if it's a unexpected moment, but my uncle is usually the peacemaker. He soothes any tension and literally gives the best advice. I think I won't ever find anyone more intelligent then him and when it comes to role models , he's definitely one of mine.
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ReplyDeleteIntelligence is underrated nowadays, people would rather appear cool. Acting up in class rather than shutting up and learning is a common thing in schools. The fear of looking like you actually care about your grades because people will make fun of you, is the sorry excuse for lack of intelligence. It says in the Bible that the wise know when to keep quiet tans the foolish don't know when to talk. To stay quiet is a sign of intelligence, it shows maturity and self control, examples of wisdom. It's a toss up when it comes to the smartest person I know, I could pick three of the top of my head. I can focus on my ex coach who still plays a role in my life. My definition of negligence might be different from others. I believe to make you smart it's not just knowing a lot of information. I believe to be the smartest you must contain self control, maturity, experience, attained information, and understanding of God. Mr. Edmunds holds all of this, I can go to him for anything, scaling from football, how to be a man, or how to study for a test. He is my human google. That is what makes him the smartest person I know. Who among you is wise and understanding? “Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.” That verse out of the Bible is what Edmunds embodies.
ReplyDeleteAlbert Einstein once said that “the measure of intelligence is the ability to change”. I agree with a few of my classmates above me on the idea that intelligence is not about what you know or how much you know, but about how much you’re willing to learn. Some of us may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer or the brightest star in the sky (something like that), but if those people have the desire to continue learning and processing information from all different categories then they are able to call themselves intelligent (or at least they are in my opinion). In order to be intelligent you must be open to all ideas and ways and you must have the ability to process them and reflect on them.
ReplyDeleteThe smartest person that I’ve ever had the privilege of knowing is my grandma. As a woman in her mid 80’s who was born in Ireland and traveled to America in her early teenage years, she has quite a bit of knowledge and experience about the world we’re living in. As I sit down with her and watch her closed caption Hallmark movies, she always finds a way to quiz me on the history of our country and everything it had, or has, to offer.
My grandma is of course extremely smart book-wise, but that’s not what I believe makes her intelligent. Yes she knows the date of every war, but she also knows how to take in new information, which gives her the title of “intelligent”. She sits down on the couch and watches documentaries on a variety of things, and after watching them she starts conversations with me about the topic and we spent a lot of time discussing our thoughts on it. She reads all these books and always remembers certain points of the story to tell me about that relates to our lives today.
My grandma has taught me maaannyyyyy of the things that I know and I hope to still be able to learn from her for a long time. Her intelligence never fails to amaze me and I hope that one day I will be as open to new information as she is.
To be intelligent, or to have intelligence is to have the natural ability to understand, adapt and comprehend almost anything around you. I hate to associate intelligence with school, because I honestly don’t believe a few good grades determine one's intelligence in the slightest. The smartest person I’ve never known is my grandmother; and not because she knows what 2 plus 2 is, but because she has a way with words, and a way of filling so much wisdom in everyone’s lives including her own. What makes her so “smart”, is the fact that she’s always been able to turn a bad situation into a good one, and she’s always had the ability to take something small, and find a way to give it so much meaning. And to me, that’s what makes her so extremely intelligent. She’s never let life control her, she more so took control of it herself and turned it into something worthy. I’m not so sure that it’s easy for everyone to understand, but basically, I feel like intelligence is more life-based, more than anything else. I hope that makes at least a little sense!
ReplyDeleteOne quote that I will always admire is, “The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.”, which was actually said by Albert Einstein. I think that itself ties completely into what I was trying to say earlier. To have one of the smartest people to ever live say that intelligence is not knowledge, just goes to show that it never really goes back to what you do academically, but more of what you’re capable of doing in the real world.
I think intelligence is having great knowledge about not only things taught in school, but things regarding the world. I look at it as someone who knows how to deal with “life” in a proper way; someone who makes mistakes, but knows how to deal with them and learn from them. With this being my view of intelligence, the smartest people I have ever known has to be both of my parents. Sure, they make mistakes and don't know EVERYTHING, but every day I see their intelligence. They give me advice on things that they have never experienced. Each day they try to be better than they were the day before. My parents make mistakes but they know how to learn from them and explain to me how I could learn from them. For example, my mom is always teaching me life lessons. She may not know 100% of what she is trying to teach me, but the effort is what makes her intelligent. She will sit in my bed with me at night and talk about something that's been bothering me so that we can work together to find a solution on how to overcome the struggle. That in itself is intelligence- knowing how to DEAL with things in life.
ReplyDeleteThere are a ton of people who are intelligent. Many in the aspect of wealth and how they got to where they were. Some may come from a great life where their parents are there for them and some come from nothing and causes them to push and work at what they have achieved. Intelligence is not to common and a lot of people mistake intelligence for being polite. Not to many people say, "Thank you" or, "You're welcome." So when it is said you may be caught off guard by it. Also not everyone who is intelligent started out that way, they worked at it and most people don't want to do the work, they believe it will be handed to them.
ReplyDeleteThe most intelligent person I know would be Patrick Betdavid. Not many people know who he is unless you follow entrepreneurship. He is an immigrant from Israel, his father owned a 99Cent store and came to the United States. He attended high school and had a 1.8 GPA. Sounds like a nobody or drop out? Well he wasn't to book smart and now as he gets older and realizes how important an education is he is nonstop progressing and is a Millionaire. He is what most kids and adults strive for, he is "The American Dream." Another main key for intelligence is what you do with it, you could share that intelligence with others or you could keep it to yourself. Teachers tend to say you don't understand the concept until you can teach it to someone who has no idea what they were talking about.
Intelligence is completely up to you, you can actually learn and absorb everything or you could be the kid that sits in the back of class on his phone. The choice is up to you and how you handle it may affect your outcome later in life or it could be a wake up call. In Patrick's scenario it was a wake up call, now not only is he intelligent he is doing something with it and he is spreading his knowledge with others.
Intelligence is more than a GPA, more than someone’s ability to spell, more than school itself. Yes, there’s people who’ve made their way in life by becoming the most intelligent people in the world based on schooling, but it’s more than that. An intelligent person is someone who keeps an open mind, someone who strives to learn more, and just someone who overall absorbs information like a sponge and can apply it. You can read a textbook and memorize it for a test and completely throw it out the window after you take the test but that’s not an intelligent person. An intelligent person would remember the information and keep it for later reference.
ReplyDeleteThe smartest person I’ve ever met wouldn’t be just one person for me. I’ve met many teachers in my life time that have completely left an impact on me because they are so intelligent. The most intelligent person that I first met was Mrs. Holdren my 8th grade advanced Language Arts teacher. I remember sitting in her classroom and her saying “Most advanced students have it easy and go home to two happily married parents to help them with their homework and making sure that you’re getting good grades. Sadly though, some of you don’t have it that easy. Some of you go home to a broken family but you still manage to receive incredible grades despite the fact that your home life is a struggle. The people in this classroom that manage to do that I truly respect.” At that moment I felt like she knew my story, which was impossible because I’ve never told a teacher about my home life until this year. I found Mrs. Holdren smart not because she coincidentally knew my home life, but because she was able to realize that not every student is the same. All my other teachers saw my classmates as the same, never connecting with us. They always had the strict mentality of giving work and expecting it returned done. That was always the student teacher relationship until I met Mrs. Holdren. Her ability to connect with student beyond the work aspect of school made her intelligent to me.
