In my 20s I believed general IQ was 90% environmental (free will), in my 40s, 90% is genetic, now I'm at 50/50.

I played adult pick-up basketball for 30 years and no matter how hard I practiced, or tried, I never left a narrow band of skill. Same for chess. I put in the 10,000 hours. It didn't end in excellence.

I can teach myself almost any subject to the point of competency. If I have a super-power, it's in that. But I'm never a master of one.

Effort to apply our skills for social acceptance is what seems most important to be at this point. I was a lazy student. Then one day in college I was failing a writing class and the professor said something to the effect of "you have the best ideas in the class but you don't apply yourself" and I could see he was so pained it made me feel really bad because I knew he cared about me. Something snapped and I decided for that class at least, I'd just do what he said and not try to re-invent the wheel. Just try it I said, even though I felt he was wrong (the problem is other people didn't understand my genius--haha).

Since then, I don't fight my genetics. I accept them. I try to learn from others. How could anyone predict that?

If he read my writing on Medium today I'm sure he would find the same weaknesses but would be surprised how far I've come. Genetically, I don't believe I have the brain to write well. Also genetically, I have an ability to hold many contradictory thoughts in my head at the same time and find connections.

Whatever we have, we want the other thing ;)

Fascinating stuff!!!