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Normal_Anomaly comments on Open Thread, January 15-31, 2012 - Less Wrong Discussion
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My experience with Mensa was similar to yours. I joined, read a couple issues of their magazine without having time to go to a meeting, and realized that if the meetings were like the magazine they weren't worth the time. There was far less original thought in Mensa then I had expected.
Saying this about Mensa is a much better way to signal intelligence to other intelligent people than actually being a Mensa member.
Well, it's worth being a little careful here. Saying dismissive things about an outgroup is an effective way to present myself as a higher-status member of the ingroup; that works as well for "us intelligent people" and "those Mensa dweebs" as any other ingroup/outgroup pairing. Which makes it hard to tell whether I'm really signalling intelligence at all.
Yes, and I knew that when I said it. But it's also true.
Right now my question is: Is abandoning Mensa the most useful thing, or can it be used to increase rationality somehow?
Seems to me that the selection process in Mensa has two steps. First, one must decide to make a Mensa entry test. Second, one must decide to be a Mensa member, despite seeing that Mensa is only good for signalling -- this is sometimes not so obvious to a non-Member. For example when I was 15, I imagined that Mensa would be something like... I guess like I now imagine the LW meetups. I expected there people who are trying to win, not only to signal intelligence to other members.
So I conclude that people who pass the first filter are better material than people who pass both filters. A good strategy could be this: Start a local rationalist group. Become a member of Mensa, so you know when Mensa does tests. Prepare a flyer describing your rationalist group and give it to everyone that completes the Mensa test -- they will probably come to the first following Mensa meeting, but many of them will not appear again.
This is what I want to do, when I overcome my laziness. Also I will give a talk in Mensa about rationality and LW, though (judging by reactions on our facebook group) most members will not be really interested.