I don't actually quite understand what qualifies a person as intelligent and in all honesty I don't understand how it is we can give a numerical value to it. People usually have a consensus on what the definition of intelligence might be but looking on some of the replies to this blog post people seem to have varying ideas on their definition of intelligence some seem to consider basic knowledge of the world a measure of intelligence others say it's a person's ability to keep an open mind, and some cling to the idea that your I.Q. is an accurate measure of what intelligence is. It's all of this that confuses me, because if it applies to all of us, seeing as how we all have varying degrees of it, why can't we agree on what it is? It makes me feel that intelligence is subjective and that it really isnt all that easy to quantify. As for the most intelligent person I know? I couldn't really tell you, everyone I know, despite some being what most people would call intelligent can say and do some extremely stupid things.
ReplyDeleteIntelligence is more than getting a good score on the SATs, or saying that you graduated top 10 in your class. To me, that kind of "intelligence" is more work ethic than it is "smart". Here's why: the most intelligent person I know is my father. My dad was more athletic than you could imagine. But when he was in high school, he was never allowed to play. His grades were too low. He was getting suspended too often. He didn't have support at home that would take him to and from practice. My dad wasn't allowed to walk on the day of his graduation. He had to take a few summer classes just so he could receive his high school diploma later on in the summer. My dad had a son when he was 18 years old. And unlike the stories you usually hear about, he was the parent that stayed. My dad could have gone off to a community college right after high school. But as a single parent, struggling to keep a roof over his baby's head, that degree wasn't something that he was capable of worrying about. However, later in life, after sending that same son off to an Ivy League college with a $40,000 scholarship, he went back to college. And now he works as a social worker, standing as a father figure for children just like him, while working on sending his daughter to her dream college, and providing for and adoring his family. My dad may not have done his homework, but if he had, he would have been able to complete it with ease. He could have gone back to school to be a doctor just to prove a point and to say he did, but he knew that life was about more than that. The people that my father went to school with probably saw his as dumb. Little did they know that even at that time when he was failing classes and getting kicked out of school, he was an incredible poet, a mathematician, a musician, and far from the disappointment that his parents made him out to be.
ReplyDeleteTo this day, even after hearing all the stories of how dumb he acted as a kid, my dad is still the most intelligent person that I know. Not because he got a good SAT score, or was highly ranked in his class. But because intelligence is about taking knowledge that you have and making new knowledge out of it. Intelligence is realizing what's most important in life and putting it above all else. Intelligence is being able to be successful on your own. And my father has been a prime example of that my entire life.
“Who’s the smartest person you’ve ever known?” You would think that answering this question would be easy, something short and expected like “my mom and dad” or “the President of the United States,” (President Obama- it’s a shame that I have to specify it now) but in all honesty I have never judged or placed someone on rank of “intelligence.” Yes, people are smart, just look at Preston and Lena they probably memorized every volume of every encyclopedia ever made, but that doesn’t specify them as being “intelligent.” My 8th grade year I had one of the best english teachers ever. He wasn’t the basic read and write, we talked and listened and understood. He taught me to love english, but he also made me realize what it means to be intelligent, or my definition of it at least. It was random day, and we had a deep discussion about our brains and thinking. He said that everybody’s brain is a bowl of soup, some people have a lot of soup and some people have a little, but what really counts is what people do with that bowl of soup. At first, I didn’t understand, the “smart” people were in the advanced classes, or so I thought. “Seriously Meile you’re making no sense.” I probably mumbled a couple of other things amidst this conversation. He made a joke that would sum up his personality and how the school went, “just look at Dom, he doesn’t even have a bowl of soup, he has a cup!” I was starting to grasp the idea, it’s not about how much you know, it’s about how you apply yourself. If you give someone like Macgyver a history book and tell him to read it, and then give me the same book and tell me the same, I am a thousand percent certain Macgyver would be able to give you a timeline of every event right from pure knowledge and comprehension. I on the other hand, would probably need to go back through the book little by little, it might take sometime, but I’ll eventually get you a finished product. What I’m trying to say is that Macgyver is smart, he knows facts about history like it’s the back of his hand. I may not know any information, but I try hard to understand it and complete a task. I try. I apply myself. I am intelligent. Now, to answer the question, “who’s the smartest person you’ve ever known?” My answer is simply anyone who has and continues to try, anyone who can figure things out for themselves, anyone who can apply themselves.
ReplyDeleteHenry Ford once said, “Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.” This quote is saying that adopting a positive attitude toward a failed attempt is an important quality to have. An intelligent person doesn't have to be extremely smart or have never made a mistake; they know how to use all of their knowledge and apply it to their lives and what they do. Intelligence is perceived information and retaining it as knowledge to be applied towards behaviors within an environment. You can be top 10 in your class but not have one bit of intelligence because you're clueless on how to act and use what you know to apply it in the real world. The most intelligent person I know would probably have to be my cousin. He may not have been the brightest bulb in the box when it came to school, but now, he has a good job and he lives in his own house with his loving girlfriend. During his high school years, he barely showed up to school and when he did, he either cut class, or just didn't do any of his work. He was failing most of his classes and this resulted in a ton of summer work in order to graduate. A spark of motivation came across him and I remember helping several days in the summer with some of his work and he was so determined to get it done. It eventually paid off and he received his diploma. Now, when I see him at his home with his girlfriend, it warms my heart to see how successful he's becoming. He takes care of his family, girlfriend, friends, and his dog and he will definitely take a bullet for any of us. He has such a huge heart and to see him developing from that stage of rebellion, shows he has a ton of intelligence.
ReplyDeleteIntelligent people will not always be some Harvard graduate who a whole lot of credentials to prove their genius. Or a forbes listed top ten billionaire who invented, lets say Microsoft, or Apple products. Before really thinking about the question, my brain automatically listed people with similar qualities as, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, or Albert Einstein. It’s funny because I’ve conditioned myself to thinking there is one kind of intelligence, minimizing all of the other people who give me a different kind of perception of what the word actually means. I don’t necessarily know these “smart” people, but I think they relate alot to this blog and my idea of
ReplyDeleteWhat an intellectual person is. One, is Tupac Shakur, even though his mysteriously infamous death and gang affiliation ties a negative weight to his reputation, I don’t think it’s fair to take away from some of the things he said, wrote, and/or rapped. He touched subjects about race, government, love, God, in ways that most established rappers wouldn’t. His intelligence is different from Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, because I think it’s centered around personal experience and how he was raised. Also, Naz - another rapper- used his intelligence and life experiences to write his raps, without them being ignorant, and overwhelmingly provocative, or in anyway revealing that he dropped out of school in the third grade, and educated himself solely off of books. Changing directions, the other person that seems unbelievably intelligent to me is Maya Angelou, with me currently reading “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” I get to second handedly understand the life Maya Angelou lived and how she was raised. Unfortunately the early years of her life don’t explain the women she turned into, how she changed lives of other black women like Oprah Winfrey or even young black girls like myself. What makes Tupac, Naz, and Maya Angelou intelligent is how they taught and learned things both book smart, and street smart and intertwined it with the lessons of life. They have a weight to the words they say, and they share the truth about this world said in ways no other can duplicate. There intelligence did bid them success, but it also changed lives, it had an effect on the world and it lives far beyond their death, that’s an intellectual person to me.
There are many ways of defining intelligence for what it is. Because they are many different variations of intelligence and many people are more intelligent of certain things than other people. Intelligence can bring people together and tear them apart. It's just the way the world works. And in a way, I guess you can say that intelligence is an emotion. Martin Luther King, one of the most influential, intellectual people to ever live once said, “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.” Intelligence, is a main component in what we do to communicate with each other on ANYTHING.
