How many of you feel dumber, after having been to Yahoo Answers?

Question

Some of the questions on here are so stupid that I almost feel dumber for just having read them! I really enjoy answering legitimate questions and it seems they are getting harder to find!

Answer 1

Agreed, but every now and then you do get a good question. I think they are asked but get drowned in all the dumb questions people ask.

Whenever I feel like I am getting dumber, I just start rating answers (resolved questions). Most of the time I do learn something new. Other times, I am just amazed that the "answer" was also quite dumb. The benefit of rating questions in terms of Yahoo! Answers is two fold, first, you get a point and second, the future person checking out the answer finds out if other people agreed with this answer or not. Also, it helps legitimate answerers as they get a point as well.

And, as a side-note, I feel that the structure of Yahoo! Answers is quite flawed. It encourages stupid questions and stupid answers. As in, it rewards difficult questions to answer just as equally as questions that are easy to answer. While it is true that what is difficult/easy is quite subjective, I have a way around this problem. However, this specific way doesn't address your question. Also I think what would ultimately help more is for users to ask the questions correctly. I often see questions like "What do I do for my class project in math?" or "Where can I find some decent clothes?" or "ne1 no wht ppl tnk whn ppl wrt n shrt."

Also, a trick to finding the good questions is:

1) pick a category you are good at answering questions in.
2) sort by date (you have to click it twice) for the questions that are the oldest. Look for questions that have no more than 2 answers (chances are these were hard and interesting) and you won't feel dumber for having been asked dumb questions.

The above is not foolproof and you will inevitably run into dumb questions, but at least its better than reading the most recent inane questions posted on the main page.

Incidentally, I read your question on the main page before going into my category and found it interesting.

Best.

Answer 2

Painter: Of the vast number of Yahoo Answers participants, there surely are MANY who are either at the young age and/or mentally limited maturity to pose answers.

I too, cringe seeing a dumb question--which you know what asking one gets I'm sure.

And I do tend to give the silly immature asker exactly what they need: an answer to say to them how stupid they really are to me.

By admission, I take such a free shot at humor to make even myself laugh; a "free ride" off their ignorance.

But there are truly challenging and highly intellectually good questions out there I have to ponder on before I step up to the plate and answer.

I have come to know that my own participation in Yahoo Answers has greatly helped others in sincere need---and that is my catalyst to continue participation in this grand forum; and I hope it's yours for the same reasons as well.

Answer 3

Unfortunately, intelligence (which must include a highly developed moral cognitive line) is a rare thing nowadays....and this site is a great indicator of just how low we're stooping in a collective sense. I find it fascinating, alarming and mildly disgusting, but No I do not feel less intelligent for being here. I see my time here as research. It helps me feel the 'pulse' of our society at this time....and it's interesting and in a way enlightening to see just how different my own thought processes are from most people. It helps me communicate better to those who are thinking with their feelings to the exclusion of their logic. It can seem pretty pointless being here sometimes, but for me it is definitely giving me a LOT of food for thought.....and I love that.

Answer 4

Some questions are indeed quite stupid.
Some questions are just plain funny.
Some questions are unintelligible.
Some questions are deeply offensive.
A small minority of questions are legitimate.

That said, it is providing the answer, not reading the question, for which I can give myself a mental pat on the back. So the type of question is irrelevant - I always feel smarter after visiting!

Answer 5

I just pick and choose the questions I answer. It's the ask questions that make me feel dumber!

Answer 6

Patience, Grasshopper. It's just like any other public forum, you have to sift through all the sludge for the rare golden nugget.

I too have asked the "what's up with these questions", question, and it doesn't seem to improve the answers, as your string here (for the most part) demonstrates.

Answer 7

amazingly insightful, jaw-droppingly humorous, fairly infuriating, pathetically depressing, very sharp, about time-honored, lacking in elementary experience, vincibly ignorant, misinformed, blissfully clueless, or dumber than a backyard slug? i'm certain i have been each and every of the above in some unspecified time sooner or later.

Answer 8

No, I don't feel dumber. I feel secure that my intellect is above average. And I try to help those that are less fortunate than I am.

Answer 9

I totally agree. Seeing what some people can come up with kind of makes me lose some faith in humanity. Well, the little that was left anyway.

Answer 10

Its finally coming down to my level, i love it. Maybe I shouldn't posted links from Y! answers to the Yahoo news message board trolls...Yall are definetly not ready for some of the sick troll posts...