The Jewish mind
What is the connection between Robert Aumann, Israeli-American
mathematician, and Harold Pinter, British playwright? They are both Nobel
prizewinners this year, and both are Jewish. In the years 1901-2004
according to the web site http://www.jinfo.org/Nobel_Prizes.html 22% of all
Nobel prize winners were Jewish (ca. 3% of these were half-Jewish). Since
Jews make up 0.25% of the world's population, this is a factor of ca. x100
over their population representation (if all other factors were equal).
Compared to most other ethnic groups in the world this factor is huge. What
is the cause of this preponderance of Jewish Nobel prizewinners? It
certainly is not a result of being pro-Israel or religious which Pinter is
not and Aumann is.
I refer to another interesting dominance. Of all the fastest men in the
world (in the 100 m) all the top 10 sprinters are black, there is not a
white one amongst them. This is far beyond random statistics. And all the
blacks, whether American or British or Caribbean, are of West African
origin. Two sports writers, Jon Entine and Earl Smith decided to
investigate this phenomenon and wrote a book on their conclusions entitled
"Taboo." They used this title for obvious reasons, because they could be
accused of being racists for concluding that blacks are superior athletes
than whites.
But, wait a minute, in long distance running West African blacks and whites
are no-where, the field is dominated by Ethiopians and North Africans, and
in swimming there are few blacks to be seen, the field is dominated by white
Americans, Australians and northern Europeans. These are not racist
statements, but statements of fact.
What can be the origins of these amazing feats of black athletic prowess?
According to the authors of "Taboo" the main reason they have identified to
explain this incredible phenomenon is that black west Africans have a larger
proportion of mitochondria in their leg muscles. Mitochondria are
organelles in each cell that are the "factory" where the molecular process
of respiration occurs (the utilization of oxygen) to produce energy (in the
form of the molecule ATP). Of course, in a muscle working at maximal
exertion the ability to produce large amounts of energy is crucial, and
since the west Africans have more mitochondria per unit volume of muscle
than other athletes they have an inherent advantage. So there is a rational
explanation for the phenomenon (for details see the book).
Of course, this brainy proclivity does not mean that sports and other
endeavors are not developed in Israel. The nearby Wingate Institute is
devoted to the training of Israeli athletes, and last year Israel won its
first gold medal in the Olympics, for wind-surfing (very appropriate for a
Mediterranean country). Although Jews have never been famous for their
athletic prowess, there have been some legendary Jewish boxers, including
Max Baer.
So far there is no explanation for the phenomenon of Jewish Nobel Prize
dominance, which is a measure of a general excellence of Jews in areas
requiring brain power. In Central Europe the Germans and others resented
this domination in secular subjects and it led to increased anti-Semitism
(think of all the possible advances in human civilization that were
extinguished in the Holocaust). This mental phenomenon was then explained
as a result of Jewish commitment to serious study resulting from millennia
of Talmudic analysis.
Now we have genetic explanations, so we may conclude that Jews have had an
evolutionary tendency to develop the areas of the brain involved in abstract
thought, that enables them to envisage mathematical solutions, the staging
of plays and chess moves in advance. Notably, both the former World Chess
champions American Bobby Fischer (who is anti-Semitic) and the Russian Gary
Kasparov (who changed his name from Wainshtein to avoid anti-Semitism in the
USSR) are Jewish.
Whether this speculation will stand up to future scientific scrutiny is
unclear, but there must be a rational explanation for this incredible Jewish
phenomenon. It is certainly something to be proud of.
mathematician, and Harold Pinter, British playwright? They are both Nobel
prizewinners this year, and both are Jewish. In the years 1901-2004
according to the web site http://www.jinfo.org/Nobel_Prizes.html 22% of all
Nobel prize winners were Jewish (ca. 3% of these were half-Jewish). Since
Jews make up 0.25% of the world's population, this is a factor of ca. x100
over their population representation (if all other factors were equal).
Compared to most other ethnic groups in the world this factor is huge. What
is the cause of this preponderance of Jewish Nobel prizewinners? It
certainly is not a result of being pro-Israel or religious which Pinter is
not and Aumann is.
I refer to another interesting dominance. Of all the fastest men in the
world (in the 100 m) all the top 10 sprinters are black, there is not a
white one amongst them. This is far beyond random statistics. And all the
blacks, whether American or British or Caribbean, are of West African
origin. Two sports writers, Jon Entine and Earl Smith decided to
investigate this phenomenon and wrote a book on their conclusions entitled
"Taboo." They used this title for obvious reasons, because they could be
accused of being racists for concluding that blacks are superior athletes
than whites.
But, wait a minute, in long distance running West African blacks and whites
are no-where, the field is dominated by Ethiopians and North Africans, and
in swimming there are few blacks to be seen, the field is dominated by white
Americans, Australians and northern Europeans. These are not racist
statements, but statements of fact.
What can be the origins of these amazing feats of black athletic prowess?
According to the authors of "Taboo" the main reason they have identified to
explain this incredible phenomenon is that black west Africans have a larger
proportion of mitochondria in their leg muscles. Mitochondria are
organelles in each cell that are the "factory" where the molecular process
of respiration occurs (the utilization of oxygen) to produce energy (in the
form of the molecule ATP). Of course, in a muscle working at maximal
exertion the ability to produce large amounts of energy is crucial, and
since the west Africans have more mitochondria per unit volume of muscle
than other athletes they have an inherent advantage. So there is a rational
explanation for the phenomenon (for details see the book).
Of course, this brainy proclivity does not mean that sports and other
endeavors are not developed in Israel. The nearby Wingate Institute is
devoted to the training of Israeli athletes, and last year Israel won its
first gold medal in the Olympics, for wind-surfing (very appropriate for a
Mediterranean country). Although Jews have never been famous for their
athletic prowess, there have been some legendary Jewish boxers, including
Max Baer.
So far there is no explanation for the phenomenon of Jewish Nobel Prize
dominance, which is a measure of a general excellence of Jews in areas
requiring brain power. In Central Europe the Germans and others resented
this domination in secular subjects and it led to increased anti-Semitism
(think of all the possible advances in human civilization that were
extinguished in the Holocaust). This mental phenomenon was then explained
as a result of Jewish commitment to serious study resulting from millennia
of Talmudic analysis.
Now we have genetic explanations, so we may conclude that Jews have had an
evolutionary tendency to develop the areas of the brain involved in abstract
thought, that enables them to envisage mathematical solutions, the staging
of plays and chess moves in advance. Notably, both the former World Chess
champions American Bobby Fischer (who is anti-Semitic) and the Russian Gary
Kasparov (who changed his name from Wainshtein to avoid anti-Semitism in the
USSR) are Jewish.
Whether this speculation will stand up to future scientific scrutiny is
unclear, but there must be a rational explanation for this incredible Jewish
phenomenon. It is certainly something to be proud of.
posted by Jack Cohen at 1:27 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home