ReplyDeleteNow, if I can be brutally honest for a second, there is nobody that I know on a personal level, that knows about everything, including myself. Not even my mom registers for the person I know who is very intelligent, even though I still believe she is exceptionally smart at what she does. So, while writing this blog, I read the question and actually sat on my couch for a moment to figure who the smartest person I know. And the more and more I thought about it, the more I thought about the person I’d least expect to think about in this situation. And that person was my tennis coach, Mr.Wise. And I kind of feel like a douchebag for picking Mr.Wise simply because his last name is Wise but I truly do believe this is the smartest person I know from a general standpoint. I’m starting to think that maybe he just has life figured out and I've been too stupid to look at what he's accomplished. He doesn't say a lot, but when he does say something, I can tell it’s usually from the heart, and that goes from when he's teaching his classes to coaching me on the tennis courts and I don't even take his classes. And his character and personality is what is similar to mine; laid back and caring and always getting the job done.
Like I said before, I don't believe there is anybody that intellectually knows about everything except God. But intelligence is learned and is very similar to knowledge that is gained. We as humans do what is necessary to stay relevant, or in any case, be popular. And to do that, we introduce ourselves to new things that we probably have never seen before to stay popular. With popularity comes intelligence of something. Whatever that something is, we want to better ourselves of it as humans. Nothing beats being intelligent, after all, that is what makes the world go round, not money.
To be intelligent for me is to have common sense, knowledge in what you want to be, and most importantly know life. Now life may be a broad subject to have knowledge on, but to have any ounce on know anything about life is priceless. This is why I consider my dad the smartest person I know. He has a vast knowledge in both life and mathematics. One time he lectured me on why I can't keep being shy and quiet and that I have to start to talk. He also forces to like math or else as he says it" If you hate math then you will fail it." From then on I grown to like algebra but despise geometry. Another reason I prize knowledge in life is because we simply need it. I've seem to many people making mistakes in life choices like generally being a nuisance to everyone but thing they're cool, or not take anything seriously. It's important that we take advice on life because they effect us in the long run and perhaps shift perspectives on life in general. I like the quote "An intellectual is someone whose mind watches itself" because it tells us that in order to be intelligent we have to be cautious in decisions, ourselves and know yourself.
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ReplyDeleteIntelligent? To be intelligent does not mean to be smart, book smart that is. To be intelligent does not mean to have a perfect, 4.0 GPA. To be intelligent does not mean to be in top ten of your class. You can have or be all of that and still not be intelligent, well as least not intelligent to me. Intelligence, to me, is a real quality you have as a human being. To me, you cannot learn to be intelligent, you are born with intelligence, and it shows through your words and actions. The way you solve problems. You can be a world renowned scientist and still not have “logical” problem solving skills. How you deal with and act in a bad situation and how you get yourself out of it. Making good choices and guiding yourself on the right path. How you help others. How you give advice and what you encourage others to do. To be wise. This, to me is pure intelligence.
It took me a bit to think of the utmost intelligent person I know. Then it just hit me, my Mom is the most intelligent person I know. My Mom didn’t go to some fancy, competitive college. She got her bachelor's degree at Rowan University and is still by far the most intelligent person I know. My Mom is filled with pure creativity and always has the desire to learn more, about anything. My mom is an art major, and I’m so blessed to have some of those genes within me. Anytime, no matter what it is, what kind of problem I’m having, my mom always has an answer or a way to solve it. She has such a creative way of solving problems and they always have some sort of artistic touch, which I love. I always see her on her phone watching videos, learning how to do new things. And when she tries them out herself they turn out better than the video. Anytime I have a question she knows the answer. I have trouble remembering material for tests, I have no idea how she knows all of what she does. She just always knows what to do. My Mom is my definition of intelligence.
Intelligence is measured by life experience. I truly believe that one who goes out into the world and has experienced life has more intelligence than one who spends their whole life in a classroom taking notes and doing homework. Intelligence is the ability to acquire knowledge from life experiences and learn from them.
ReplyDeleteThe smartest person that I know is my friend Matthew Moenning. This is someone who I have been friends with for about 3 years now and he is absolutely brilliant. In 2 ways he can be considered smart, 1. he is my age but now a freshman in college because he basically skipped two years of school, and 2. he has already lived through so many horrible traumatic things. He is living in a house with a dad who he isn't related to and Matt is forced to pay rent because his “dad” doesn’t accept him as his child. He has a job to pay for his own schooling and he has been fighting his whole life just to make it through. None of this has been able to stop him though. He still manages to travel and see beautiful things. I really look up to him because he has already been able to gain so much knowledge from just life experiences rather than a book at a desk. Benjamin Franklin once said that “Life's tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late.” and what makes Matty so smart is that he is already so wise. Matthew has taught me more about life than anyone else ever has. He has shown me how to be happy and how to get through hard times. Any problem I have, he has already been through which means he always has such wise advice to share with me.
Intelligence isn’t about how many books you've read or how many papers you’ve written. Even though those are all things to help you be a smart student, you won’t be a student the rest of your life and eventually you grow up and a lot of things you learned in school, you’ll need to know how to get through life. School can’t teach you how to live, they teach you how to live by a schedule. Living life and learning your own lessons are what make you truly intelligent.
The word intelligence is a word that is interpreted in many different ways by different people. I don’t see intelligence as a word that everyone should use as often as they do. To be intelligent means to not just memorize things in school and get A’s in your classes, but to be able to apply your knowledge to the real word for everyday things. To be able to apply your knowledge and wisdom to others and give advice. Intelligence is a rare thing and not many people have the right to call themselves intelligent. There are many people though that have great intelligence and really are truly smart. Overall, I think intelligence is taking what you have learned and applying it to life and where it is necessary. It’s the range of knowledge that a specific person has and the way they use their knowledge.
ReplyDeleteThe smartest person that I know is probably my mom. My mom always has advice and answers for most of my problems. She has wisdom and advice that is very helpful to me and the people around her. If there is ever a problem, my mom will always have a solution even when it seems like there isn’t one. She isn’t just book smart, she is someone I can talk to about stuff going on in the world and she will understand. My mom has advice and lessons to offer and is just an intelligent person. What makes her so smart is the fact that she can take any knowledge she gets and turn it into something useful. She doesn’t learn something and never apply it. My mom makes use out of her intelligence and it is always beneficial to me and everyone that she encounters.
Everybody in this world we live are all intelligent and don't even know it. A lot of people see intelligence as someone who gets good grades in school and attend ivy league schools like Harvard or Yale. People who think intelligence is about knowing everything in life probably thinks they know everything when they really don't Intelligence to me is when someone is always wanting to learn new things and use that knowledge for something in life to be what they want. It also means being able to have common sense with the people around you and being able to understand your lifestyle. There are plenty of people in the world that don't get the best grades and don't have the highest GPA but are still intelligent. My dad is probably the smartest people I know because of what he has learned over the years and applied it to be who he wanted to be. My dad never had the best grades or the highest GPA in high school but was still very intelligent in his own way. He learned everything he could and applied it to who he wanted to be ad he achieved what he wanted to be. He may not know how to do calculus but he has the common knowledge he needs to get what he wants in life. Intelligence can also mean that you know who you are and what you can do. Everybody should understand themselves and know what their weaknesses and strengths. But everybody has their opinion on these things and all depends on their point of view. It's not bad to learn and get grades to get into a good college but it doesn't always make you intelligent in life. It's using past knowledge and applying it to the present to move forward in life to get to where you want to be.
