Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Publisher: In-Sight Publishing

Publisher Founding: March 1, 2014

Web Domain: http://www.in-sightpublishing.com

Location: Fort Langley, Township of Langley, British Columbia, Canada

Journal: In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal

Journal Founding: August 2, 2012

Frequency: Three (3) Times Per Year

Review Status: Non-Peer-Reviewed

Access: Electronic/Digital & Open Access

Fees: None (Free)

Volume Numbering: 13

Issue Numbering: 1

Section: A

Theme Type: Idea

Theme Premise: “Outliers and Outsiders”

Theme Part: 32

Formal Sub-Theme: None.

Individual Publication Date: October 8, 2024

Issue Publication Date: January 1, 2025

Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen

Word Count: 1,989

Image Credits: Photo by Linda Yuan on Unsplash.

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN): 2369-6885

Please see the footnotes, bibliography, and citations, after the publication.*

Abstract

Tianxiang Shao (Camus Shaw), a 20-year-old from Huangshan City, Anhui Province, China, is an undergraduate student fluent in Chinese, French, and English. A talented individual, he excels in mathematics, high-range IQ tests, and travel design. He is also a poet, lyricist, and member of multiple high-IQ societies: growing up; extended self; family background; youth with friends; education; purpose of intelligence tests; high intelligence; extreme reactions to geniuses; greatest geniuses; genius and a profoundly gifted person; necessities for genius or the definition of genius; work experiences and jobs held; job path; myths of the gifted; God; science; tests taken and scores earned; range of the scores; ethical philosophy; political philosophy; metaphysics; worldview; meaning in life; source of meaning; afterlife; life; and love.

Keywords: Chinese classical philosophy significance, Chinese southern mountain town culture, existentialist ethical philosophy reflection, family legacy influence on choices, high intelligence influence on life, internally generated meaning from experiences, mathematics competition certificates, mystery and transience of human life.

Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1)

Scott Douglas Jacobsen: When you were growing up, what were some of the prominent family stories being told over time?

Tianxiang Shao: My grandparents were remarkable. During the years when China was impoverished and weak, they made their way from the countryside to the city, which brought prosperity and happiness to our entire family. To this day, their story and spirit continue to be passed down in our family.

Jacobsen: Have these stories helped provide a sense of an extended self or a sense of the family legacy?

Shao: Yes, these stories have influenced my choices, inclining me to pursue my career in big cities. At the same time, I believe life is a continuous journey of exploration, and success is something that each person defines for themselves.

Jacobsen: What was the family background, e.g., geography, culture, language, and religion or lack thereof?

Shao: My parents work in the financial sector, and they are materialists with no religious beliefs. 

One distinctive aspect is my mother’s side of the family. My maternal grandparents are from Huangshan, a southern mountain town in China. It’s a peaceful and serene city, and I often say that this city has significantly shaped my outlook on life and the world.

Jacobsen: How was the experience with peers and schoolmates as a child and an adolescent?

Shao: In fact, I didn’t get along well with most of my peers. In kindergarten, I was often excluded by my classmates, and in elementary school, I tended to remain quiet. It wasn’t until middle school that I started engaging in some social activities.

During elementary school, I would sometimes spend time imagining entire stories inspired by a clock and filling my notebook with writing and drawings. None of my classmates understood what I was expressing, but I found joy in it nonetheless.

Jacobsen: What have been some professional certifications, qualifications, and trainings earned by you?

Shao: I have received certificates from several mathematics competitions. Additionally, a few months ago, I achieved a good score in the IELTS exam.

Jacobsen: What is the purpose of intelligence tests to you?

Shao: Initially, I took intelligence tests like Mensa and Raven’s out of curiosity to understand my own intellectual abilities. Later, I encountered high-range IQ tests. Now, for me, they serve more as a form of leisure and entertainment.

Jacobsen: When was high intelligence discovered for you?

Shao: In fact, I don’t consider myself to have exceptional intelligence. I don’t want others to see me as someone special. If I had to pinpoint something, it would be during my childhood when we were all learning together—I tended to grasp things more quickly and think about problems more deeply than others.

Jacobsen: When you think of the ways in which the geniuses of the past have either been mocked, vilified, and condemned if not killed, or praised, flattered, platformed, and revered, what seems like the reason for the extreme reactions to and treatment of geniuses? Many alive today seem camera shy — many, not all.

