i wonder how the cognitive surplus from the internet is distributed. it could be as high as 20 IQ points (my guess) over the last 30 years. i suspect though that most of the gains went to people already on the right hand side of the distribution, perhaps with a cutoff point around 120 IQ points. this would support the idea expressed by Steve Jurvetson that perhaps the increasing returns to intelligence went primarily to the already intelligent, and the gap has increased? it is true that the flynn effect holds true for the entire spectrum of intelligence but perhaps this is a higher level effect than what is measured?

this is old but still very true.

the internet makes dumb people dumber and smart people smarter. If you don’t know how to use it, or don’t have the background to ask the right questions, you’ll end up with a head full of nonsense. But if you do know how to use it, it’s an endless wealth of information. The internet is now a major driver of the growth of cognitive inequality.

and the effect seems to be increasing:

In a large US-representative adolescent sample, a Flynn Effect was found for IQs ≥ 130, and a negative effect for IQs ≤ 70. IQ changes also differed substantially by age group. A negative Flynn Effect for those with low intellectual ability suggests widening disparities in cognitive ability

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