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shminux comments on FAI FAQ draft: general intelligence and greater-than-human intelligence - Less Wrong Discussion

1 Post author: lukeprog 23 November 2011 07:52PM

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Comment author: amcknight 23 November 2011 10:48:54PM 1 point [-]

humans are nearly the dumbest possible creature capable of developing a technological civilization

Dumbest possible? That sounds too strong. Humans are the first, which gives us good reason to think we are nowhere near the most intelligent, but we might not be at the very bottom. I think the very bottom would not be easy to evolve because it doesn't offer much of an advantage.

Comment author: Normal_Anomaly 24 November 2011 12:31:24AM 4 points [-]

Chimpanzees have some level of intelligence insufficient for technological civilization. Our common ancestor with chimpanzees presumably had some level of intelligence insufficient for technological civilization. As our ancestors evolved gradually from that common ancestor, their intelligence increased gradually. As soon as it reached the level sufficient for technological civilization, they formed one, which has existed for the blink of an eye in evolutionary time. Current humans are just above that threshold, because we can only have been above it for a short time.