ReplyDeleteAs I had mentioned earlier this school year, my friend Sebastian Acevedo is the smartest person I have ever known. Not only was he able to uphold a 100 average in each and every class in high school (while still never missing crew practice) but his use and understanding of words, math, science, even the most useless of information, absolutely blew my mind. To me, it seemed like there wasn't anything you could ask him that he didn't know the answer to. He was so well educated, because he believed, like many other great men, that knowledge was power. Sebastian is also the most intelligent person I know because he has so much wisdom for someone his age. No matter what problems or dilemmas I or anyone else was facing, he was there to help. He always gave the best and most responsible advice. Which made me really feel comfortable to go to him when i needed help, (and vice versa)
ReplyDeleteSebastian is the perfect example for my definition of intelligent. He always treats others with the utmost respect, he always thinks of the all the consequences before doing, and he is a great student. All of these are reason I look up to him as a role model. I know he will go far in life because of all these great qualities.
Vast amounts of people want to claim that intelligence has no relation to being smart but I would make the claim that they’re one in the same. The two words are synonymous to one another in my mind. Both are based around knowledge which is how much information one has retained. The more accurate information you have remembered the more knowledge you have. Intelligence on the other hand is how we apply that knowledge. An example would be if you knew everything there was to know about math. You could say that you’re very knowledgeable about math. If you were to test your math skills however, that would determine your intelligence. Obviously standard test aren’t always the measure of intelligence but anything that makes you apply the information you’ve stored is a test of intelligence. For most people they will look at what’s inscribed here as intelligence being related to academics. That’s not the case. Intelligence deals with calculus to party games and everything inbetween. If you have knowledge of something as well as apply that knowledge that is your intelligence for that specific topic. The most intelligent person I know would have to be my mom. This might sound cliche but going off of what I’ve said about intelligence she fits the best. My mom is the type of person who could probably ace an AP test with only a day to study as well as go out to party instead of doing school work. She always seems to know enormous amounts about any subject I bring up. She has told me about her highschool days where she did every activity and sport she could so she would miss as much time as possible of class yet still get the highest grades. She’s also the one to have a deep conversation about my feelings towards a particular subject. She knows a lot about almost everything from academics to emotions. If I need help with anything I know I can go to her and she will always have a solution. My mom is the jack-of-all-trades when it comes to intelligence. This is also the reason I believe my family has had such a good life. We’re not the richest family but considering my mom was a single mother raising a newborn in high school the odds of a successful future did not bode well for us. She had no time for college as she was working all the time to provide for me yet she is 33 years old with three sons, working on a associates degree while furthering her career into that which rivals college graduates. Only a few people could successfully do what she has and I believe her intelligence has helped her along the way.
ReplyDeleteTo be an intelligent person can mean many different things to many different people in today’s society. Intelligence most of the time is related to how much a person knows or how smart they are but it has other roots. To be intelligent in my opinion means nothing less but common sense and being able to apply knowledge to real life situations. Common sense at its core is basically intelligence. You can be smart in school a get good grades but if you don’t have common sense then basically you’re not as intelligent as you seem anymore. For example you could be the smartest person in your college but if you party one night and get drunk and hop in a car then you are not an intelligent person.
ReplyDeleteBeing intelligent also means that you can apply the knowledge you obtain to real life. What is the use of it if you can’t use it? To me intelligence is a very important thing to have by your side. Without intelligence you’re basically dumb. I know that sounds harsh but it’s true and unfortunately a lot of people lack it nowadays. But I’m happy to surround myself with those intelligent individuals which brings me to my next subject about the most intelligent person that I know.
The most intelligent person that I know would no doubt in my mind be my mother. I’m sure a lot of people picked one of their parents as well as me but my Mom is by far the most intelligent person I know. She has taught me more than enough times many intelligent things to know about this world and what the future holds for me. She is so intelligent because she knows about so many life experiences and had told me what to do if I have ever come across the same situation. This would include things like alcohol and drugs to things like how to get a job and to be a respectful human being. This is why she is the most intelligent person I know. To make the definition of intelligence into one sentence it would be “Intelligence: to have common sense and to be able to apply knowledge to real life situations”.
Someone who is intelligent means they are wise, have past experience in situations, know their reliable sources, able to adapt to changes, able to teach people using different methods, and are open to learning new information.
ReplyDeleteThe most intelligent person I know has to be my grandmother. Throughout my life, my grandmother has taught me morals, my times tables, embroidery, writing in Chinese, gardening, and many more. Whenever there is someone in my family who is sick, the first people we ask for help is my grandmother. She would look into books or ask her friends if they know a way to cure a certain illness. I remember there was this one time where I had terrible stomach pains almost every day and no matter what I did or ate, the pain would not subside. Then, her friend introduced her to cooking up some plain tapioca soup and put in seven black beans. I ate it, and eventually my stomach pains were gone. Another reason why my grandmother is the most intelligent is because when I was little, I struggled with my times tables a lot. My grandmother would write out the times table from one to twelve and she would tell me to memorize them all, but no matter how hard I tried, my mind would not grasp it. In the end, my grandmother found a new way to help me learn my multiplication. She told me that five times three was really just five plus five plus five and it was then did I understand how multiplication worked. Honestly, I do not know what I would do without my grandmother. She has taught me many things and went through all the good and bad stuff in my life with me. If my grandmother were to be gone one day, I would probably stop functioning.
Intelligence is specific to an specific area. Nobody has total intelligence. I bet I have more intelligence than anyone in poker that I know. Intelligence is something that is acquired through relationships and experiences. As we realize that some of us are less intelligent or more than others. But intelligence is not distinguished between one subject. Intelligence is spread throughout a society and in many types of specific talents. Intelligence is your knowledge and relationship towards a specific subject. There will be a lot of specific people that are intelligent at what they do in their own field of work.
ReplyDeleteNow the smartest person I have ever been with or have gotten to know is my step grandfather. Now he is not the smartest person in the world but when it comes to intelligence there is a specific barrier that I look at. His mathematics and jet engineering. He is a machine engineer for the army. He looks a jets and makes them ready for flight. He is very intelligent at what he does. Tying back to what intelligence is. He has been in the field so long that he teaches understudies what to do. He said he would love to teach me the specifics of his job. But his level of intelligence in the specific subject is proficiently higher than mine. He is very political and he is a very good persuasive speaker. He talks intelligent and does not undermine anyone's statements. He applies his knowledge to his family and workers. A big reason to realize that intelligence is not just about book smarts. It spreads to many different fields.
The surface meaning of someone who is intelligent is someone who is good at something or the person gets really good grades. By surface meaning, I mean that the average person would most likely say this. However, I believe being intelligent can mean so many things other than the surface meaning. A person does not have to be in the top 10% of the school to be intelligent. They could be intelligent in matters dealing with life. Furthermore, you do not have to have an abundance of book smarts either. An ‘intelligent’ or wise person will be able to improve upon themselves and their ‘knowledge’ in all categories whether it be on book knowledge, self-awareness, and awareness of all things surrounding them. They will also have good judgment. Also, someone who is ‘intelligent’ will be able to realize when they need to improve upon themselves or they will know what to do in a situation and act upon it wisely.
ReplyDeleteSo my full definition of what it means to be intelligent is people who show self-awareness, enough to improve upon themselves when needed, awareness of others, good judgement, and the ability to read a situation.
