What is "Smart"

[Chrome]

I have always been iffy with the word "smart". Im pretty sure it is a subjective word, but lets break it down to what it could mean. So being smart will have to do with cognitive abilities, the following are some cognitive abilities that I thought up.

- Knowledge/Book Smart ( The ability to remember facts combine with a type of person that always wants to learn more)

- Problem Solve (The ability to find a solution for problems)

- Fast thinkers/Improve ( The ability to think fast, eg. a trash talking war)

- Innovators (The ability to create something new and original)

- Strong minded ( The ability to be able to still think clearly under duress or a crisis situation)

- Fast learners (The ability to learn something new fast) 

- Wisdom (Experience)

- Street Smart (social intelligence, the ability to accurately judge a person, situational awareness) 

So Einstein, who would have knowledge, problem solve, and innovators, and most likely fast learner abilities. Is consider smart for most people.

When you call someone smart, what is it about that person that makes him so? 

 

[Touchfuzzy]

Me

 

[Jawnsunn]

TJ Henderson from Smart Guy.




He's 9.

He's smart.

Get on his level.

 

[Onii Chan]

I consider a person smart if that person is wise enough to get through life both physical and spiritual. Why? because is not a detriment to that person in any way.

 

[doriantoki]

I associate smart more with quickness of mind and thinking on one's feet.  This is different from intelligence, which means you know a great deal about any particular subject.  An intelligent person can be devoid of smarts, and vice versa.  Wisdom, is experience that comes with age, and knowing intuitively what to do in any particular situation.

 

[BigEd781]

Touch stole my response...

 

[Espon]

Common sense

 

[VegaKotes]

Common sense

I dunno, the very wording of "Common Sense" implies that it's a normal thing.

And normal people aren't "smart" they're average.

Even if all average people were to become more "smart" they would still be average.

And the people who were smarter than *that* would become the new "smart"

Anyway, I think of being smart as being able to problem solve with the resources you have.

The better you are at that the "smarter" you are. At least in Vega's eyes. XD

 

[CWells]

It takes more than age to brew wisdom.  You can be sixty years old but if you've never left your house you'd be quite amazed by what would be around you. We can only act upon what we have experience with. If you've never seen a donkey you'd  have no idea what it could be. There is no direct correlation between age and wisdom.

Recognizing finer details, not being quick to judgement but careful, clear thinking that balances a persons emotional impulses with their logic. Self-awareness. These things I consider important parts of being smart.

 

[Espon]

I dunno, the very wording of "Common Sense" implies that it's a normal thing.

And normal people aren't "smart" they're average.

Even if all average people were to become more "smart" they would still be average.

And the people who were smarter than *that* would become the new "smart"

Anyway, I think of being smart as being able to problem solve with the resources you have.

The better you are at that the "smarter" you are. At least in Vega's eyes. XD

Even a normal person can make smart decisions, though.  Often times bad decisions are made because the person wasn't using common sense.  You could be the most intelligent person in the world and yet still make a bad choice because you didn't take 2 seconds to think.

 

[CWells]

Common sense isn't a fair term though. I mean who is it common for? Different people across different cultures, traditions or whatever all may have certain ways of doing things that are common to them. Common sense doesn't account for a number of things outside. I think good sense would be a better fit than common sense. Just because something is common doesn't mean it is right, proper, or sensible no matter the tradition.

 

[VegaKotes]

Even a normal person can make smart decisions, though.  Often times bad decisions are made because the person wasn't using common sense.  You could be the most intelligent person in the world and yet still make a bad choice because you didn't take 2 seconds to think.

I would say that in this situation it's less that the person is making a smart decision as they're not making a dumb one.

The problem I have with calling people who use common sense smart is that we're calling them smart simply because they aren't acting like idiots.

To me that's like congratulating someone (who's had no real previous record of doing this) on not ****ting themselves daily.

I don't want to lower my standards. XD

 

[Chrome]

95% of people is smart if common sense is what defines it. Which does not make sense since being smart means being better then the average. Everyone makes mistakes and did not use common sense at least once in their life. But that does not mean that that person did not have common sense, he just didnt use it. I dunno, its just that common sense seems to be a really bad way to define smartness, considering almost everyone have them. 

 

[doriantoki]

95% of people is smart if common sense is what defines it. Which does not make sense since being smart means being better then the average. Everyone makes mistakes and did not use common sense at least once in their life. But that does not mean that that person did not have common sense, he just didnt use it. I dunno, its just that common sense seems to be a really bad way to define smartness, considering almost everyone have them. 

IMO, being smart just means you have quick wit and can act competently in any situation.  It doesn't mean you're intelligent, or above average in any way.  It just means you're smart.

 

[Chrome]

IMO, being smart just means you have quick wit and can act competently in any situation.  It doesn't mean you're intelligent, or above average in any way.  It just means you're smart.

But just being able to do this will make you above average because an average person cannot act competently in any situation.

 

[BigEd781]

IMO, being smart just means you have quick wit and can act competently in any situation.  It doesn't mean you're intelligent, or above average in any way.  It just means you're smart.

"Smart" is literally a synonym for "intelligent"... http://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/intelligent

 

[Touchfuzzy]

Smart is this thing that people define in such a way so that they can put themselves in that category and everyone else in the idiots category, rather than realizing everyone has their good and bad qualities and we all sometimes make dumb decisions.

That is why I decided to cut out the middle man and just declare that I'm smart because I'm me.

 

[Lunarea]

I've always seen intelligence as how quickly a person can learn and how well they can apply that knowledge. The second part of that definition is the more important one. An intelligent person is able to take the knowledge and apply it to many uses/situations - usually different from the specific setting they learned it in.

Since there are many different ways to learn, there are also different types of intelligence. Someone who has emotional intelligence, for example, has an easier time identifying and working through their emotions and those of others. As a result, they develop great social skills. Another person has motor intelligence (i.e. dexterity) and they have an easier time learning how to play the piano or play sports. And yet a third person has a factual intelligence and knows a lot of various pieces of information without needing to spend time memorizing it.

No one's perfect, though, so no one has all types of intelligence.

 

[Seacliff]

95% of people is smart if common sense is what defines it.

Have you driven on the highway before?

95% of the people know the laws there? yeah right.

There is too many subjects where you can be smart. You can be good with history and bad with science, or vice versa. Besides, 'smart' is a complete opinion.

I always think someone who is smart is someone who knows something better than me.

 

[Mon Dez]

When it comes to being smart I agree with Lunarea on intelligence.

Granted that I'm not proud about my intelligence because in truth I despise the workings by my own brain. Now then everyone is intelligent in their own way because everyone is different mentally. I for one have the ability to understand stories with small bits of information, adapt to technology and programs a bit faster than others that I know, and very open minded towards the ideals/thinking of others.

That's just me as a person who shows a high learning compactly, but lets take a look at my cousin. My cousin can think realistically, has a high IQ level, and already successful in life whereas I am very laid back though I work hard at things I want. Close to the same genes, but very different in levels in intelligence. If you were to compare me to my cousin, I say he is superior in terms of data and intelligence altogether. My version of my intelligence puts me above his level in intelligence in creation and investigation. I like to create and plan big things as well as being like L from Death Note while my cousin thinks and talks about data and real world events.

With these examples show two different forms of intelligence, but both show that my cousin and I are intelligent in certain fields.