Shao: A person’s success is influenced by their own qualities, but often, fate plays a significant role as well. Newton became Newton not just because of his genius, but also because he lived in post-Renaissance England. Look at Giordano Bruno, who was also a genius—what was his fate in the end? If Alan Turing were alive today, would he still meet a tragic end?

Similarly, geniuses have different personalities. Some align with the times, while others stand in opposition. Success is not solely determined by intelligence; many factors are involved, and most of them are beyond one’s control.

As for your point about geniuses being camera-shy, I am reminded of my best friend, one of the top geniuses in China, who has achieved incredible scores on various tests. However, he remains humble and dislikes being in the spotlight. This is his personality. In short, geniuses have their own perspectives and choices in life, and we must respect their decisions.

Jacobsen: Who seem like the greatest geniuses in history to you?

Shao: There are several people, not just one. I can list a few for you:

From China: Laozi, Zhuangzi, Su Dongpo, and Wang Yangming.  

From the West: Ludwig Wittgenstein, Immanuel Kant, and Albert Camus.

Jacobsen: What differentiates a genius from a profoundly intelligent person?

Shao: Let me explain it using a mathematical concept: a genius is a subset of profoundly intelligent people. Being profoundly intelligent is a necessary but not sufficient condition for being a genius.

If we imagine the existing body of knowledge as a large circle, profoundly intelligent individuals can approach the boundary of that circle, while a genius has the ability to break through it. That’s the key difference between them.

Jacobsen: Is profound intelligence necessary for genius?

Shao: I already explained this in the previous question: profound intelligence is indeed a necessary condition for genius.

Jacobsen: What have been some work experiences and jobs held by you?

Shao: Haha, I’m currently just a second-year university student.

Jacobsen: Why pursue this particular job path?

Shao: I’m currently a student. In the future, I plan to pursue research in artificial intelligence or algorithms because I find these fields fascinating.

Jacobsen: What are some of the more important aspects of the idea of the gifted and geniuses? Those myths that pervade the cultures of the world. What are those myths? What truths dispel them?

Shao: To be frank,I don’t know how to respond. So I don’t answer this question.

Jacobsen: Any thoughts on the God concept or gods idea and philosophy, theology, and religion?

Shao: I don’t have any religious beliefs, but when I try to find calm and quiet, I sometimes read Buddhist scriptures.

Jacobsen: How much does science play into the worldview for you?

Shao: Science accounts for about 80% of my worldview.

Jacobsen: What have been some of the tests taken and scores earned (with standard deviations) for you?

Shao: I personally enjoy numerical tests. I scored IQ 180+ on Mahir Wu’s Numeric Inspiration Test and even broke the record for this test. On the Chinese verbal test Nocturne II, I achieved an IQ score of 185. 

As for international tests, I scored IQ 176 on the SLSE test and IQ 177 on the spatial test COSMIC. 

So far, I have achieved six scores above IQ 170 and two scores above IQ 180. I only started taking high-range IQ tests this year, so I haven’t accumulated many scores yet.

Jacobsen: What is the range of the scores for you? The scores earned on alternative intelligence teststend to produce a wide smattering of data points rather than clusters, typically.

Shao: My lowest score on a test was IQ 139 (I submitted it very casually), and my highest score was IQ 185. The median of my twenty test scores is IQ 168, and the average is IQ 169.4.

Jacobsen: What ethical philosophy makes some sense, even the most workable sense to you?

Shao: For me, the ethical philosophy that makes the most sense and seems the most workable is existentialism. It emphasizes individual freedom, choice, and responsibility, suggesting that each person must create meaning in their own life through their actions. This philosophy encourages me to reflect on how to find myself in an uncertain and complex world while taking responsibility for my choices.

Jacobsen: What social philosophy makes some sense, even the most workable sense to you?

Shao: It would likely be Marxism, as I was exposed to it from a young age.

Jacobsen: What economic philosophy makes some sense, even the most workable sense to you?

Shao: I am not sure.

Jacobsen: What political philosophy makes some sense, even the most workable sense to you?

Shao: I am not sure.

Jacobsen: What metaphysics makes some sense to you, even the most workable sense to you?

Shao: Personally, I am fond of classical Chinese philosophy, particularly the Daoist perspective. I advocate for the concept of “wu wei” (non-action), believing that people should follow the natural flow of things, approach gains and losses with a sense of detachment, and face each challenge with a calm and steady mindset.

Jacobsen: What worldview-encompassing philosophical system makes some sense, even the most workable sense to you?

Shao: I think it would be Marxism, but I don’t really like answering questions with absolutes, such as “the most,” because nothing should be seen as entirely absolute.