I do not know anyone that is “smart”. I do know people that are able to retain or remember (memorize) more information than I or people that are better at studying or taking test than I. I also know people who are able to use the information given to them. I feel like I haven't really met anyone who shows overall good judgement and a good amount of awareness of themselves or others. But I do not feel like I know anyone that rightly fits my description of intelligent.
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ReplyDeleteGrowing up I always considered myself very dumb. I looked up to the kids who could easily get a 95 or higher on every test. I was amazed. I wanted to be like those kids. I wanted to be like the “smart” kids so bad that I stopped appreciating the brain I was born with. I longed to switch brains and be “intelligent” even just for one day. I looked at these straight A students and saw perfection. As I matured I began to realize the true meaning of intelligence.
ReplyDeleteIntelligence is the ability to use all of your knowledge to better your life and the world around you. Unused knowledge is equivalent to throwing away a gift you have received, which sounds silly but occurs more than not. Knowledge is too often put to waste. The problem is that many brilliant minds are filled with all the tools needed, but unfortunately no construction manual. As we all know, unproductive tools are completely meaningless. Although it comes easier to some than others, intelligence can be worked for. It is a skill that anyone can obtain with discipline and persistence. You have to always be willing to take the next step to improve. Intelligent people are never content with themselves. Intelligent people are always striving to push their limits, not for the name but to satisfy their own desires. Intelligence is the ability to learn from your mistakes. Making mistakes is the best way to learn. With every mistake is a lesson to learn from. However, if you don’t learn from them your mistakes will be made repetitively. It is human nature to make mistakes everyday. Only intelligent people are able to take their negatives and make positives out of them. A lot of courage is needed to keep going when far less effort is required to remain stagnant and allow our mistakes to imprison you.
Ms. Bunje has always came across to me as intelligent. Besides her strong vocabulary and articulate way of wording things, her disposition is a fine example of intelligence. Bunj has the ability to speak to just about anyone and make them feel comfortable regardless of the fact that her knowledge is usually superior to theirs.
Bunje uses her intelligence to not only better herself but the world around her as well. From going out of her way to help solve people's everyday problems to sharing her intelligence with each and everyone of her students. She expects 100% out of her students because she recognizes what it will take to become successful in the next chapter of their lives. Although it isn’t possible for her to instill in everyone the aspiration for intelligence, you are guaranteed to leave her presents with more knowledge than you arrived with.
It is clear to see the continue in growth of Bunje’s intelligence by her ability to recognize the need for adjustments as a teacher. Her main concern is finding the best way to prepare her students for the world. Her passion to teach is what permits her to make changes according to our many different learning styles. Ms. Bunje is the most intelligent person I know.
Contrary to what some may think, intelligence is based on what you know and how quickly you can act and think in situations. Everyone can have a desire to learn and try new things, but does the make them intelligent? Does continuing to fail and learning nothing result or contribute to your intelligence? No.
ReplyDeleteMi mejor amigo, Arianna Roman *insert heart emoji here* est la persona más inteligente que conozco. Ari excels in academics. It doesn’t matter how difficult the subject or the lesson is by continuing to study, researching and asking for help she manages to do well. Not only is she intelligent in academics, she is also smart when it comes to life lessons. If you have a problem she will give you the best advice! Even in situations she hasn’t yet experienced she CAN STILL give you the best advice. She is TRUELY a brainiac in more ways than one.
Intelligence is not just being smart and getting good grades in school. It's a lot more than just being able to retain information. Some people are school smart, but that does not necessarily make them intelligent. Intelligence is being extremely teachable, being informative, being open-minded, and knowing what to do in every situation.
ReplyDeleteTo be completely honest, the most intelligent person I know, personally, is Jana White. I've been around her for the past 6 or 7 years and she always has had the makings of an intelligent person. When I say she has the makings of an intelligent person, I mean in all aspects. Because of this, I feel as if I can go to her for her insight about anything.
It's hard to come up with a definition for intelligence because there are different types of intelligence. If I remember correctly from physiology there are 9 different types of intelligence. Some people will say being intelligent means you know it all but I highly disagree. People can be street smart and not do well in school. That doesn't make them unintelligent. Some people are really good with their hands while others are good with numbers. In my opinion intelligence is a mix of wisdom, experience, mindfulness, and understanding.
ReplyDeleteThe most intelligent person I know who I sadly have no contact with anymore was my fourth foster mom. She became more of a grandma figure to me. She kinda looks like Mrs. Zeroni from holes but instead of being kind of creepy a radiant warmth constantly surrounds her. She has been to all 7 continents and speaks 5 different language. She is just so wise and has been through a hard life that has given her a different perspective of this world. If you go to my hometown in Puerto Rico and ask for señora Barre everyone will know who she is. What makes her intelligent besides her vast knowledge on many different and sometimes bizarre topic is her hunger for new knowledge, the wisdom she bestows on others, and her understanding of the world and the people on it.
I remember the first night I stayed at her house. I was young and scared. The 3 foster houses before her were unhealthy and we had to be removed. She understood my fear and handled the situation with immense delicacy. She talked to me for about an hour and for the duration of that conversation I said two sentences “ I want to go home” and “ What did I do to make them so angry”. In the second sentence I was referring to the foster homes I was in before. I blamed myself for the abuse they placed upon me. I still remember the last few sentences of that conversation. She said “ I know I'm just a stranger but I hope one day you'll see me as family. For now I want you to know that the world we live in isn't always fair. Bad things happen to good people. You might not be old enough to grasp what I'm saying but none of this is your fault. You didn't ask for those things to be done and you didn't cause them. While you're under my roof you will be treated with the respect and love you deserve.” She said it in spanish so I left some stuff out because it doesn't translate well. She then patted my shoulder and told me to go inside when I was ready. Every since that night I have looked to her for guidance. She is one of the most amazing, radiant, understanding, and intelligent person I know.
ReplyDeleteTo be intelligent entails a lot of things, and for me grades are none of them. One thing that I realized pretty early in life is that grades are seriously so unimportant. People stress about them but honestly in the grand scheme of your life grades are so miniscule, they mean nothing. Now I would say my sister for this but honestly to me she isn’t THAT smart, or at least not smart enough to have two blogs written about her. I would also say Neil Pasricha, the author of my all time favorite book The Happiness Equation, but I’ve never met the man in person and that is the only book of his I’ve read. I know a lot of smart people in my life but not a lot of smart-smart people. That is why for this question I am going to say myself. I want to point out that this is not me trying to be selfish or conceited, to find out why I think this just keep reading. First off, I am the only person I know for certain I can trust. The only person you can always rely on is yourself. I will never leave my side, this sounds cheesy but I’m my own best friend, like no one else knows me like I know me. So these are all valid points but I haven’t answered the question yet. Why? I might not be smart in school, or good at sports, or super talented in any way, but I do think I have a pretty unique outlook on life. My mom and I often have conversations about things and she is constantly saying, “You’re headed in the right track Kait.” or “You have such a mature mind for your age.”. I like to think I’m more mature for my age and I didn’t realize until sophomore year when I realized all my friends happened to be two years older than me which sucked. I started writing on a document and its steps to achieve the most out of your life, or something along those lines and I didn’t realize how much I could help people until I showed them. Anyway back to the point, I love myself which is something I feel like a lot of people my age can’t say. I think I am beautiful, there are obviously days when I don’t feel it but almost everyday I can say with confidence that I love myself. I feel as though I know what’s important to get out of life and I’m going to get it. My life is going by too quick and I refuse to sit here and give up on my dreams and live a normal life. I mean in the end maybe you do think I’m selfish and stupid but to me I am the most intelligent person I know.
