4 Feb 2006
Posted by Oblivion in
General
| 7:15pm
Her parents broke up when she was nine.
Her father left for Italy, leaving behind a fortune on her name.
She refused to leave her ailing mother to the care of nurses. Her husband thought it was arrogance. He broke up with her.
Eight months later, her mother died of depression.
Her son was a reporter and writer. He was kidnapped by terrorists and beheaded. The video was put up online. She saw the video. Nobody knew about his body.
Her daughter walked out, swearing she would never return.
She is full of tears. She puts up a smile for guests, friends, and strangers.
She has nobody to live for. Solitude never leaves her.
Past was a wreck. Future is directionless. She moves on.
She looks at the photographs. She looks back at the life that was.
Her son playing a guitar. She smiles with tears in her eyes. He doesn't smile back.
Her mother and father, together. She can't stop tears. Neither offers a hug.
Her wedding. The husband, young and handsome. She sleeps alone.
Her daughter, running in glee on the sands. She caresses the tender feet. The feet don't stop.
Their smiles. She can never see again.
Their hands. Those hands that she held once with care.
She looks at the sky. God notices she wants to ask something. She is ready to trade all her fortune and future for even one of those precious moments from the past. He smiles and vanishes.
Current Mood: Happy
Current Music: ---
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4 Feb 2006
Posted by Oblivion in
General
| 4:25pm
Ic = intelligence of a group
Ia = average intelligence of all the individuals that constitute the group
(If a group has n individuals, Ia = (I1+I2+I3+...+In)/n
Ip = average intelligence of the powerful people in the group
Ih = the borrowed intelligence of the past (could be negative or positive, depending on its influence)
Reference measure:
Sane - 1.0
Sensible/constructive - between 0.7 and 0.9
Utilitarian/pragmatic - between 0.4 and 0.6
Insensible/destructive - between 0.1 and 0.3
Insane - 0.0
Ia is the biggest contributor, but is not very powerful in deciding how the group uses the intelligence available. The intelligence of each individual is, in turn, a function of Ih - for, it forms the reference point for an individual to shape his intelligence.
Ip is the factor that decides the 'functional intelligence' (the bank of intelligence that is actually used) of the group. If a society has twenty Buddhas or Russells, the cumulative and average intelligence would look impressive, but it has little effect on the functional intelligence. This is dependent wholly on the intelligence of the people in power. So, a society with twenty enlightened people would be easily rendered useless by one dictator. The residual intelligence (only the utilitarian part) of the sane people would add to Ih and is passed on to future.
Ih is most variable. New ideas - not necessarily better than the old ones - replace the old. While it can never be brought down to absolute zero, it is prone to abrupt dips by events like War. A ruthless War might make the most intelligent individuals disillusioned and lose hope in mankind, ensuing in a complete rejection of the better part of Ih. Its value can be negative too.
Observations (for heterogenous groups):
1.Intelligence of a group is always less than that of a sane individual.
2.A group can, at best, be pragmatic. A sensible group is a rarity. Most groups achieve pragmatic level.
3.A group can never be sane. Only an individual can.
Natural selection wants the species to be efficient. It doesn't care for sanity. Thus, sanity is not in the genetic interest of the species. 'Sanity genes', for this reason, don't get passed on across generations. So, it's only an individual who can be sane; a group can never be. Besides, sane people, in most cases, do not leave behind any descendants, so the likelihood of the survival of sanity genes is slim. Even if they are passed on, it isn't likely that they sustain even for one generation.
Current Mood: Happy
Current Music: Ilaiyaraja
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