Racing Cars

IDIOTS IN DARTMOUTH? A SOCIOLOGICAL EXPERIMENT

“Hey, you two idiots in Dartmouth (near Sea King Road) racing side by side, and almost hitting us head on, what are you doing?” Fed Up With Punk Drivers

Are there really idiots in Dartmouth? How can the question be addressed? Is there a correlation between the levels of intelligence and the region of residence in HRM generally such that those in Dartmouth can be seen to fall below the average? Is the claim that two idiots actually live in Dartmouth a strong indicator of the generally depressed level of intelligence in that area or is it merely a fleeting and contingent matter, lacking any persuasive power? Clearly, a sociological experiment is required. But how are the boundaries of such an experiment to be framed? How is it to proceed?

While IQ tests are themselves epistemologically suspect – they presuppose, without evidence, that intelligence consists of that which such tests measure – they will have some efficacy in terms of getting the experiment off the ground, of generating a broad picture delineating the general contours of regional intellectual variations and their relationship to those of Dartmouth. But on what criteria might such tests be based?

When dealing with matters of intelligence the governing criterion relates to the nature-nurture divide. Is intelligence to be understood as a product of genetic endowment or, rather, is it to be seen as a product of environmental factors? Since lengthy additional longitudinal studies would be required to establish the genetic-endowment thesis, for our immediate purposes the environmental-factors thesis must obtain. Indeed, the working premise of the study concerns the primacy of the environmental thesis, that of regional disparities in HRM and their relationship with Dartmouth which is to serve as a base-line. So it’s the environmental factors which are determinative. What’s next?

Closely connected with region of domicile is that of family income. Generally speaking, the greater the average family income as distributed across the region in question the more favorable are the factors relating to the cultivation of intelligence. One thinks of the existence of top-level schools which, perhaps privately, cater to the children of the financially well-endowed. The sociological experiment must therefore incorporate a parallel study of average family income among the regions of HRM together with a comparison of that in Dartmouth. Is the latter, as well might be supposed, measurably less than the general average? By how much? Can supportable conclusions be drawn?

Finally, in order that the experiment be as fine-grained as possible, studies must be made of the different regions within Dartmouth itself. While one suspects that the intelligence and income levels in Dartmouth fall below the general average in HRM – there may, of course, be exceptions – the poster specified the region in which the Sea King Road is located. Does this region fall below the Dartmouth average? Does it have a greater number of idiots?

These are exciting times. New levels of insight into Dartmouth, to say nothing of HRM in general, beckon to the enterprising researcher. We can only wish him Godspeed.

A pleasure as always.

Cheerio!