To be intelligent means to be open minded and understanding, and be able to apply the new information you learn. You can’t grow as a person if you do not utilize new information, and that’s what I think intelligence truly is. I think my dad is the most intelligent person I know, due to the fact he dropped out of college junior year, went back to his little home in Bermuda, and a year later he was working for microsoft in Austin, Texas, playing a major role in the expansion of the country. He was never interested in computer science until after he dropped out. Today, he is the manager of his IT department, where he choses which college graduates to hire into his IT team. He applied his knowledge and made something out of it, which measures true intelligence. If Intelligence was calculated by grades and diplomas, he would be seen as stupid. You must be a problem solver to be intelligent. Not every situation is going to have a formula to solve it, you must be able to craft your own path. You have to be familiar with the unfamiliar, and be able to finesse impossible situations. Intelligent; being able to apply skills and learned attributes to solve problems that may be familiar, and unfamiliar.
ReplyDeleteI don’t know if I’m the only one here, but I hate it when people say I’m really smart. Because I’m really not. Just look at the twitter account that my friends made filled with all the dumb things I say. My rank doesn’t mean anything because I know there are people way smarter than me that should be above me. I might say that I’m smarter than some people school-wise, but we’re all intelligent in our own ways. Even if you haven’t found it yet, we all have something that we can just understand and know a lot about. A tech wiz might not be the best at writing, but they would be the first person you would go to if you need help. Maybe that’s just talent that I’m talking about, but I still think that is intelligence. But, if you’re always showing off your “intelligence” and knowledge and bringing people down, that’s just plain stupidity. You might well be the best at something, but an intellectual would know that there is always more to learn. That is wisdom.
ReplyDeleteNot all intelligent people are leaders. Brilliant leaders know how to organize things so that they can get the job done. They think in a certain way that, even though they might not be good at anything else, makes them a major asset in a team and what makes them intelligent. You could have the best scientists, the best artists, or the best business people, but you would need a good leader in order to accomplish anything with that group of people. Intelligence isn’t about knowing everything, though an intelligent person could. It’s about excelling in a field or several fields and always wanting more. It’s also about what you know about yourself. The best scientists, artists, and business people could be happy to just work on the stuff that they know and don’t have a need to take control. We all have strengths and weaknesses. Intelligent people just play to their forte. Excellent leaders recognize this and try to figure out a way to somehow make it work.
Intelligence in something doesn't have to be in a field that can be studied. Just like leadership, which can’t really be learned, there are many qualities that a person can have that makes them intelligent. Like Aja said, Maya Angelou was an incredible person. People like her are known for their beliefs and how they express it. You don’t need to go to college to do that.
So my equation: Intelligence = smarts (talent) + wisdom + understanding of self + will to learn
While I could list some of my friends as really smart, the smartest person I’ve ever known, but not personally, is Destin Sandlin from the SmarterEveryDay YouTube channel. He is a rocket engineer (aka a rocket scientist) and has a love for science and learning. Every video he produces just reinvigorates my want to learn. His enthusiasm in them is so contagious and it’s very obvious that he loves to learn how things function and wants to share it with the world. He has a really good teaching style (hence, the amount of subscribers he has) and he’s always trying to learn something. Heck, his channel name is Smarter-Every-Day. He’s incredibly smart and humble. Every moment of awesome is a new opportunity to teach.
In my dictionary, to be intelligent is to be a good listener and a good responder. Being able to give advice based off of a persons needs is a very tough skill. I truly believe that people who give good advice are the smartest people.
ReplyDeleteThe smartest person I know is most likely Apria Pinkett. Despite her amazing grades, test scores and her current enrollment in Princeton University, I don't believe those are what make her smart. I believe her ability to give me good advice makes her a smart person. Despite the many issues I have, she always listens to me. She tolerates my stupidity and puts it aside because I have a problem. She then gives her point of view and reassures me. She then listens to my opinion and considers it before I she says anything. So basically, she holds really good advice. I understand that this isn't a typical point of view but it's what I truly believe. I also believe that these factor also make up a good friend. And you can tell that she's smart because she decided to be friends with me. (I'm kidding. Or am I? The world may never know).
Side Rant:
I don't value grades and test scores as much as others. To me they simply are numbers and numbers don't determine how smart we all are. In most of the blogs, everyone said the same things. Intelligence isn't grades and ranks and test scores but blah blah blah. We all tend to say these things but three days prior these people also were criticizing the intelligence of others because of PSAT scores. What I'm trying to say here is that we're hypocrites. I don't believe there is any way around it. I can guarantee that we've all either judged someone else or ourselves based off of grades and test scores because I have.
Intelligence goes far beyond having a 4.0 GPA, being valedictorian, or graduating top from Harvard. Obviously, receiving a good education is important, but it does not signify the ability to be successful in many other aspects. I wondered why so many believe that this is the definition of intelligence (I will not lie, I thought so as well), and the main rationale that came to mind was that colleges and many others judge a person based on their grades. They have construed to the American public that the occupation of high intellect all depends on those seven numbers on your transcript: the higher the numbers are, the more intelligent. They have construed that high results on standardized exams or tests determines your level of knowledge, comprehension, and resulting success.
ReplyDeleteI will argue that they are incorrect. Yes, people with great grades are smart, but it lies deeper than that. So many feel discontentment with themselves about not being ‘intelligent” enough. Well the fact is, not everyone is able to be naturally book smart and walk out first of MIT in physics, and doing that does not necessarily make them intelligent. To be intelligent is to have common sense, to be open to learning and understanding, to be well morally educated, to master your passions and specialties, and overcoming difficult issues. These people are so bright in the sense that they have made life’s hardships manageable and tolerable, also aware of others surrounding them .who have disparate unique capabilities and experiences.
With that being said, the most intelligent people I know would have to be my parents. My mother immigrated at the time with very little knowledge of English, cared for four children while tackling life at home or working (at one point, three jobs while pregnant), working so hard for her to become the nurse she is today. She knows what is right and wrong and has instilled this education early in my life, and she inspires me to persevere in tough situations despite how bad things may appear, as it will get better. This also applies with my father where he immigrated as well and learned English, served in the US army for several years, worked jobs, cared for his kids, paid bills, and finished graduate school to receive his Ph.D in finance. This is intelligence in the sense that they were able to meet their goals to success while dealing with all the issues our family may have faced in the career that was both challenging yet what they are best at. My parents tried to make the best out of the situations we were in , and they remind me that anyone can be intelligent regardless of their background, and numbers cannot define people as a whole. They worked to prove that the combination of these characteristics create a person of intellect rather than focusing only on the numbers.
The word “intelligent” is sometimes referred to grades. From this view, I would say the most intelligent person I know is Preston. However, I do not see the meaning of intelligent as just having the best grades. To me, being intelligent is when one uses the concepts they have been taught and applying it in life when applicable or teaching others the concepts. Not a day goes by without learning something new. And with what you just learned, you can use that in life at a later date. What you learn does not have to be just education oriented. It can just be information on how to do things like how to start a fire. Surviving skills are very valuable just in case if let’s say you are heading to Canada and your pilot gets a heart attack and you end up crashing in the woods. Hopefully you have a hatchet on you.
