📘 Part 3: Talents & Being Smart

This episode's vocabulary

Well-rounded (adjective) – Having a personality that is fully developed in all aspects; knowledgeable in a variety of subjects. → She is well-rounded, so she knows a lot of things from different spheres.

Keep things ticking over (idiom) – To make something continue working or functioning at a basic level. → We need people in construction to keep things ticking over.

Get fixated on (phrasal verb) – To become obsessively focused on one specific thing. → Others get fixated on one specific thing to the exclusion of everything else.

Requisite (adjective) – Made necessary by particular circumstances or regulations. → You need to invest the requisite amount of time in doing something to become good at it.

Hectic (adjective) – Full of incessant or frantic activity. → Children are given a space away from an otherwise hectic life to sit down and learn.

Like-minded (adjective) – Having similar tastes, opinions, or interests. → They get exposed to like-minded people who can help them understand and interpret things.

Realize one's full potential (phrase) – To achieve everything one is capable of. → We can help children in realizing their full potential by sending them to school.

Replicate (verb) – To make an exact copy of; reproduce. → Through listening, you can come to understand and perhaps replicate the process too.

Innate (adjective) – Inborn; natural. → It's a question of innate intelligence, the one we are born with, versus acquired intelligence.

Acquired (adjective) – Gained or developed through experience, not inherited. → Acquired intelligence is the one that we develop by learning, studying and effort.

Infinite potential (noun phrase) – Limitless capacity to develop or succeed. → You could be born with infinite potential, but your environment matters.

Upbringing (noun) – The treatment and instruction received by a child from their parents throughout their childhood. → It depends on your education and upbringing.

Cognitive functions (noun phrase) – Mental processes that include attention, memory, and problem-solving. → A healthy diet rich in nutrients supports cognitive functions.

Doomscrolling (verb) – The act of spending an excessive amount of screen time devoted to the absorption of negative news. → Doomscrolling lowers your IQ.

Questions and Answers

Maria: Why does modern society need talents of all kinds?

Rory: Well, I imagine because we have a million different roles for people to fill these days, don't we? We need people on social media, in the government, in education, and out working in the streets and in construction to keep things ticking over. If we didn't have people who were good at all these sorts of things, it could get pretty messy or at least inefficient.

Maria: Why are some people well-rounded and others only good at one thing?

Rory: I think it's a question of focus. Some people spread their attention over a variety of areas. Whether that's due to family values or just their own personal interest is irrelevant. That's what they do. While others get fixated on one specific thing to the exclusion of everything and become amazing in that one area. For someone like Bill Gates, they can get very lucky, and that makes them very wealthy indeed, so it encourages them to keep going.

Maria: How can people become multi-talented?

Rory: I imagine just by investing the time in studying different things. I can't think of any other way. You need to invest the requisite amount of time in doing something to become good at it. That's it, basically. If there are other ways, I can't think of them right now.

Maria: How do children become smart at school?

Rory: Oh, all kinds of ways. I think the most obvious would be learning things like facts and principles and how they can be applied to different subject areas. But it could also be through being given a place and space away from an otherwise hectic life to sit down and sort their heads out. In the same way, the provision of school meals in some countries has had a direct positive effect on IQ. Oh, and they get exposed to like-minded people who can help them understand and interpret things, which is very useful for becoming smarter.

Maria: Do you think children are born smart or they learn to become smart?

Rory: I'm not sure it's one or the other really. You're probably born with a certain capacity to learn, and over the course of your life, this expands in various ways to fit your needs in an environment that enables that. I mean, you could be born with infinite potential, but if you're raised in a tiny box, you're not going to be able to do much with it, are you?

Maria: How can we help children in realizing their full potential?

Rory: Well, just through the things that we do already. So, we send children to school, which is this place that creates opportunities for them to do that. And they work with teachers who ideally encourage them to try different things that helps them identify what they're good at. And if not, the teachers can help identify this. So a lot of that's very school-based. And then, of course, they don't just go to school, they also go home. So the parents can play a part in this as well. They notice the things that their children are good at or they need help with in order to progress further. So a lot of this is about noticing things, really.

Maria: What's the best way to learn problem-solving skills?

Rory: I'm tempted to say by solving problems. But I suppose a more in-depth answer would be to, well, you could do it, of course, you could solve different problems or puzzles, for example, but you can also observe people in the process of doing that. Like you listen to the language that masters in problem solving use when they're dealing with these kinds of subjects. And through that, you can come to understand and perhaps replicate the process too. There's also a great deal to be said from looking at terrible examples of problem solving to see what you definitely should not do and that way you can become more efficient as well.