Dr Jonathan Anomaly10 August 2024

Is It Ethical To Hand-Pick Your Child’s Genes? - Dr Jonathan Anomaly - #823

0Frameworks

10Insights

Insights & moments

The myth-busts, hot takes, explainers, and tools worth keeping.

Myth Buster· 1

Myth Buster04:00

IQ Tests Are Actually Reliable

Despite claims that IQ tests are culturally biased or meaningless, modern versions are well-validated and measure a general cognitive ability (g) that correlates strongly with real-world outcomes.

Early IQ tests had cultural biases, but these were largely corrected decades ago.
Modern IQ tests assess multiple cognitive domains like logic, spatial reasoning, and verbal skills.
Spearman's hypothesis shows consistent correlation across different cognitive tasks.
Twin studies confirm strong heritability of IQ, with identical twins scoring nearly identically.

“IQ tests have been pretty reliable... they test a whole wide variety of different abilities.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 05:20

#iq#cognitive-testing#psychometrics#heritability

Hot Take· 3

Hot Take24:00

The Treatment vs. Enhancement Line Is Arbitrary

Many people accept genetic selection to prevent disease but reject it for enhancement, yet this moral line breaks down when examined—correcting poor eyesight or low muscle mass is enhancement, not treatment, yet widely accepted.

Crooked teeth and age-related muscle loss are normal human conditions.
Braces and LASIK are enhancements, not treatments for disease.
Preventing cancer risk via embryo selection is enhancement by the same logic.
The treatment-enhancement distinction is emotionally intuitive but not logically coherent.

“Crooked teeth are normal for our species. And yet, we think it's perfectly fine to enhance crooked teeth by putting braces on.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 25:20

#bioethics#genetic-enhancement#medical-ethics#ivf

Hot Take57:00

Moral Enhancement Could Backfire

Selecting embryos for traits like empathy or conscientiousness sounds good, but creating unconditional cooperators could make them vulnerable to exploitation—true cooperation requires moral flexibility, not just niceness.

Unconditional cooperators are easily exploited by selfish individuals.
The best strategy is reciprocal altruism—cooperate with cooperators, punish defectors.
Moralistic aggression (punishing cheaters) is essential for group cooperation.
Enhancing only 'niceness' could destabilize social systems.

“You don't want to be an unconditional cooperator. You want to be a reciprocal altruist.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 60:45

#moral-enhancement#cooperation#game-theory#psychology

Hot Take81:00

A Preference Cascade on Genetics Is Coming

Elites currently deny the importance of genetics in public while using it privately; as genetic technologies become mainstream, a 'preference cascade' will occur where society openly embraces heritability and enhancement.

Elites privately value genetics in mate and school selection but deny it publicly.
This cognitive dissonance is unsustainable.
As embryo selection becomes common, public norms will shift rapidly.
The shift will resemble the fall of communism—sudden and widespread.

“We're in East Germany in 1988. Everyone knows communism is [__]... and suddenly everyone sees through the lie.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 83:15

#culture-war#genetics#social-norms#elites

Explainer· 3

Explainer00:00

Why People Dislike Talking About IQ

The discomfort around IQ discussions stems from post-World War II norms, where early misuse of IQ tests to justify eugenics and discriminatory policies led to a broad stigma against genetic explanations for human differences.

IQ discussions became taboo after WWII due to associations with eugenics and racism.
Hitler banned IQ tests after discovering Jews scored higher than Germans.
Misuse of IQ data in the early 20th century fueled restrictive immigration and colonial policies.
This history caused a cultural overreaction, suppressing research on genetic differences.

“Actually being anti-IQ is a Nazi policy. It's pro-Nazi.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 00:58

#iq#eugenics#history#genetics

Explainer07:00

IQ Predicts More Than Just Smarts

IQ is a strong predictor of various life outcomes, including income, education, marital stability, and even criminal behavior—effects that persist even after controlling for socioeconomic status.

Higher IQ correlates with higher educational attainment and earnings.
It predicts lower rates of criminality and addictive behaviors.
These correlations hold even when controlling for socioeconomic background.
One theory is that higher IQ enables better long-term planning and self-control.

“IQ is a decent predictor at predicting criminality.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 08:15

#iq#socioeconomics#crime#education

Explainer33:30

Civilization Is Accumulating Harmful Mutations

Modern medicine allows people with genetic disorders to survive and reproduce, leading to a gradual accumulation of deleterious mutations in the population—a phenomenon Darwin noted and that could threaten long-term human health.

Natural selection once removed harmful mutations through early death or reduced reproduction.
Medical advances now allow people with genetic disorders to pass on their genes.
This leads to a slow 'genetic meltdown' over generations.
Embryo selection can counteract this by selecting for lower genetic load.

“We're almost certainly accumulating deleterious mutations in civilized societies and passing those along.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 35:45

#mutation-load#eugenics#evolution#public-health

Story· 1

Story44:00

Cousin Marriage and Genetic Risk in Religious Groups

Religious groups that practice cousin marriage, such as some Muslim communities, face higher rates of genetic disorders due to increased homozygosity, making them prime candidates for embryo selection to reduce disease burden.

Cousin marriage increases risk of recessive genetic disorders like Tay-Sachs.
Historical European bans on cousin marriage by the Catholic Church may have improved population health.
Ashkenazi Jews, despite religious conservatism, widely use genetic screening to avoid Tay-Sachs.
Religious groups opposing embryo selection may inadvertently harm their descendants.

“Every Ashkenazi... gets the Tay-Sachs test before they go on a first date. This is straight-up eugenics.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 47:45

#religion#genetics#cousin-marriage#public-health

Q&A· 1

Q&A86:30

What Do People Think About Embryo Screening?

A Harvard study found strong public support for embryo screening to prevent disease, moderate support for intelligence, and strong opposition to selection for traits like skin color or baldness.

Cancer and heart disease screening: ~85% approval.
Intelligence selection: ~40% approval.
Skin color and baldness: majority disapproval.
People distinguish between health and cosmetic or social traits.

“It is high for diseases, moderate for intelligence, and low for skin color.”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 88:45

#bioethics#public-opinion#ivf#genetics

Tool· 1

Tool17:30

Embryo Selection for Intelligence Is Already Possible

Using IVF, parents can now select embryos based on polygenic risk scores for traits like intelligence, with differences of up to 20–25 IQ points possible between embryos.

Companies already offer embryo selection for health traits like diabetes and schizophrenia.
One company (not publicly named) can select for cognitive ability.
Selecting the brightest embryo among 10–15 could yield significant IQ gains.
This is not gene editing—it's selection among naturally occurring genetic variation.

“If you're doing IVF anyway, why not select among the brightest embryos?”
Dr. Jonathan Anomaly · 18:25

#embryo-selection#ivf#genetics#cognitive-enhancement