ReplyDeleteUsing my definition of the word intelligence, which others use for the word, I pick my dad as the most intelligent person I know. My dad is one of 5 or 6 (I have never visited my uncles from my dad’s side and I might be confusing the numbers with my dad’s cousins) sons of my grandpa’s (who I also never visited). During his time in Nepal, my dad went through a lifestyle totally different to mine. It was a much harder life for my dad but it was not all in vain. He learned a lot. He learned even more in his time in the army. Whenever I visit my dad or the other way around, every day with him is a new experience for me. What he learned when he was younger, my dad taught me how to do things I couldn’t do before, like ride a bike. My dad taught me the importance of being at my best behavior. He wants me to learn hard so I can get a good life like he has. Married and two kids with a nice pension coming in monthly, my day has a pretty good life.
There is no set guideline for being intelligent. My belief is that intelligence is up to interpretation and always has been. For example, take any one of the other blog answers, and think of the thousands, hundreds of thousands, or millions of people that apply to being "intelligent". Now, will you agree with every single person who another thinks is intelligent? No, you won't. This is not to say that you cannot agree that certain individuals are intelligent, but rather that you and others interpret intelligence differently. Personally, when asked who I would think is the smartest person I know, I would prefer to refrain from answering. I believe that many around me are smart, there is no doubt to that, however everybody has their own strengths and weaknesses. I don't feel that an "overall" comparison would do my view on intelligence any justice or the person/people I am speaking of any as well. Would you judge an archer on his ability in close combat? Or a warrior on his handling with a bow? No, because that is stupid. Ultimately, I believe that intelligence is up to interpretation, but not everyone is intelligent. (I mean, some people actually take what the media says as 100% facts and will believe anything. That is one of the forms true stupidity to me, but still, that's my interpretation).
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ReplyDeleteIntelligence can be broken down into different characteristics. Some of the ilks of intelligence are social skills, memory, logical reasoning, learning from experiences, and being able to teach. However, I believe to be considered intelligent, someone only has to occupy some or all of these traits. This means that someone can either be book smart, street smart, or both.
ReplyDeleteWith this being said, there is one person I know that encompasses all of these traits and is the smartest person I know. It’s Sophie Ragan and I am extremely grateful that I get to call her one of my bestfriends. It seems that no matter what we talk about, Sophie knows everything about everything. She can back up any arguments and can support it with any type of fact. She holds an abundance of knowledge and stores everything in her memory. Furthermore, Sophie has passed on her experiences to me and what she’s learned from them. Whenever I need advice I always turn to her because I know she will always know the answer. No matter if it’s about ap classes, SATs, band, friends, college, or even love advice, she will always know what to say. Also, what makes her intelligent is that she has amazing social skills and she knows how to talk to every single person. She understands how to talk to certain people in order to avoid conflict and she knows exactly what to say to make someone feel better or laugh. Whenever you talk to Sophie, she makes you feel like she really cares about you and she understands you. This to me makes someone very intelligent because they can adapt to different types of people and can classify them, so she knows how to speak to them. I specifically remember during one football game, we were talking during break and there was a fight between people in band (like always) and she was explaining to me the different types of personality traits within the group. She said, “We’ll call the first group Type 1. These people will get mad at everything, flip out and hold grudges. Type 2 is the passive aggressive people. And then there’s type 3, you and me. We don’t hold grudges and don’t take things too personally.” And this my friends is the realest thing anyone has ever said to me. Lastly, what makes her so intelligent is despite her being in top 10 and getting good grades, she understands the concept that she won’t be good at everything. That people have their weak points and she knows exactly what her’s are.
Overall, I’m thankful that I have Sophie as a best friend and a role model because she makes me strive to be my best self and to obtain the knowledge that she has, but through my own experiences. I hope that I learn to grow wiser, possess social intelligence, and still have common sense. I believe that anyone can learn and grow to be intelligent, it doesn’t take that much effort.
The meaning of being intelligent is something very subjective. Every single person on this earth has a different set of attributes in their head that would make them classify someone as "intelligent." Personally, I think that knowing how to properly deal with problems, AND also knowing lots of information makes someone intelligent. A person can't just have one of these attributes or else they wouldn't be intelligent, in my opinion at least. I think this way because what good is getting all A's when you can't even solve simple everyday life problems. On the other hand, what good is being able to do simple life problems when you can't even understand simple algebra or you can't even string together words to form a coherent sentence. With this said, the most "intelligent" person I've ever known was/is probably my sister(only because I don't want to sound cocky and say myself). I say this because my sister has a pretty good work ethic and she seems to know what to do with her life. She also has good enough grades to say that she does well in school. When I talk to her about some problems, she also seems to know the answer, though I may not believe it at the time. A close second though, is Alfonso. He seems to know what to do whenever I come to him for questions. He also seems to know a lot of things in general. What makes him second though, is that he sometimes seems like he doesn't know the answers to questions in his OWN life. Both these people, although, have gained my own personal label of "intelligent."
ReplyDeleteI believe that there is many different ways to be intelligent. It can go from being intelligent in the classroom, or intelligent in the street, and even intelligent living your life. To be intelligent is to do all the things that's best for yourself or others in whatever situation that you're in. Figuring out who the smartest I've known is a difficult question, so I'm going to say the most successful man in my life so far, my uncle Jeff. I would say that he would be the most intelligent man in my life because of the steps that he has taken in his life to get him where he is now and living the life that he has always wanted. Growing up with people that do the wrong thing and make money the wrong way is an easy way to say "oh I'll just do the same sense everyone else is doing it", but my uncle realized that wasn't the right way to go and not how he wanted to live his life so he stayed out of the streets and in his books to make sure he was the best student he could possibly be. While he was in highschool instead of running around with several different girls and losing focus he stayed with one women the whole way through and they would end up getting married after graduating from Rutgers together. Now today they're still together with an amazing family and a huge house and he has the life he has always wanted because he was intelligent. The reason why I believe he is the most intelligent person I've ever met is because he had so many opportunities to take the "easy way out" of doing work but instead he kept grinding to get what he wanted, and that's why I believe he's intelligent.
ReplyDeleteTo me, intelligence is something that should not just be based on grades in school or how “book smarts” a person is, but on their determination to gather knowledge, the ability of being able to take something in and teach it easily to someone else, on their communication skills, and on how creative can they be. Someone of high intelligence would be able to think creativity “outside of the box” and find the solutions to their problems in an innovative way. They would use the knowledge that they obtain either by themselves or from school and utilize it fully into their future choices. They are determined to get as much knowledge as they could possibly get on their own. They are the well-rounded kind that is not only good at academics but also good at communicating with others; knowing what to do and say in certain situations. They have the “not-so-common” common sense that most people lack. They have the ability to adapt to the obstacles that life decides to throw at them. They are able to see the flaws that they have.
ReplyDeleteThe Spanish artist, Salvador Dali, had said, “Intelligence without ambition is a bird without wings.” True intelligence is when you are using the knowledge you have gained, it is pointless to have knowledge but not use it at all. Utilizing your knowledge would show how intelligent you are. By not using your knowledge, you would be “bird without wings,” there is no point in having them if you don’t use it.
