If you exclude reading, writing, speaking, and listening (ie use of language, including math or code) as mere table stakes, how would you define “intellectual” in terms of essential non-language behaviors that non-intellectuals typically don’t exhibit?
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By the quality of decisions, of course.
In the short term, luck plays a large role, but over a longer time span better decisions win. Your question is straight out calling for a poker analogy.
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That’s where I went. I know someone is an intellectual if they are capable of shame when they play bad and win anyway.
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I don't think you two are saying the same thing. Dima is talking about the highly instrumental version of the idea (correct play can lose, incorrect play can win). You are bringing in shame which speaks to the presence of a philosophical standard above mere winning/losing.


