Thursday, April 26, 2012

Knowledge, Intelligence, and Wisdom

These words are often used interchangeably, which is fine because you can most of the time figure out what people mean given context, but when I use them, I tend to think about them in these ways:

Knowledge is the exposure, acquisition, and retention of information.  It is the diving board from which intelligence and wisdom can splash into existence.  Think Trivial Pursuit, Jeopardy. 


Intelligence is the manipulation of knowledge.  It is the innovative and theoretical application of information.  Think Einstein, Marie Curie. 


Wisdom is the mystical fusion of intelligence and knowledge.  It is a kind of sublime understanding of life and its mysteries.  Think Socrates, Mahatma Gandhi.

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