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Re:“I’m not that smart” by teachersaredumb on Monday October 17, 2022 @12:58AM (#33229954)
Not to brag (is it even possible to brag through an anonymous throwaway account?), but throughout my schooling I skipped or skimmed most readings and avoided doing the homework, or copied it off my more diligent classmates. But I still got perfect grades in high school and graduate school, outperforming classmates who worked much harder. In undergrad, I had mediocre grades only because I just didn't do the homework and often turned in term projects many days late, but based on test performances, would have also had near perfect grades. I have a bad work ethic which holds me back in other ways, but I'm still near the top of my field for my age bracket. If I hear something once, I understand it and remember it for life. I don't mean memorizing lists; I mean learning how something works and why and how to apply that knowledge.
Re:“I’m not that smart” by travisjungroth on Monday October 17, 2022 @01:00AM (#33229966)
If this isn’t to brag, then what is it for?
Re:“I’m not that smart” by senko on Monday October 17, 2022 @01:08AM (#33229995)
(not gp) To show that intuitive math understanding is a thing.
Re:“I’m not that smart” by travisjungroth on Monday October 17, 2022 @02:42AM (#33230435)
Doesn’t really seem to settle things. Comment explained that people learn math from somewhere. Reply described someone learning math in school, quickly and with low effort.
Re:“I’m not that smart” by cglotr on Monday October 17, 2022 @09:23PM (#33241876)
Learning math elsewhere implies someone is smarter due to nurture. This dude experience implies raw intelligence (nature)
Re:“I’m not that smart” by travisjungroth on Tuesday October 18, 2022 @09:46AM (#33247036)
There’s no description of his life from age 0 to 5 (incredibly formative nurturing years) and almost none before high school.
Re:“I’m not that smart” by cglotr on Monday October 17, 2022 @09:21PM (#33241859)
To prove a point that some people are just smarter than others? A useful anecdote
Re:“I’m not that smart” by saberience on Monday October 17, 2022 @01:54AM (#33230166)
So despite your clearly large intellect, it seems like you didn't understand the English verb "to brag."

I would say this in response, what you describe: being good at middle and high and able to get perfect grades there, isn't particularly impressive. Most good students can excel in high school. You note that things got harder for you in college, this is more normal, "smart kids" usually get found out in college when the work becomes harder. I'm not sure if you went on to postgrad education but I'd hazard a guess that if you went on to do a PhD you would have had a big shock.

My point is this, being able to "ace" teenager level work isn't actually all that big of a deal. I went to a private all-boys school where there were many, many boys who aced every piece of homework and tests they took. It didn't mean they were super special, that's just what you get when schools select for the brightest kids. Now, if they went straight from school and then aced their PhD in a year, that would actually unusual.

Re:“I’m not that smart” by musicale on Monday October 17, 2022 @03:29AM (#33230704)
> If I hear something once, I understand it and remember it for life

Must be nice to have that kind of recall at the age of 100.

That being said, some people (John Von Neumann) seem to have had fantastic visual and textual recall.

A number of artists (Kim Jung Gi) and musicians (Mozart) seem to develop excellent visual and auditory memories as well.

Re:“I’m not that smart” by prodent on Monday October 17, 2022 @03:41AM (#33230766)
> Not to brag, but

> brags