Acquired savantism

[Shroom Man 777]

I don't think the guys in charge of the current world system of exploitation and haves versus have-nots got to the top by being meatheads swinging around clubs and shit. Being 1% of the world's population yet owning 99% of its wealth would probably require good maths by default.

I guess this means that the masses having more maths and memories could engage them in more equal footing. Instead of killing each other with sticks and stones, people will be killing each other with maths.

[someone_else]

In the immediate future, humans progress far enough in neurophysiology to understand the mechanics of savantism, including acquired savant syndrome. It is widely understood (after trials on volunteers) that one can improve human intellectual abilities at little to no cost to other functions of the human brain with advanced surgery, turning most humans into highly-capable savants.

What would be the correct course to take after such a discovery? Force humanity to become more intelligent? Offer it as an option to everyone? For free or at a substantial cost, creating a huge intellectual dimension to the class division?

I have three distinct views on this.

-The disgustingly moral course of action? Give it to whoever pays a honest price for it. (which will have to be a bit high due to the fact it is brain surgery and the people capable of doing it well aren't going to be abundant, just as good cosmetic surgeons are)

-My choice of action?
1. Force (or strongly encourage, not that's overtly complex given the taget audience) morons to do it to bring them up to normal-ish standards. Although it's a pain to define who is a moron and who isn't when writing law. Well, whoever eats up the marketing campaigns should qualify.
2. Force people in positions of power to take/have already an "ethics" upgrade. (if possible, otherwise disregard this)
3. Leave everyone else free to pay for what he wants. (this will eventually become standard in the middle class at least, since the "better" men will outperform normal humies on the workplace)

Note that this has any chance of not being a BIG HONKING HUGE screwup in the long run only if it also involves a fully ethical government and enforcement, so either AIs and robots or humans with the "ethics" upgrade that somehow manage to get on the chair and fend off everyone else.
Because everyone else will keep coming.

-What will actually happen given the current world's way of working (or my humbe understanding of it anyway)? Assuming that the companies manage to marked the procedure right and the success rates are comparable to say cosmetic surgery Riches will have their offspring "upgraded", disregarding the offspring's own volition. Idiots will find ways to say it is innatural/stupid/AGAINST THE ONE TRUE GOD!!1!!11!!! and try to shut down the facilities, but since they are actually stupid, the facilities at most relocate in more secure places that live on their loosier laws on the matter, like say Switzerland.
Net result? riches get even more ways to DOMINATE since now they can easily outhink even normal people. Frankly I don't see why that's a good thing. Nuke it from the ortbit, it's the only way to be sure.

It is a fact that people with high cognitive abilities rarely get involved in a fight

Right if for fight you mean physical fighting. It doesn't take a genius to understand that kicking people in the crotch is not the best way to reach fame and fortune.

or competition to dominate other people.

Bullshit. To get in any half-decent place of power you need smarts at least to compete with everyone else trying to get at it, and given how most criminal organizations work (just for an example of very harsh and selective environment), the bosses do have good brains.

Also fully agree with shroom's post above.

I guess by becoming smarter humans will also become less prone to inducing suffering on others; it will also improve the understanding of complex ways to induce suffering in other humans and thus prevent it more easily.

Again bullshit, it will just give them more tools to do whatever they wanted to do. Selfish people will mainly improve the understanding on how to convince the average person to buy their crap/vote for them/give them what they want. Never heard of marketing?

If you want to make them more moral with surgery, then it's another thing. Morality =! intelligence in my book
But just making them smarter is like giving them a strong body, or hell, attaching a vulcan minigun to their crotch. What they do of it remains their only choice unless you alter the decision-making areas of the brain (which may or may not be the same responsible of intelligence, so altering the latter may also alter the former, anyway if you just "magically" add intelligence without altering those circuits their morality won't change). And if they are assholes they will use it to screw up someone for personal gain.

Temple Grandin dislikes communicating with humans and watching emotional entertainment shows, and yet she's keen on reducing the suffering of slaughtered animals.

With all due rispect to this person I know little about, children (females more than males though) generally frown on animal suffering too well before they learn to read. Also since most "emotional entertainment shows" in Italy are either imported from US (yes I can go watch American Teenager with Italian voices, envy me ), or closely copy-pasted on the same concepts I can't say I really disagree with this person.

What is this treatment expected to be able to let us do, and what is it not expected to let us do? Can we become "super-intelligent" in areas related to social awareness and our grasp of the mechanisms of how society works?

If that is possible at plastic surgery prices expect the amount of playboys/girls to rise exponentially. (as will the criminal underworld making money on ripping off people one way or another) That will have catastrophic effects on most people's social interactions. And their bank accounts for that matter.

[Ziggy Stardust]

It is a fact that people with high cognitive abilities rarely get involved in a fight or competition to dominate other people.

Is it? Where are you getting this fact from? Do you have any proof of this assertion? Are you really saying that no intelligent individual has ever been violent, aggressive, selfish, or domineering?

Matters of domination and exploitation seem more alien to them.

Why should this be the case? Because you say so?

Temple Grandin dislikes communicating with humans and watching emotional entertainment shows, and yet she's keen on reducing the suffering of slaughtered animals.

There are plenty of morons who are keen on reducing the suffering of slaughtered animals. And there are plenty of very intelligent people who don't particularly care. Morality =! intelligence.

[Mayabird]

First I would want some way of properly educating and socializing children with extremely high IQs that works with a fair degree of success before we start just jacking up people's brains. As it is, it's really depressing how very few of these already rare people do grow up to become productive people using their talents to their fullest and don't end up crashing and burning or just plain becoming nutballs (having a lot of brainpower means they have all the more to devote to whatever their pet craziness is). Intelligence is a tool and people have to learn and be taught how to use it.

[madd0ct0r]

not to mention most jobs and work doesn't actually require or benefit from improved intelligence.