The most intelligent person that I know would be my friend, Allen (not his real name because he wants to remain anonymous). He is someone who expresses most of these traits; he is well-rounded and has shown great determination in gaining and utilizing the knowledge for his personal goals. He is ambitious and passionate about anything that has to do with aerospace engineering and chemistry. His love for these sciences is shown in most of the things he does and most of the choices he makes; he also has the creativity to incorporate most of his ideas around these subjects. Allen may be the most determined person I know to gain more knowledge; just last year, he gave up his lunch period for another AP class which happened to be AP Chemistry (and he was allowed to do this since he lives in New York). Most of the video games that he plays have a science based theme that would be too complicated for most people; having over two thousand hours logged in on Kerbal Space Program, a space game. He is also my go-to person for whenever I have a question about an academic subject too. Allen is able to reiterate something that may be seemingly complicated at first and reduce it down to something simplistic and easy to understand. He is not just all “book smarts” too, he was always the mediator between the fights and drama that had come up during the many Skype calls that we have had with other friends. I see him as one of the smartest people I have ever met and I am glad to be one of his friends.
All humans have intelligence, and some are more proficient in some areas than others. Everyone has their “talents”, whether it be video games, music, or sports. However, someone who can do it all, someone who has the capacity to learn many things, and learn it quickly is considered intelligent. This is my definition of being “intelligent”: Someone who fully understands new concepts quickly. I know it is really hard to find someone on the planet who can just understand everything, but mark my words, there is someone out there. These are usually the people who only have to study for 15 minutes, and they get near perfect scores. I’m not really sure who is the smartest person I know, but I can give instances where some people in my life showed true intelligence. I had a friend in elementary school who was really “smart”. I cannot remember a time where he was truly stuck. More recently, like last year, Wilfred would sometimes, get good grades on his Statistics test without putting that much effort. Those kinds of instances I consider intelligence, where someone picks up a concept pretty easily. Things like that separate us from animals, and differentiate humans.
ReplyDeleteNowadays, Intelligence is extremely rare. Commonly people think that you can only be considered “intelligent” if you have the highest GPA or the highest SAT scores. That is false. Intelligence can be defined in multiple ways. For example, intelligence can be based on your experiences and knowledge on the “real world”. Intelligence is being able to deal with communication, problem solving, etc. Most importantly, intelligence is being the one person who puts in the work to get what most likely deserved. For example, someone who cheated and someone who did everything themselves getting the same results. The intelligent person is the one who used their own resources and own mind.
ReplyDeleteOne person who I consider the smartest person I’ve ever known is my sister. Not only is she extremely book smart and an English major but she’s someone who knows how to make all the right decisions. Of course, she’s not perfect so she isn’t ALWAYS going to end up making the right choice, but when she doesn’t she knows how to fix it. My sister knows how to communicate extremely well with anyone about anything. She Is someone who can help you find your way if you need the help. In certain situations, my sister knows how to say all the right things. My sister has three kids and a husband. About 4 or 5 years ago, she moved away to Georgia. She was able to adapt to the different changes quickly, as if she had grown up there. In my opinion adapted to drastic changes plays a big role in intelligence.
When I need help with anything I go to my sister before anyone just because I know she’s going to help me in the best way. Without my sister, I feel as though in some ways I wouldn’t be who I am now. She has supported me with everything and helped me make the right decisions when I let her.
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ReplyDeleteIt always leaves me in awe when I think about the amount of people I know who have not graduated high school and are intelligent. It leaves me in awe because I have been taught over my 17 years of being here that intelligence is what you gain from school. However, judging from the many unintelligent people I attend school with, I can assure you that intelligence is not gained from simply just going to school. To me, being intelligent is more than getting straight A’s on your report card, going to an ivy league school, etc. Being intelligent is going above and beyond on what we learn from school, it’s what you pick up on in life and knowing almost everything there is to know.
ReplyDeleteAlthough it pains me to say it, the smartest person I know is my uncle Noel. To clear any confusion, it pains me to say he is the smartest person I know because he aggravates me to the fullest, and never fails. Anyways, he has jumped from career to career multiple times, not because he didn’t have an idea on what he wanted to be, but because he likes to learn and experience more things. When he first graduated high school, he graduated a few years later with a teaching degree. Two or three years later he changed his career to working for DYFS. However, a few years later he became a restaurant co-owner, a construction worker, and now he is back into school for business. You may just be saying “oh, well he probably just doesn’t know what he wants to do with his life”, but he really just switches to learn more about what interests him. The way he talks and interacts with people also prove just how smart he is. No matter who the person is, he has never lost an argument on something that has to do with who’s right or not.
To continue, he has gotten me through a lot of tough situations, which involve school and street smarts. I don’t know how he did it, but he has made me believe, plenty of times, that I can be whoever I want to be and that there is no one that can ever stop that. Lastly, the fact that he has suffered through the loss of his baby mom and raised a child on his own alone proves of his strength and intelligence. He has pushed his son to be one of the best basketball players on his team and one of the smartest. Even though he angers me most times, I strive to be at least as great as him or even better.
When someone has a lot intelligence, that means you can’t out smart them. My mom is the smartest person I know by far. She is constantly using her head when it comes to any situation. As for me, I’m that person in the family that doesn’t use their head. I’m the known as the ditsy of my family. I guess that’s why I look up to my mother so much. There’s no lying to her no matter what you say. There’s also no outsmarting her because she is always using her head. There are so many qualities that she has that shows her intelligence. She always finds a way to be right. When she feels a strong opinion about something, she’ll fight with you until you agree with her. So in other words, she is very persuasive and never will back down from a fight. THe qualities that make somebody intelligent are all things my mom acquires. My mother is clever, persuasive, and strong. These make up how intelligent of a person she is because those three words together is the definition of intelligence. To be intelligent you must be clever, persuasive, and strong.
ReplyDeleteBeing intelligent isn’t something that you are born with. It isn't something that you obtain overnight. It’s something that people obtain over the span of their lifetime. Some people are more intelligent than others, but to me that's not a deal breaker to whether or not I will be friends with someone. To be intelligent means to understand most of your aspects in life and how stuff works. As you encounter more things your intelligence rises. The smartest person I know personally would have to be my dad. He is someone who somehow seems to know the answer to almost anything you ask him. Have a math question? Perfect he knows the answer. Need to write a paper on history? Again he knows the answers. He surprises me everyday with his intelligence. I forget what grade it was but as per usual I procrastinated and had to rush to do a math packet that I didn't know. Although he was mad at me for waiting till the last day he was able to help me get through the packet. Something that he must've learned over 30 years ago he was able to remember like he had just taken a test on it. There was also another time where I had to do a history powerpoint on some american battle during the civil war. I was getting ready to give up on my boring research when he came over and was like a personal web brower. This dude knew fun fact after fun fact about this war. I needed to know how many people died. This dude knew. Call it what you want but my dad is intelligent.
ReplyDeleteIntelligence comes down to the person. It comes done to how much wisdom you have and your ability to think and processes information then being able to apply it to your life and others. Being able to think before you speak and be able to think yourself in other peoples position rather than just your own. Knowing just how insignificant you are in the universe but knowing you have a plays at the same time. Seeing the while picture rather than s short piece to get a full understanding. In know your side is not enough. You must know both sides of a story to have a proper understanding of it. These little things make you intelligent. other words, problem solving. The smartest person I know is my Father. All my life i grew up and he had the answer. He is well rounded so he isn't just some math nutlike some people in the world. (That just doesn't make you intelligent, just god with numbers). My father knows history, science, math, and how he world works and people. I could ask him a question and he probably could tell you because he read it somewhere. He loves to read which means he constantly on the hunt for new information. He stays "hungry". And when he doesn't know he thinks and gives you the most logically answer he could think up but he doesn't quite know. He is very humble. He values knowledge.
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