Are boards users a just bit smarter than people on other social media?

#1 · 30-10-2020 3:42pm #1

Not that everyone is but in general the quality of conversation is clearly a cut above most other online discussion forms and discussion on media platforms that we'd be familiar with. Funnily enough just saw that other thread about conspiracy theroies pop up and was only thinking myself this morning after reading through a COVID twitter thread how infuratingly dogmatic and stubborn most of the posters there were. They had one opinion(that they probably heard from somebody else and didn't even come up with themsleves), about COVID, you know the usual ones it's flu most people died with covid not of etc, and clearly wouldn't budge an inch on anything no matter what convincing evidence was presented and swallow anything and everything that confirmed their narrow worldview. But it made me wonder, where are these kind of people in real life, do they walk among us or stay in their house all day?

You'd be ostracised for voicing such uninformed crap by most people in most circles I would have thought but likewise I would say most people I come into contact with in person are not as forthcoming with well formed or articulated views as people on here. Where do most people fall in reality? Are people just more comfortable expressing their opinions online, anonymously.
On Boards I often come away feeling a bit self conscious of how one dimensional and uncomplex my views on some topics are compared to what seems like every other poster in some given threads, all expressed very coherently and adorned with flowery vocabulary and often really funny and enjoyable to read to boot. Not to start a congratulatory circle jerk about the elite users of boards posters but genuinely am wondering, I'd consider myself reasonably intelligent but on boards I think most people have a pretty strikingly strong command of language and ability to express opinion very coherently, and at great length and complexity
I thought maybe perhaps people who are less confident in their own opinions may be less likely to post and so spend less time forming for their opinions coherently for others to understand, but it doesnt seem to be the case on other social media though, where anything goes in the sewers of twitter and facebook.

Anyone think the same?
No Idea what the most common demographic user on boards are but could that be an element to it? I think it's a great resource, and whenever an interesting news story comes up boards is usually my first port of call to get a good gauge of informed public opinion

This is it · 30-10-2020 3:44pm

Mods generally keep it a step above what's on other social media. You can still spout shyte but not to the same extent as the likes of facebook, twitter, journal.ie, etc.

Sam Quentin · 30-10-2020 3:48pm

I general in we think smarter are

30-10-2020 3:52pm

People here are posting with anonymity but at the same time, with accounts they generally care about. The quality is going to be higher a lot of the time because you have to care about a topic to spend time on something that you yourself won't be linked to, but also worse sometimes because people take the anonymity as a chance to be an arse.

3d4life · 30-10-2020 3:55pm

Sam Quentin wrote: »

I general in we think smarter are

Great to find someone else who thinks in reverse polish

How did this happen

- Did you have a HP 35 calculator ?

- Were a dab hand at programming in Forth ?

Anyone else a fan of reverse polish ?

RWCNT · 30-10-2020 3:56pm

I don't feel the quality is significantly better to be honest, maybe in the politics forum but certainly not AH or CA/IMHO.

Church on Tuesday · 30-10-2020 4:04pm

It depends on the particular topic section, there are any amount of well informed posters on here about various topics and while I would not always agree with some, nor they me, I certainly try to respect their point of view.

If you are using AH as a sample size to determine intelligence per user however, you may be disappointed. Too many wind up merchants by times.

Larbre34 · 30-10-2020 4:05pm

Yes.

josip · 30-10-2020 4:06pm

Yes, I am a just bit smarter.
I like to see the little f**ers wince.

JohnnyFlash · 30-10-2020 4:14pm

Not really, no.

There’s a few around here who are clearly more erudite and intelligent than the average Joe, but there’s also an awful lot of mouth-breathers.

I’d like to think I’m firmly in the former category.

3d4life · 30-10-2020 4:19pm

JohnnyFlash wrote: »

....

I’d like to think I’m firmly in the former category.

Yerself and A von B.....

JohnnyFlash · 30-10-2020 4:21pm

3d4life wrote: »

Yerself and A von B.....

I’m no great fan of Aongus tbh, but there’s no doubt he’s one of the smarter punters around here.

Cheers for the compliment, dude.

