The programming talent myth [LWN.net]

The programming talent myth

Posted May 4, 2015 17:52 UTC (Mon) by simosx (guest, #24338)
Parent article: The programming talent myth

talent is a notion that comes from the really olden times, those times when upper-class people used to think that all sort of traits of your parents are genetically hereditary to their offspring. It was a convenient notion and helped those in power to remain in power. They even believed that if previous generations spoke a certain language, then the knowledge of that language became somehow genetically imprinted in the new generations. See this story about an experiment around 640BC, http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100351903 Even in more modern times were curious about a possible genetic imprinting of a trait. Some more recent experiments: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_deprivation_experiments It appears that this talent notion has been used as a tool to dissuade others from encroaching into established privileges.

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The programming talent myth

Posted May 4, 2015 18:19 UTC (Mon) by mathstuf (subscriber, #69389) [Link] (1 responses)

Hmm. I consider that "innate talent" rather than just "talent". There certainly is some predisposition to picking up a topic (e.g., "she has a knack for it") which can be seen with mathematical, artistic, and musical prodigies, but I think that "talent" is more of a "how good is someone at picking up something new in a field" kind of thing; nothing genetic. Maybe this is an American vs. European thing (I'm American)?

The programming talent myth

Posted May 5, 2015 8:27 UTC (Tue) by simosx (guest, #24338) [Link]

> I think that "talent" is more of a "how good is someone at picking up something new in a field" kind of thing; nothing genetic.

I think that, when probed, most people would take it as a genetic issue.

The programming talent myth

Posted May 5, 2015 8:14 UTC (Tue) by simosx (guest, #24338) [Link] (2 responses)

(i messed up the formatting in the previous post; reapplying formatting and added a bit more context) talent is a notion that comes from the really olden times, those times when upper-class people used to think that all sort of traits of your parents are genetically hereditary to their offspring. It was a convenient notion, it looked right and helped those in power to remain in power.

They even believed that if previous generations spoke a certain language, then the knowledge of that language became somehow genetically imprinted in the new generations. See this story about an experiment around 640BC, http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100351903

Even in more modern times were curious about a possible genetic imprinting of a trait. Some more recent experiments: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_deprivation_experiments

It appears that this talent notion has been used as a tool to dissuade others from encroaching into established privileges.

In terms of free/open-source software, it is important to get more people activated and participating in all ways possible.

The programming talent myth

Posted May 6, 2015 8:42 UTC (Wed) by NAR (subscriber, #1313) [Link] (1 responses)

There are talents that are hereditary. 23 out of the best 25 times for 10000m men's running are by athletes born in East Africa. Out of the 74+ male athletes who run 100m under 10 seconds, only four of them are not descended from West Africa. Traits like height, color of eye, hair, etc. are hereditary. It's an obvious (but not necessary correct) assumption that other traits like intelligence are hereditary too.

Of course, there are talents that only seem to be hereditary, but passed from generation to generation by being able to access certain resources (enough food, education, etc.).

The programming talent myth

Posted May 6, 2015 9:31 UTC (Wed) by paulj (subscriber, #341) [Link]

On the long distance running thing, it is not clear if it is genetic. My basic understanding from some people who study performance in that area is there are also potentially cultural and socio-economic factors that could explain the dominance of east Africans.