It is no secret that we are growing more stupid by the day. Studies have shown that our IQ scores have been falling steadily in the past decades. The Daily Mail notes that the IQ, which had risen every decade since World War II has now begun to fall at a rate of about seven points per generation, which is a seriously worrying trend. This fall in IQ is believed to have begun with those born in 1975. While less sleep is pointed out as one reason for falling intelligence, consumption of high fat foods, multi-tasking, and relying on technology rather than memory, are some of the other reasons attributed for falling intelligence.
Our intelligence is definitely falling by leap and bounds. Is there a relationship between intelligence and morality? Prof. Freeman in his paper, ‘Morality and Giftedness’ says that ‘morality is inextricably bound with wisdom’. Wisdom requires one to give advice and induce people to take it. However there is also a view that intelligence and morality don’t go together. This hypothesis is on the premise that intelligent people can also be immoral. They cite Gandhi and Osama Bin Laden as examples to drive the point that both were intelligent but one was immoral. Prof. Freeman says that people like Osama Bin Laden, Kim Jung II, Stalin, or Hitler are considered by some as being the ultimate voice in morality and wisdom, although this may be opposed to other people’s vision. What we infer from this is the fact that what could be moral to some, could be immoral to others.
Nonetheless intelligence is the basis for good and bad morality. Therefore falling intelligence could signify a fall in the desired morality and this fact requires no proof. Today we are less concerned of everything around us, the cries around us, needs of fellow countrymen, and even the environment. There is a bigger intention to gain with lesser consideration of the associated righteousness. If we look into the lives of children, women, elderly, differently handicapped today, we will realize that their plight today is unprecedented. The Telegraph quoting experts says, “Violence against women at ‘epidemic’ levels worldwide.” The New York Times reiterates, “Violence against women — including rape, murder and sexual harassment — remains stubbornly high in countries rich and poor, at war and at peace. The United Nations’ main health agency, the World Health Organization, found that 38 percent of women who are murdered are killed by their partners.” The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) had determined that disability based discrimination rose 6% in 2015 FY, the highest for any other category. There is no doubt that decline in intelligence has led to a decline in morality in our society.
However despite our falling intelligence, there has been no indication of any decline in our capabilities. Everything is predicted to expand into newer frontiers. We are developing, exploring deeper into space, into atoms and so forth. Notwithstanding the ground realities, the evolution of contemporary laws toward vulnerable sections like children, women, and physically challenged are breaching newer frontiers. Laws on their welfare are unprecedented, showing a rise in morality trend. Banning homework and corporal punishment for kids, throwing away ranking among kids and acknowledging everyone as a winner, have all been unprecedented in children’s welfare.
With regard to women too, laws have been implemented toward better women’s rights, removing discrimination in inheritance, enhancing personal decision making, and economic participation. Laws have begun favoring increased maternity period as evident in India under BJP, establishing of baby feeding zones as evident in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, and the recent favorable tennis ranking for returning mothers. Hallward-Driemeier’s research that draws on a database tracking the global progress from 1960 to 2010 in removing discriminatory laws on women’s property rights, as well as women’s ability to make legal decision shows that the number of legal barriers to women’s economic participation dropped by half around the globe.
So we see today amidst us, a decline in intelligence and morality at an individual level, but a rise in our capabilities and morality at a holistic level. Capabilities are obviously tied to intelligence and therefore our collective intelligence that is rising is reflected in our desire for higher morality. This is our out-of body intelligence on which we increasingly rely, compensating for our in-body capabilities. This is the intelligence that lives on internet, our laptops, disks, mobile phones etc. Today, without this out-of-body intelligence we shall not be able to even replicate our past achievements. For instance despite being over 80 years, the Empire State Building cannot be built again without computers and mobile phones today, forget building it in 410 days. While our stake on this external intelligence and vulnerability of a cut-off is debatable, what is now clear is that this out-of-body intelligence has begun to compensate the effects of our falling intelligence. It has shown to impact and guide us toward higher morality at a collective level. So what if our in-body intelligence and our morality are falling; we have our ever increasing out-of-body intelligence that shall never fail us. The fact that this ever increasing out-of-body intelligence will ultimately win and rule over every internal desires looks certain, it is something that only only time can confirm.
