This is a question that Steve Sailer asks a lot. That is, why do Middle Easterners tend to have similar average IQ to Latin Americans, but significantly more folks in the cognitive elites?

Well, here’s one idea:

The ancient Egyptians studied Babylonian literature in great detail in the original language. This was confirmed by archaeological discoveries from the reign of Akhenaten in the 14th century BC. https://t.co/cgCH3JQVRS — Byzantine Emporia (@byzantinemporia) June 16, 2019

That’s pretty impressive. But it sort of came to an end. Why?

Apart from dysgenics, and this idea that Hindu-like castes were “leveled” by Islam – but nonetheless still left a lingering genetic mark – there is also a third possible explanation. That is differential rates of consanguineous marriage amongst the upper and lower classes, which would serve to accentuate the IQ difference if it is higher amongst the latter (which it generally is). Any other ideas?