Jacobsen: What provides meaning in life for you?

Shao: I believe books and music provide meaning in my life. 

Reading is a way to engage in dialogue with the great minds of the past, and when I feel life lacks meaning, I find joy in books. Often, problems resolve themselves through this.

Music, on the other hand, is something that can break down barriers, allowing people across the world to understand and communicate with each other without the obstacle of language. In the rhythm of music, I sometimes feel that “the world is one.”

Jacobsen: Is meaning externally derived, internally generated, both, or something else?

Shao: I tend to believe that meaning is internally generated.

I can share an interesting story with you. There was an ancient Chinese philosopher named Wang Yangming who once had an insight while looking at flowers. He said, “Before you looked at this flower, it remained in silence with you. When you observe it, its colors become clear. This shows that the flower’s existence is not outside your heart.”

His words are often labeled as subjective idealism, but I don’t think labeling ideas is the right approach.

When people are born, they cannot choose their circumstances. But from that point onward, everything can be changed through their own efforts. One of my favorite movies, The Truman Show, illustrates this well. The protagonist only breaks through the barriers at the end because he firmly believes that he is real and others are not. His belief in himself leads to his final breakthrough.

Life indeed resembles The Truman Show. History continuously rhymes, and no matter how much the external world changes, on a scale of millennia, it all repeats itself. The only thing that can determine everything, and give meaning to all things, is your own heart.

There’s a famous Chinese saying I’d like to share: “Where the heart finds peace, there is my home” (此心安处是吾乡).

Jacobsen: Do you believe in an afterlife? If so, why, and what form? If not, why not?

Shao: I only seek peace and happiness in this life, not wealth or status in the next. I don’t like discussing the afterlife much because thinking about the next life before living this one well only adds unnecessary worry.

However, I do hope that everyone has a next life, a chance to reach the “other shore” in the Buddhist sense. There are many forms of cause and effect in this world, and one lifetime isn’t enough to fully understand them. If plants can regenerate over and over, why shouldn’t people be able to as well?

Jacobsen: What do you make of the mystery and transience of life?

Shao: The mystery of life lies in the fact that you can never clearly know what will happen in the next moment. You never know whether the next step will be good or bad.

Human life is incredibly brief, but within that short span, endless possibilities can still be created.

Jacobsen: What is love to you? 

Shao: This question brings a bit of sadness to me, as I recently went through a breakup while working on this interview. I used to think I was more mature than others and understood these concepts earlier. I had relationships in both middle school and university, though none of them lasted in the end.

However, I still believe in pure love. To me, love is both a passion and a long-term commitment. I often compare love to Morse code, made up of alternating signals: passion (the short signals) and enduring care (the long signals).

Footnotes

None

Citations

American Medical Association (AMA 11th Edition): Jacobsen S. Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1). October 2024; 13(1). http://www.in-sightpublishing.com/tianxiang-shao-1

American Psychological Association (APA 7th Edition): Jacobsen, S. (2024, October 8). Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1)’. In-Sight Publishing. 13(1).

Brazilian National Standards (ABNT): JACOBSEN, S. Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1)’. In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal, Fort Langley, v. 13, n. 1, 2024.

Chicago/Turabian, Author-Date (17th Edition): Jacobsen, Scott. 2024. “Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1)’.” In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal 13, no. 1 (Winter). http://www.in-sightpublishing.com/tianxiang-shao-1.

Chicago/Turabian, Notes & Bibliography (17th Edition): Jacobsen, S. “Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1).” In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal 13, no. 1 (October 2024). http://www.in-sightpublishing.com/tianxiang-shao-1.

Harvard: Jacobsen, S. (2024) ‘Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1)’, In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal, 13(1). http://www.in-sightpublishing.com/tianxiang-shao-1.

Harvard (Australian): Jacobsen, S 2024, ‘Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1)’, In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal, vol. 13, no. 1, http://www.in-sightpublishing.com/tianxiang-shao-1.

Modern Language Association (MLA, 9th Edition): Jacobsen, Scott. “Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1).” In-Sight: Independent Interview-Based Journal, vo.13, no. 1, 2024, http://www.in-sightpublishing.com/tianxiang-shao-1.

Vancouver/ICMJE: Jacobsen S. Conversation with Tianxiang Shao on Views and Life: Member, OlympIQ Society (1) [Internet]. 2024 Oct; 13(1). Available from: http://www.in-sightpublishing.com/tianxiang-shao-1.

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