Who is the Greatest Genius of All Time?

[WALMART]

Too many to count from too many genres, methinks.

I don't know if I should go for people like Brian Greene, who possess more cutting edge knowledge than anyone who has existed ever, or someone like Martin Luther King, who truly understood the nature of mankind, or Giordano Bruno, for having similar conceptual views of the universe as I, or....


I'll go with Brian Greene, for learning me all I know about modern science.

 

[greenfairy]

Me.

There should be some women on there, yo! I think since history doesn't acknowledge genius women, it would be impossible to know because we will never have a fair comparison.

 

[RaptorWizard]

There should be some women on there, yo! I think since history doesn't acknowledge genius women, it would be impossible to know because we will never have a fair comparison.

Who exactly do you have in mind for this category of women geniuses? I know there are a whole cluster of intelligent people for both genders, but historically, the women have slumped down a bit when it comes to being a revolutionary genius remembered for all time. Of course, I could be wrong, and I could be forgetting some people or other important factors, such as women having a lower social status and less opportunities in most societies. Still, I would say it's a combination of women being repressed combined with a focus on nurturing rather than cosmological development, but of course, all of that could change in the future, and women could greatly exceed past prededents.

 

[Mole]

C.D. [Charles Darwin] broke the back of god. While many others did it with logic and reasoning he did it with facts.

And Darwin did it with extreme reluctance. He wrote, "The Origin of Species", and kept it in a locked drawer for twenty years before it was published.

And Watson and Crick's discovery of the genome showed that Darwin was exquisitely right.

And like much of science, "The Origin of Species", is counter-intuitive. We intuitively look at the complex web of life and think it must have been designed. But Darwin and Watson and Crick showed the web of life is not designed. So the believers were thrown back onto the Big Bang, started naturally of course by the Big Banger. However we now know there was no Big Bang, rather time and space are expanding and accelerating, with no need for a Big Banger.

Time and time again we have been shown our intuitive ideas are wrong, whereas our counter-intuitive ideas are exquisitely right.

And mbti is intuitive and completely wrong.

 

[greenfairy]

Who exactly do you have in mind for this category of women geniuses? I know there are a whole cluster of intelligent people for both genders, but historically, the women have slumped down a bit when it comes to being a revolutionary genius remembered for all time. Of course, I could be wrong, and I could be forgetting some people or other important factors, such as women having a lower social status and less opportunities in most societies. Still, I would say it's a combination of women being repressed combined with a focus on nurturing rather than cosmological development, but of course, all of that could change in the future, and women could greatly exceed past prededents.

I don't have anyone in mind. Just sayin. Playing the devil's advocate, you know.

 

[Beargryllz]

A lot of the people on this list had some cool ideas but weren't technically great

I picked Da Vinci with some confidence, as a kind of timeless and indisputable genius

His genius is so great that it is mostly wasted; this is a consequence of quantity

 

[Zarathustra]

Are you saying his reception history makes him a genius?

I think he was a genius.

And I think his historical reception and influence are due to his genius.

 

[Azure Flame]

lotta Fi in this thread

 

[Magic Poriferan]

I think he was a genius.

And I think his historical reception and influence are due to his genius.

It's funny. I think Plato and Nietzsche are two of among the least impressive people in this poll, yet it does seem quite appropriate that you would rank them highly.

I think I'd prefer to see Democritus here.

 

[Society]

I wonder:
considering the Flynn affect, how many of those would stand out as geniuses today?

 

[PrettyWoman]

I voted for Leonardo da Vinci. His work is amazing, he was SUCH a genius, what he could realize and do was just incredible! I strive for keeping my mind open and I really enjoy it when others show the same attitude.

There are three classes of people: those who see, those who see when they are shown, those who do not see.
-Leonardo da Vinci

 

[Winds of Thor]

Where's the choice for The Artist Formerly Known as Prince?!

 

[Blackmail!]

Jesus existed. There's historical evidence.

No, there isn't any historical evidence. Not the slightest, not the tiniest.
So that's why "Jesus" should be put out of this so-called "poll". As far as science and history are concerned, he's just an imaginary being.
Muhamad or Buddha, on the other hand, really existed. But Jesus... there's nothing, only fake testimonies that were written centuries after his so-called "life". Even the Vatican had to admit many of these testimonies were crude forgeries. No contemporary Roman archive ever mentions his possible existence. It's still a mystery (or a great display of faith or propaganda) why so many people still believe he ever existed at all.

 

[Blackmail!]

I think I'd prefer to see Democritus here.

+1

 

[Sniffles]

No, there isn't any historical evidence. Not the slightest, not the tiniest.
So that's why "Jesus" should be put out of this so-called "poll". As far as science and history are concerned, he's just an imaginary being.
Muhamad or Buddha, on the other hand, really existed. But Jesus... there's nothing, only fake testimonies that were written centuries after his so-called "life". Even the Vatican had to admit many of these testimonies were crude forgeries. No contemporary Roman archive ever mentions his possible existence. It's still a mystery (or a great display of faith or propaganda) why so many people still believe he ever existed at all.

This is the funniest thing I've read today.

 

[Blackmail!]

This is the funniest thing I've read today.

At last, I'm glad you're still here. I wondered if with this kind of provocative answer I could manage to get your attention today...

And it's even better if I made you laugh...

 

[wildcat]

No, there isn't any historical evidence. Not the slightest, not the tiniest.
So that's why "Jesus" should be put out of this so-called "poll". As far as science and history are concerned, he's just an imaginary being.
Muhamad or Buddha, on the other hand, really existed. But Jesus... there's nothing, only fake testimonies that were written centuries after his so-called "life". Even the Vatican had to admit many of these testimonies were crude forgeries. No contemporary Roman archive ever mentions his possible existence. It's still a mystery (or a great display of faith or propaganda) why so many people still believe he ever existed at all.

Gospels are true history books as history books go, and they were written soon after the death of Jesus. Some of them were already translated to Coptic Egyptian by 50 A.D.

 

[lowtech redneck]

And John Stuart Mill is nowhere to be found!

+1

Yeah, there seem to be some gross oversights.

That said, by reading the list it occurs to me that I need re-acquaint myself with the contributions of many on this list. At my current stage of ignorance, I guess It would be a tie between Tesla and Da Vinci as far as sheer intelligence is concerned (its difficult to compare the likes of Stephen Hawkins with them, as modern thinkers are standing on the shoulders of so many more giants than was the case even a hundred years ago).

 

[wolfy]

Albert Einstein. The image with his tongue poked out. That is genius.

 

[Nicodemus]

Gospels are true history books as history books go, and they were written soon after the death of Jesus. Some of them were already translated to Coptic Egyptian by 50 A.D.

If you mean the gospels concerning the tales about Jesus, then what you say is false.