# i6 : Abstract Intelligence >[!Info] >The [[Intelligences|sensitivity]] to immaterial, abstract concepts - like numbers, equations, statistics, ratios, etc. > >For example, you cannot find E=mc^2 anywhere in the physical, emotional, or spiritual worlds. It only exists as a concept in our heads. It is not real in a concrete sense, it is a symbolic representation, an abstraction of the behavior of some tangible, physical phenomena. > >i6 is also associated more generally with rational and analytical reasoning, or "headiness." > >In the modern world, it is hyperdominant, overemphasized, and considered to be synonymous with the concept of "being smart" or Intelligence itself, of which it is only a fraction. # Overview | Ancestor Species | [[6 - Early Humans\|Early Human]] | | ------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Emerged in Evolution** | ~2 Million Years Ago | | **Associated Location** | [[6 · 🟣 · Head]] | | **Alternative Names** | Conceptual, Symbolic, Cognitive, Analytical, Representational | # Often Seen In - Mathematicians - Physicists - Chemists - Doctors - Lawyers - Academics - Software engineers - Statisticians - Data scientists - Economists - Chess players - Philosophers (logic oriented) - Scientists & researchers - AI researchers - Logicians - Cryptographers # High i6 Strengths - Recognizing patterns across stimulus and data - High stamina for mental exertion, enjoying deep thinking - Can process and hold lots of abstract information - Being good with numbers, mental math, calculation in general - Thinking abstractly about objects, principles, and ideas not physically present - Grasping theoretical systems quickly, deft use of abstract frameworks - Solving problems using theoretical concepts and abstract reasoning - Understanding and managing systems by seeing the bigger picture - Generating new and unique ideas by thinking outside tangible frameworks - Developing and understanding in the mind theories explaining various phenomena - Using metaphors and symbols to understand and explain concepts and ideas - Evaluating arguments and ideas critically and making reasoned judgments - Seeing beyond the present to envision future possibilities and trends - Imagining possibility in things, seeing other ways the same parts can be arranged # High i6 Weaknesses Regardless of where i6 sits in one's stack, all of us collectively tend to suffer from high i6 weaknesses a good amount, as it is far and away the most dominant mode of knowing in our culture. Even people with naturally lower i6 often suffer from these tendencies as they are picked up by osmosis and scaffolded by society, while the other intelligences are actively downplayed, suppressed, or punished - especially in highly academic and corporate environments. Let's explore some of our shared neurosis! - Intellectualizing everything - instead of feeling emotions, analyzing them in a detached way - This is really the main thing, and it can be discussed forever. In many ways most of the following examples are just specific instances of intellectualization of things that may be better served relating to in alternative (spirit, heart, body) or more holistic ways (all). - Preference for theory and hypotheticals over the messiness of real-world application - Desiring everything to be comprehensible, to make sense, to cohere - Needing answers, needing to understand it all, and now! - Believing all things have a logical solution waiting to be found, can be resolved by thinking - Overthinking situations, leading to analysis paralysis - Struggling to stay grounded in practical realities, missing tangible concerns - Difficulty communicating complex ideas simply to others - Risk of creating overly intricate theories disconnected from reality - Tendency to be overly critical and skeptical of simple solutions, and those generated by the other intelligences - Said another way: Overemphasis on complex, technological, or otherwise intellectual solutions over things like just giving someone a hug - Risk of becoming isolated due to niche knowledge or interests - Seeing life and relationships as equations to be solved instead of mysteries to be experienced - Clinging to an intellectual idea of something even when the tangible reality is different - Devaluing of subjective experiences - feeling, emotion, mysticism etc - in favor of objective ones (peer-reviewed facts, mutually witnessed external events) - Writing off people, communities, or activities that don't seem to be intellectual enough or have cognitive value - Intellectual (or simple honest-to-goodness) elitism, cognitive supremacy - Believing all knowledge comes through the mind or intellect, downplaying the wisdom of the spirit, heart, and body - Anthropocentrism, belief that all intelligence looks like ours, and is purely mental # Low i6 Weaknesses Often synonymous in our culture with "being dumb," these traits were irrelevant for the majority of human beings for the majority of human history. They are only really a hinderance these days as they can reduce career options, earning potential, and general comprehension of the complex systems that now run the world - political, financial, legal, medical, etc. I say that as a caveat because we are often more judgemental of these over others, like say, having low aesthetic intelligence. - Resistance toward theory and classroom learning - Struggling to recognize patterns across stimulus and data - Low stamina for mental exertion, avoiding deep thinking - Difficulty processing and holding lots of abstract information - Poor with numbers, mental math, and calculations - Trouble thinking abstractly about objects, principles, and ideas not physically present - Struggling to grasp theoretical systems and use abstract frameworks - Difficulty solving problems using theoretical concepts and abstract reasoning - Failing to understand and manage systems by seeing the bigger picture - Limited ability to generate new and unique conceptual ideas, sticking to practical thinking - Difficulty forming clear and detailed ideas or theories in the mind - Limited use of metaphors and symbols to understand and explain concepts and ideas - Trouble evaluating arguments and ideas critically, making reasoned judgments - Inability to see beyond the present and envision future possibilities and trends # Commonly Confused With Our modern culture loves i6, and has massive institutions (the education system anyone?) solely dedicated to its development, evaluation, and certification. Thus, we tend to know what it is and what it isn't very well. We all know how to tell how "smart" (or simply how i6 stacked) someone is, because of extensive time in a system designed to do just that, with constant feedback in the form of grades, test scores, and other widely respected standardized measurements like IQ tests (very i6 of them!) of which the other intelligences have almost none. That said, today i6 is often married with [[i3 - Practical Intelligence|i3]], the Practical Intelligence, in executing complex tasks, and as a result they are often lumped in together. When I talk about the intelligences to someone for the first time, they are often confused by them being separate until I explain further, like I do below. The only other intelligence I have seen it confused with, and have confused it with myself - albeit orders of magnitude less than i3 - is the Spiritual Intelligence, [[i7 - Spiritual Intelligence|i7]]. This is simply due to both of their focuses being on intangible ideas over concrete realities. However, the personalities they result in, the behaviors performed by people with them stacked high, and the overall worldviews they generate are almost always drastically different, if not polar opposites. ### Confusion with i3, Practical Intelligence Both i6 and [[i3 - Practical Intelligence|i3]] are logical and rational, thinking linearly. Today, they are also often seen together, like when solving multi-step math problems or working out complex engineering challenges that have many steps and project timelines. However, despite this common marriage especially prevalent in our high-tech digital age, they are very distinct, and have historically been quite separate. i3 on its own is only concerned with how to get things done, and the steps that need to be taken to do so. Alone, it tends to be quite grounded in the present reality of tangible action, and is quite resistant to heady, unmoored ideas. i6, on the other hand, does not need any practical outcome at all to be satisfied. i6 is concerned with analysis, abstractions, and representations, and is happy to manipulate these without any tangible result in the world, like in the case of Theoretical Physics, Pure Mathematics, or philosophical inquires into the fundamental nature of reality. i6 can gain enjoyment by simply comprehending a sleek equation or intricately designed system, whereas i3 would need to see it used in practice to be impressed. A tangible example of the i6 x i3 distinction would be someone who is a great construction site manager having been being bad at calculus in school (high i3 low i6), or a physicist or philosopher having a highly disorganized workspace (high i6 low i3). ### Confusion with i7, Spiritual Intelligence Both i6 and [[i7 - Spiritual Intelligence|i7]] deal with abstract or intangible ideas. The respective realties they are sensitive to are both immaterial, and both are only loosely related to the 5 senses (body) and emotional system (heart). Both take place within the internal world, and can go relatively unseen when actively being exercised - besides the assessment that "they're thinking" in the case of i6, or "they're seeing / being told / experiencing something" in the case of i7. The contents of the thoughts and the messages received are invisible to those on the outside, in stark contrast to say, [[i1 - Kinesthetic Intelligence|i1]] or [[i5 - Expressive Intelligence|i5]] which are almost entirely externally visible. However, the immaterial things they are sensitive to are entirely distinct. i6 does not see what things *mean* (or their "value"), instead seeing their mechanism, their patterns, how they *work.* The meaning for i6 *is the mechanism*, that is what the thing is *doing*, which it sees as a sufficient answer to the thing's purpose. What is the meaning of math? What is the value of a parabola? These are questions for i7, not i6. However, i6 has its own answers to these questions, of course. Maybe: "Because they help us solve problems, predict behaviors, and build technology that improves our lives." i7 shoots back, "Sure, but why is that Good? Why is that inherently meaningful, or worthy?" So drops "Hume's guillotine": the perennial [Is / Ought distinction](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Is%E2%80%93ought_problem). Science - an i6 method of knowing - can say what "is," but cannot extrapolate that into what "should be," a question for i7. i7 sees patterns too, but these are patterns of value, of importance, or significance[^1], not technical mechanism. i7 is almost rudely uninterested with the *how* of what is going on, and is instead thirsty for the *why.* When an event occurs, i7 wants to know its meaning, not its functional cause. A bird's call, a striking image, an odd coincidence or repeating pattern are all seen as signs to be spiritually interpreted, instead of events to be objectively understood. Even so, while distinct, these intelligences can be found together in a powerful combination that is unmistakable at high levels of potency. Deep probing into the meaning of the universe, with rigorous logic and intellect piecing it together into neat systems. These people often lead the great transitions between the stages of cultural evolution by mapping out with rigor and clarity the emerging worldview. Famous i6 x i7 combos are people like Plato, St. Augustine, Spinoza, Kant, Hegel, Derrida, and [[Ken Wilber|Wilber]]. # Archetype Resonances Coming soon! [^1]: These words are used technically, I am not saying they are "better" than the i6 patterns, just that they are concerned with these ideas, not with the conceptual mechanism