Are actually quite dumb, according to the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect]Dunning-Kruger effect[/url]. The paper that first introduced this idea received the Nobel Prize in 2000. [quote]The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias manifesting in two principal ways: >Unskilled individuals suffer from illusory superiority, mistakenly rating their ability much higher than is accurate. This bias is attributed to a metacognitive inability of the unskilled to recognize their ineptitude. >Those persons to whom a skill or set of skills come easily may find themselves with weak self-confidence, as they may falsely assume that others have an equivalent understanding. See Impostor syndrome.[/quote] In short, many dumb people think they're smart, and many smart people think they're dumb. In the past I've fell victim to being overly confident about my intelligence, but after reading up on this a few months ago I decided that I was going to be much more modest about it, even though it can be undignifying and difficult to accept. But the process has definitely improved my well being and even lowered my stress. Looking back on old threads, namely IQ threads in which half of the Flood thinks they are 40 IQ points above Einstein, I think there is quite a few of you that could use some insight here besides me. Becoming more modest about your intelligence should let you realize who you really are and what you're really capable of. It may not make you more intelligent as is, but it should help you better wield your knowledge. And yes, I'm posting on an alt because I know that this thread has a good potential of erupting in a flame war with people pointing out other people who this applies to. And I no longer believe being edgy and saying I don't care about being banned is a good way of spending my time here, especially since I've already burned through a dozen alts in the past week alone. It just makes it harder for people to like you here (and I would have liked to have posted this in Mr Psychologist's group, but my account is currently banned). Anyway, I hope this helps for those of you who are open minded enough to explore a new way of perceiving yourself.