Intelligence...[is] not marathon rac[e]: there is no fixed criteria for success, no start or finish lines -- and running sideways or backwards, might secure victory.

Siddhartha Mukherjee
About This Quote

The quote of the day is an apt description of intelligence. It is not that intelligence has no direction or purpose, but that it does not have a fixed criteria for success. What does this mean? Intelligence can be applied to many different situations and situations where intelligence is needed varies on each occasion. For instance, some situations may require us to think about what to do in the present or how to act in order for something good to occur in the future.

Others may require more action-oriented thinking, where we need to know how to act in order for something bad to be prevented. When we think about intelligence, we should realize that there is no fixed criteria for success or failure. Success and failure are relative and depend on our individual circumstances.

Source: The Gene: An Intimate History

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More Quotes By Siddhartha Mukherjee
  1. If we define "beauty" as having blue eyes (and only blue eyes), then we will, indeed, find a "gene for beauty." If we define "intelligence" as the performance on only one kind of test, then we will, indeed, find a "gene for intelligence." The genome...
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