[extropy-chat] Re: Slashdot submission: Study links genetic diseases to intelligence

[Neil Halelamien]

Huzzah, successful submission (this marks my 30th in the past year):

http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/06/08/0110241&tid=191

There was an interesting comment on Cochran's goal of eventually
creating a "smart pill" as an offshoot of this research.

On 6/6/05, Neil Halelamien <neuronexmachina at gmail.com> wrote:
> (I'm planning on submitting the following story to slashdot soon, but
> considering the extreme sensitivity of the topic and slashdotters'
> propensity for going completely nutzoid, I'd appreciate suggestions on
> possible rewordings/additions. Also, what are your thoughts on the
> topic itself and its implications for genetic enhancement of
> intelligence?)
> 
> The Economist, Sun-Sentinel, and FuturePundit report on a
> controversial study by Gregory Cochran and others which proposes a
> link between certain genetic conditions and above-average intelligence
> in Ashkenazi Jews. The 40-page study, published in the Journal of
> Biosocial Science, analyzes data on unusual patterns of genetic
> disease in the ethnic group and relates it to various measures of
> intelligence, such as winning 27% of America's Nobel science prizes
> and having a highly disproportionate rate of IQs over 140. Although
> the intelligence data has traditionally been attributed solely to
> cultural factors, Cochran proposes that due to unusual selection
> pressures between 800 and 1600AD certain genes developed which promote
> intelligence as single copies, but lead to particular diseases when
> somebody inherits two copies. Of particular note are mutations which
> seem to be involved with neuron growth and DNA repair. According to
> Harvard cognitive scientist Steven Pinker, "It would be hard to
> overstate how politically incorrect this paper is... [though] it's
> certainly a thorough and well-argued paper, not one that can easily be
> dismissed outright."
> 
> Links from submission:
> http://www.economist.com/science/displaystory.cfm?story_id=4032638
> http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/sfl-adiseases03jun03,0,3551969.story
> http://www.futurepundit.com/archives/002812.html
> http://harpend.dsl.xmission.com.nyud.net:8090/Documents/AshkenaziIQ.jbiosocsci.pdf
>