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The scores on some tests have increased, but the major figures seem to believe that this is due to cultural change, and that in other tests, scores have not increased. The scores with less cultural influence have seen no increase, for example.
Supposedly, practice can increase the IQ score on one test but will not have an effect on a test that you have not studied for. For example, reaction time is a measure of IQ and learning more vocabulary does not increase your reaction time (citation needed).
HBDers spend a lot of time showing that mixed-race people have the IQs that are the weighted sum of their constituent races. The more white admixture, the high the IQ, etc. They look at this at the gene level rather than relying on physical features. I have no idea how valid this work is.
African Americans are about 15% white admixture, for example. This is fairly easy to measure.
Given the population size, the distribution is fairly normal. The standard deviations may vary, of course.
These seem all a bit rote, and again don't really address much complexity. If I can practice and improve on a test then there is a cultural element. You mention speed reaction can't be trained for, but I'm assuming elite black athletes have superior scores on these, does this imply that blacks have superior native intelligence on aspects of intelligence?
Populations at the level of black v white v mixed are mixed of genetic lineages. This means tail genetics doesn't have to relate to median genetics.
Your genetic pot analogy seems a bit naive scientifically. To infer a causal relationship I'm going to need a bit more in terms of genetics.
My beef isn't that there's 'nothing there', just that the complexity is not engaged with, which implies a dunning-kruger potential. I am a scientist so I'm actually interested in the complexity and science. Others aren't interested in this but in making blanket statements about groups of people (with immense intragroup genetic variation), which overindexes on skin attributes.
Why do you assume this? I will look up the results. Lynn claims that black children have slower choice time but faster movement times. IQ is related to choice time (I am told, but I have not seen anyone doubt this.).
Lynn concludes:
I don't understand what you mean. Sorry.
The idea that there would be a linear relationship comes from the assumption (or observation?) that intelligence is influenced by many genes. This is fairly well accepted in other areas. I don't know any arguments why it would not apply to intelligence, but that might be my failure.
If you were around a few years ago, there was a lot of complexity, but I did not pay that much attention, and the major proponents don't post anymore.
For an example of engaging with the question, have a look at this paper. I have not checked the data, the analysis, or even if the study they are using ever happened, but it shows the kind of reasoning that HBDers do. They take seriously the kind of questions you ask.
Thanks for the clarification on 'reaction time' v 'choice time', and link to information processing capacity claim and reference. This enables me to explore and talk about something meaningful.
Black and white are broad groupings of different peoples and histories. The causal path of HBD presumably involves homogeneous lineages that develop distinctions as adaptive advantages. If you go to the top level, partly socially constructed level of race, we lose the causal lineage pathway and smear out across more diverse groups and genetics.
The point by point call and response block comment is not my thing - each individual point immediately becomes deep and layered so trying to address multiple in parallel is futile. But the choice reaction time is a good start to dig into. Thanks for an interesting HBD engagement and links.
In general, this is the case, and Black people, encompassing San, Pygmies, Bushmen, Ethiopians and West Africans are extremely genetically diverse. Two bushmen are further apart genetically than the average Asian is from a European. That said, when people talk about Black people in this context they generally mean the descendants of West African slaves which are a fairly homogenous group.
White people generally mean Anglo Germans, which again are a fairly tight group. When people point to a difference, they mean the difference between these two groups.
There is very little discussion of HBD here anymore, and I paid little attention when there was discussion. What I did take away from it was that the people involved had extensive theories, and had put in a lot of work.
I do not particularly believe in HBD, mostly because I live in an environment that is very selected so every one of every race seems very similar.
Thanks, good to have testable propositions that can be interrogated.
The other link you sent, the bottom one, is quite interesting. I'm only early in it, but the admixture technique contrasting Pygmy genetics against relative admixtures of an out group is a great idea for an experiment. I think it relies though on the contrast with a homogeneous population so you can distinguish the genes related to an attribute, eg height. Its a technique for identifying genes rather than an empirical rule that would necessarily apply if both groups were genetically more diverse, I imagine information-theoretically or statistically speaking that's a higher bar. But as I say early in the article.
I am somewhat interested in the actual science but I think HBD has a big job to demonstrate itself because of the complexity involved. I prefer to meet humans on an individual basis...
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