Omackeral · 30-10-2020 4:22pm

JohnnyFlash wrote: »

There’s a few around here who are clearly more erudite and intelligent than the average Joe, but there’s also an awful lot of mouth-breathers.

I’d like to think I’m firmly in the former category.

You went to Cheltenham at the start of the pandemic.

Wibbs · 30-10-2020 4:27pm

bb1234567 wrote: »

Not that everyone is but in general the quality of conversation is clearly a cut above most other online discussion forms and discussion on media platforms that we'd be familiar with. Funnily enough just saw that other thread about conspiracy theroies pop up and was only thinking myself this morning after reading through a COVID twitter thread how infuratingly dogmatic and stubborn most of the posters there were. They had one opinion(that they probably heard from somebody else and didn't even come up with themsleves), about COVID, you know the usual ones it's flu most people died with covid not of etc, and clearly wouldn't budge an inch on anything no matter what convincing evidence was presented and swallow anything and everything that confirmed their narrow worldview. But it made me wonder, where are these kind of people in real life, do they walk among us or stay in their house all day?

I was actually talking with one such person this very day. It's only the "flu", I won't wear a "muzzle" etc. When he got to talking about some master plan in the background... Well after putting some questions to him it was clear he'd not actually thought about it much if at all and had just absorbed it through social media(mostly whatsapp). Nice guy in general, not the most clued in beyond his day to day needs, but by no means not the stupidest either.

I have found that a large percentage of people operate day to day within a comfortable routine they've built up and nurtured and something like this throws that outa whack(something that increases with age and I've found men are more prone to it), so you tend to get hardline positions going one way or the other. I've also bumped into those going around in full fear mode sterilising everything and becoming more shut in. Not healthy either, though they would be far less of a threat to the community in times of an epidemic.

CountNjord · 30-10-2020 4:27pm

I'm not here long, but observation is that it's s mishmash of all types of people.

As for intelligence there's emotional intelligence and being good at explaining yourself without being a dick or getting triggered by people's posts.

I was told it's a great place for the likes of the weather forecast and finding out about general day to day thing's.
But I think I'll stay out of politics and current affairs, because that's where there's usually a lot of emotionally charged debate.

Nice day out there all the same

Ronin247 · 30-10-2020 4:37pm

. Some extremely intelligent, interesting and informed posters on here that you can learn a lot from. A lot of topics that attract a few experts in the field, often times I come to ask a question and am amazed at the time and effort some put into helping others.
There are plenty of mouth breathing neanderthals on here as well but I tend to skip over their posts

bb1234567 · 30-10-2020 4:42pm

Ronin247 wrote: »

. Some extremely intelligent, interesting and informed posters on here that you can learn a lot from. A lot of topics that attract a few experts in the field, often times I come to ask a question and am amazed at the time and effort some put into helping others.
There are plenty of mouth breathing neanderthals on here as well but I tend to skip over their posts

I think so too! And so many people post such substantial and lengthy posts loaded with info , I always wonder do they spend a long time on them structuring them so perfectly, do they like helping others learn, is that why they're doing it. Or do these lengthy bouts of wisdom just come effortlessly to them. Even if I'm quite informed on a topic, I don't know, writing a huge passage on boards to anonymous others just seems like a lot of effort to me, maybe I'm just lazy

Because I keep saying 'them' and 'they' and other vague things that give no context , in my mind I was thinking of the Personal Issues and relationship forum for example, every reply is so helpful and thoughtful and precise almost without exception

JohnnyFlash · 30-10-2020 5:29pm

Omackeral wrote: »

You went to Cheltenham at the start of the pandemic.

I got the ride, drank the neck off myself, and won a fortune over there, dude. Seems smart enough to me. Isolated of course upon my return. Not sure what your point is tbh.

completedit · 30-10-2020 5:43pm

I often wonder that myself, I am amazed at the depth and breath of knowledge by posters on here. It's given me such a nuanced way of thinking(I've been a member since 07) but sometimes I wonder whether I have the intelligence to juggle all this information. It seems a lot easier to just be someone who spouts off soundbites or parrot other opinions. Complex thought is a slippery slope.

Wibbs · 30-10-2020 5:58pm

completedit wrote: »

Complex thought is a slippery slope.

