Eugenic ideology suppressed research into infectious causes of low IQ

Evidence

But the Virginia Health Bulletin posed its question during the heyday of U.S. eugenics, and the prospect of an infectious, rather than a racial, driver of intelligence ran counter to eugenic theory. The infection theory specifically warred with the common belief that African Americans possess innately low intelligence. The hookworm connection failed to draw funding or the continued attention of researchers and the infestations were widely thought to have dissipated by the 1980s. — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 916

Categorization

• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 916
• XREF: connects to: National infectious disease burden strongly predicts average national IQ — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 937; Toxocara canis infection lowers IQ independent of socioeconomic and racial factors — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 980; Iodine deficiency is a major unrecognized cause of lowered intelligence — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 21 (+13 more)

Library Connections

• Adding iodine to salt in 1924 raised average U.S. IQ scores #exemplifies (0.90) — Did iodized salt raise the IQ of 50 million Americans by 15 points?
• Iodizing salt in 1924 closed a 15-point IQ gap cheaply #exemplifies (0.90)
• Iodine deficiency is a major unrecognized cause of lowered intelligence #exemplifies (0.85) — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 21
• Iodine deficiency is the leading global cause of mental retardation #exemplifies (0.85) — The Cognitive Effects of Micronutrient Deficiency: Evidence from Salt Iodization in the United States
• Rapid IQ gains from reduced disease burden rule out genetic explanations #corroborates (0.80) — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 945

Broader Connections

• Radicalization theory treats Islam as inherently violent like eugenics treated races #expands (0.80)
• Claiming IQ gaps are immutable functions as a self-fulfilling excuse for inaction #responds-to (0.75) — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 73
• Mixed-race children’s IQ tracks rearing environment, not racial genetics #corroborates (0.75) — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 119
• Intelligence develops from environment and experience rather than genetic inheritance #corroborates (0.70)
• Intelligence is malleable and shaped by environment, not fixed by heredity #corroborates (0.70) — Harriet A. Washington, A Terrible Thing to Waste, 54
• Intellectuals must admit ideology rather than claim value-free science #expands (0.60) — James W. Carey, Communication as Culture- Essays on…, 435