(I don't know what the exact terminology of what I am going to describe is. I have searched "collective intelligence" and "collective intellect", but neither are what I intend to discuss.)
Humans are probably the only species that rely on information that is passed down to them from their elders. They constantly observe and learn. This is a continual process.
For example, a present day 4 year old would have no problem handling an iPhone or a touch screen phone. But if you were to give it to a present day 80 year old, it is most likely that he finds it difficult to operate this device.
This is because the 4 year old kid has grown up with iPhone's and has seen people operate it and it is easy for him to operate it. But the 80 year old probably grew up in an agricultural village and watched his elders cultivate crops, not operate iPhones.
It is safe to also assume that the 80 year old man would know his way better in an agricultural landscape than the kid who grew up alongside iPhones.
This an example that is more colloquial.
Let us consider a more formal one.
A present day human being is easily able to grasp ideas like gravity, earth is a sphere or even the concept of cars, elevators, etc.
But if you were to present these ideas to a pre-Copernicus people, they would look at you in an absurd fashion and commit you in a mental institution.
These ideas have been passed down generations and now we just take them for granted. This is one of the things that separates humans from other living species. This collective intellect has propelled us forward in all aspects of life.
Humans are probably the only species that rely on information that is passed down to them from their elders. They constantly observe and learn. This is a continual process.
For example, a present day 4 year old would have no problem handling an iPhone or a touch screen phone. But if you were to give it to a present day 80 year old, it is most likely that he finds it difficult to operate this device.
This is because the 4 year old kid has grown up with iPhone's and has seen people operate it and it is easy for him to operate it. But the 80 year old probably grew up in an agricultural village and watched his elders cultivate crops, not operate iPhones.
It is safe to also assume that the 80 year old man would know his way better in an agricultural landscape than the kid who grew up alongside iPhones.
This an example that is more colloquial.
Let us consider a more formal one.
A present day human being is easily able to grasp ideas like gravity, earth is a sphere or even the concept of cars, elevators, etc.
But if you were to present these ideas to a pre-Copernicus people, they would look at you in an absurd fashion and commit you in a mental institution.
These ideas have been passed down generations and now we just take them for granted. This is one of the things that separates humans from other living species. This collective intellect has propelled us forward in all aspects of life.
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