Isn't that the truth!

JasonStatham · 30-10-2020 11:04pm

bb1234567 wrote: »

Not that everyone is but in general the quality of conversation is clearly a cut above most other online discussion forms and discussion on media platforms that we'd be familiar with. Funnily enough just saw that other thread about conspiracy theroies pop up and was only thinking myself this morning after reading through a COVID twitter thread how infuratingly dogmatic and stubborn most of the posters there were. They had one opinion(that they probably heard from somebody else and didn't even come up with themsleves), about COVID, you know the usual ones it's flu most people died with covid not of etc, and clearly wouldn't budge an inch on anything no matter what convincing evidence was presented and swallow anything and everything that confirmed their narrow worldview. But it made me wonder, where are these kind of people in real life, do they walk among us or stay in their house all day?

You'd be ostracised for voicing such uninformed crap by most people in most circles I would have thought but likewise I would say most people I come into contact with in person are not as forthcoming with well formed or articulated views as people on here. Where do most people fall in reality? Are people just more comfortable expressing their opinions online, anonymously.
On Boards I often come away feeling a bit self conscious of how one dimensional and uncomplex my views on some topics are compared to what seems like every other poster in some given threads, all expressed very coherently and adorned with flowery vocabulary and often really funny and enjoyable to read to boot. Not to start a congratulatory circle jerk about the elite users of boards posters but genuinely am wondering, I'd consider myself reasonably intelligent but on boards I think most people have a pretty strikingly strong command of language and ability to express opinion very coherently, and at great length and complexity
I thought maybe perhaps people who are less confident in their own opinions may be less likely to post and so spend less time forming for their opinions coherently for others to understand, but it doesnt seem to be the case on other social media though, where anything goes in the sewers of twitter and facebook.

Anyone think the same?
No Idea what the most common demographic user on boards are but could that be an element to it? I think it's a great resource, and whenever an interesting news story comes up boards is usually my first port of call to get a good gauge of informed public opinion

There are a lot of bright people on here, no doubt about it, but there are a lot of w@nkers as well.

completedit · 31-10-2020 12:09am

I'd be very interested to know what the number of beds/critical care nurses we would need to enable the allow people some semblance of normality. It seems the number is fairly arbitrary which I think is a problem.

bb1234567 · 31-10-2020 1:29am

completedit wrote: »

I'd be very interested to know what the number of beds/critical care nurses we would need to enable the allow people some semblance of normality. It seems the number is fairly arbitrary which I think is a problem.

Can't get away from COVID talk these days no matter where ya go :P

Dognapper · 31-10-2020 2:35am

topper75 · 31-10-2020 2:48am

completedit wrote: »

I'd be very interested to know what the number of beds/critical care nurses we would need to enable the allow people some semblance of normality. It seems the number is fairly arbitrary which I think is a problem.

I'd be very interested to know how people end up being scared of a disease that requires you to go and get a test to find out whether you may have it or not.

cj maxx · 31-10-2020 3:14am

bb1234567 wrote: »

Can't get away from COVID talk these days no matter where ya go :P

It’s going to be the new “ what’s the weather like “ conversation starter for years!

Quantum Erasure · 31-10-2020 3:50am

cj maxx wrote: »

It’s going to be the new “ what’s the weather like “ conversation starter for years!

And instead of the 'pollen count' we'll be hearing about Covid counts

jenneyk19 · 31-10-2020 3:53am

smarty pants

Kylta · 31-10-2020 9:58am

I'm not on any other social media platform so I couldn't answer the question truly.
What I will say there are good and bad, happy and unhappy people in life and in general, so its bound to crossover into social media. The fact that we can see each other and have user names allows posters in some sense to get carried away.
In regards to the Mods, I know I've been pulled up a couple of times and to be fair, some of the stuff I posted I probably should've been banned, My opinion is there probably trying to keep an even balance and I think there doing a decent job. There are loads of highly intelligent posters on here, who I would say debate with passion, there are a few morons on here too ( see my warnings, hey thats a sense of humour thing and not a Mod Dig). But in real life I like off the wall humour and slightly crazy and humorous and basically fu¢ked up folks, and there all in AH.

gozunda · 31-10-2020 10:07am

Church on Tuesday wrote: »

It depends on the particular topic section, there are any amount of well informed posters on here about various topics and while I would not always agree with some, nor they me, I certainly try to respect their point of view.

