Stupidity

-What is stupidity?

Today we looked at what stupidity is, and why it is so difficult to define. A question that was raised was "How can we understand stupidity if we don't understand knowledge?", which is essentially is what TOK explores.

" Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former" -Albert Einstein


A definition of stupid in the Oxford English Dictionary is as follows:
adj.
1) Lacking intelligence or common sense
2) Dazed and unable to think clearly
3) (informal) used to express exasperation or boredom

In the documentary we watched in class, these 'types' of definitions were what the people interviewed came up with. It seems to be the inability to think appropriately in an intellectual, social, or any sort of situation.In this sense, the expression of 'exasperation or boredom' fits as being bored takes our ability to think properly.

However, everyday we use the word 'stupid' in a much broader sense. Anything we don't approve of is 'stupid'. Where does this ambiguous word which all people use come from?
The documentary showed how humans have had a uncomfortable history with ignorance, and have avoided to confront the issue in a proper academic form. The IQ, which measures intelligence in a scientific manner, on the other hand of the scale also defines stupidity. The IQ test originally served to classify retardation in children, although now we tend to avoid the direct classification of people with low IQ as 'retarded'. Different words that compare levels of stupidity in people were clarified then.

There is also a tendency for people to opt for stupidity. Watching television is a almost brainless activity, which causes a state of virtual catatonia. We know this, yet at the end of the day when we are tired, we often want to watch television brainlessly. The whole commercial industry and the media is based around this concept of brainless activity. Yet it is 'commercial' because it reaches to wide audiences and makes money. So can stupidity be a type of social phenomena/disease? I think the fact that people are living in intellectual society which promotes knowledge means that on the other hand, intelligence is also used to create stupidity. Because there is intelligence, stupidity is created. It is like saying someone can only become healthy because unhealthiness exists, and if unhealthiness didn't exist, then there would be no pursuit for better health.

So what is stupidity? I don't know :)