Beauty vs. Intelligence

It’s strange how the stereotype of a nerd, a geek or an intellectual is an ugly one. Or if not ugly then so absorbed as to not care about appearance. Is this because beautiful people aren’t smart? I don’t think so. I don’t think there is a scale which must be balanced, one side beauty the other intelligence. So why does this stereotype exist? The stereotype is of course not entirely true, but stereotypes have to come from somewhere…

Is it maybe that beauty attracts friends and so better looking people have more of a social life and hence don’t dedicate as much time to study? If this is true then it certainly doesn’t limit good looking people from being intelligent, which is how it is, and so this might have some truth.

This would then also imply that lack of looks or grooming, or even shyness, cause a more solitary personality that can dedicate time to study and intellectual improvement.

If the stereotype is true, and that beauty is a balance against intelligence then wouldn’t it be a loss to society? The beautiful would be the lowest educated and (if the beauty stereotype is also true) too shallow to marry anyone not good looking and this would cause two classes of people, the beautiful but low socioeconomic and the ugly but intelligent leaders and rulers. Then the beautiful would begin to die off, or be cut away.

Good thing stereotypes hardly ever work then.

And anyway, I’m doing a science degree. If that’s not where nerds dwell I don’t know where it is (okay so I’m ignoring com sci… :P). And so I know that beauty is incompatible with intelligence.