There’s a simple explanation for the (perceived or actual?) difference in intelligence between Ashkenazi Jews and other similar populations. Sorry, I can’t remember where I heard it but it does appeal to me. Matt Yglesias looks at things like educational levels and so on in the US but this I think, if this little theory is correct, is an effect not a cause.
Think back to the period 500 AD to 1500 AD. Standard practice in the Christian world was that the brightest, (those capable of reading and writing etc) would go into the Church. Which was (although with many lapses) celibate.
Amongst those we now identify as Ashkenazi Jews the situation was rather different. The brightest and best were indeed encouraged into religion, but as Rabbis. And the trainee Rabbi was seen as the greatest catch in that society as the marriage partner of either the bright or rich daughter. And most definitely encouraged to have many children.
The nett effect is that for 1,000 years (some 30-40 "grandfathers" as Terry Pratchett suggests we measure generations) the Jewish population of Europe were breeding for intelligence while the Christians were actually (although unaware of it of course) selecting against it in the next generation.
I’m not really sure what IQ measures (other than IQ of course, but what that is is a more complex matter) nor how genetics influence it. But that 1,000 year experiment would be an interesting starting point for explaining whatever perceived differences there are today.
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