If you are using AH as a sample size to determine intelligence per user however, you may be disappointed. Too many wind up merchants by times.

This.

Then we have the screamers who get offended when anyone else has an opinion.

That said I reckon AH is not alone in having some posters with such issues. Though thankfully they’re not that common imo.

This to.

CountNjord wrote: »

I'm not here long, but observation is that it's s mishmash of all types of people.

As for intelligence there's emotional intelligence and being good at explaining yourself without being a dick or getting triggered by people's posts....

Never fully understand those who go completely off the deep end ...

screamer · 31-10-2020 10:16am

I think it is more to do with the age profiles of boards users than twitter users. With age, comes wisdom, or so they say.

Kylta · 31-10-2020 10:48am

screamer wrote: »

I think it is more to do with the age profiles of boards users than twitter users. With age, comes wisdom, or so they say.

If its wisdom you seek, why did I just swallow half a crayon

31-10-2020 11:06am

I suspect it's more to do with the nature of the platform. Social media encourages the use of soundbites, and small paragraphs, with few people being bothered to read anything of substance. Whereas with boards, there's a general attitude that claims and arguments should be supported with evidence/links. Lacking that evidence, most claims will be accepted as opinions. So, there's greater scope to dig deeper than the surface/superficial statements that are so common on social media.

Now, some people here are interested in having proper arguments with each other. Whether they're open to being convinced against their past biases, is a different matter, but generally we get to see people engage in relatively respectful conversations, which explore many aspects of any topic. By engaging in such a manner, you can see people's writing improve over time, along with the degree of logic they apply to their arguments. I don't think there's the same range of opportunities to grow as a poster/thinker on social media.

Lastly, as others have pointed out, your nickname has some importance here. Once you reach a few thousand posts, you begin to care a little about being consistent, and having somewhat of a decent reputation. Some posters do anyway. As with anything on the Internet, you get a wide range of personalities, some of whom love to troll, press emotional buttons, or engage in utterly retarded rhetoric.

I think with boards it's easy to see the history of other posters behavior, so you can take their opinions with a pinch of salt (unless they're very consistent), whereas with social media, they're like butterflies without any firm foundation to their opinions. There's also a very nasty part of social media with it's encouragement of hate speech towards one group or another. Thankfully, boards seems to have dodged the attentions of those muppets.

Are we smarter? Not really. Just better organised, and likely know that we need to prove our opinions, rather than holding to an attitude of "take it or leave it... and if you leave it, you're scum".

paleoperson · 01-11-2020 7:31pm

Not at all, no.

It's not hard to sound informed and nuanced and have "flowery vocabulary" when you have google at your disposal and (comparatively) unlimited time to work your post up. A lot of these users have years - or even decades - of experience at this as well, of arguing online and what the good counters are. A lot of the time they achieve their goals of making them and their views look like very good ones but it's an awful sink hole.

I think you can learn lots online, but it's very hard to analyze or make judgements about anyone from purely their online activity on a board like this - most of the time. Even if it feels like you can that's generally not really the case. You don't know who it is you're talking to, how they're saying things, what sort of crutches they're leaning on to form their arguments.

Online discussion can be ok for coming up with interesting ideas and information but you should never take it too seriously.

jmlad2020 · 01-11-2020 7:34pm

This is like saying people who shop at SuperValu are better than people who shop at Aldi.

Greyfox · 01-11-2020 7:42pm

jmlad2020 wrote: »

This is like saying people who shop at SuperValu are better than people who shop at Aldi.

Not true. Facebook and Twitter will never make you smarter but on here you can occasionally learn something or think about something differently due to there been some sensible and intelligent people on here.

Say Your Number · 01-11-2020 9:21pm

Given how this place turned into the f*cking Peter Casey fanclub after he came out with a cynical soundbite about travellers, I wouldn't say it's dramatically different from most other platforms.

Are boards users a just bit smarter than people on other social media?

Comments