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The Tournament of Genius
Over the next few weeks, we’ll be having a little March Madness of our own here at mentalfloss.com. Instead of playing hoops, though, we’ll be working to put the title of “History’s Greatest Genius” on its rightful owner. To find this singularly great thinker, we’re having a single-elimination tournament to settle the debate about humanity’s greatest mind once and for all. Is it Albert Einstein? Sir Isaac Newton? Evel Knievel? (Every tournament needs its Cinderellas.)
The Selection Committee
Ethan Trex headed up our selection committee, which included various mental_floss employees, their significant others, and a few curious, opinionated strangers who happened to pass by our table during our heated debate.
The Schedule
The play-in game is scheduled for 2pm today, and we’ll have 8 matchups each day for the rest of the week. The Tournament continues throughout March, eventually narrowing the field to the Final Four Geniuses on April 4th. Take a look at the bracket, read up on the field’s achievements, and then check back later this afternoon to start casting your votes!
Who’s the greatest genius in history? We’ll find out on Monday, April 6th.
Comments (23)
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As someone who has spent the last few years working in a crappy office job at a big corporation, I am so glad to see my hero Edward McSweegan in the tournament! I’ll be back at 2pm to vote for him. (Who am I kidding, I’ll be back in 15 minutes to see if there’s a new post up.)
posted by monica on 3-16-2009 at 12:17 pm
The world has been waiting for that potential Edison-Tesla second-round matchup for decades. My boyfriend will be excited to know that two of his nerdy heroes made the cut — Bill James and Bill Simmons.
posted by Kerry on 3-16-2009 at 12:44 pm
If you want this to get a lot of press…and a lop-sided win, you should include Stephen Colbert. You would, at the very least, get a phone call from him.
posted by tommy on 3-16-2009 at 12:47 pm
While I am pleased with Adam Smith, most of this list is trash.
Everyone always forgets poor Johannes Kepler but at least have Copernicus.
posted by Dan The Man on 3-16-2009 at 1:36 pm
I’m disappointed Carl Sagan’s not on the list. Anyone who can simply and accurately explain the fourth dimension deserves kudos. Actually, for that ability, Madeleine L’Engle should be on here, too.
posted by Chelsea on 3-16-2009 at 1:57 pm
Newton vs. Liebnitz in the first round for a Who Invented Calculus Showdown? Interesting.
I can see Pythagoras vs. Plato in a Sweet 16 matchup.
posted by Jon on 3-16-2009 at 2:11 pm
Thomas Jefferson is waaayyy overrated. How is he a number one seed and John Adams and Abraham Lincoln aren’t even on the list? I call shenanigans on the selection committee.
I agree with adding Stephen Colbert to the list though.
posted by Chris on 3-16-2009 at 2:30 pm
I like the variety of genius in the tourney. But, I would’ve included Archimedes. Probably as a number 1 seed.
posted by Scott on 3-16-2009 at 2:50 pm
I’ll second Madeleine L’Engle. Anytime I read an explanation of the 4th dimension, a tesseract comes to mind.
Sagan is cool too, though. :-D
posted by nutmeag on 3-16-2009 at 3:14 pm
Wow, just like the REAL March Madness, with people bitching about teams (people) that got left out of the Tournament!
: )
posted by Jonathan on 3-16-2009 at 3:44 pm
I’m glad to see non-scientists like Shakespeare and Beethoven on the list. Shakespeare in particular deserves to go several rounds at least.
That said, why is Stephen Hawking only a 13th seed?
posted by Jim on 3-16-2009 at 4:25 pm
Galileo Galilei? Hello?!?!
As much I’d love to see Colbert on here, I’d be stuffing the ballot box for him along w/ the rest of The Nation.
posted by Jonny on 3-16-2009 at 5:01 pm
Bill James as a 16? Even though he’s revolutionized the way people think about baseball and baseball stats? Oh well, at least he’s on there.
posted by Jeff on 3-16-2009 at 9:26 pm
Go Freud! He practically discovered the subconscious, and pioneered whole new branches of psychology. Then again, I am somewhat biased, seeing as how I am a psychologist. Very interested to see who wins though!
posted by Jane on 3-16-2009 at 10:00 pm
Why do I feel like I’m trapped inside an episode of Big Ban Theory?
Cue the “Real Men of Genius” theme.
reCaptcha: Custer 6-1 I thought his odds were worse than that.
posted by PartiallyDeflected on 3-16-2009 at 11:13 pm
Matt Groening for the win! And I’m sorry, but Burt Reynolds? Really? You’d be better off with Norm MacDonald as Burt Reynolds from SNL Jeopardy. And for that matter, what about Alex Trebek? He’s a damn genius!
@ Chelsea and nutmeag: A Wrinkle In Time is fantastic!
posted by Cassie on 3-16-2009 at 11:14 pm
Well, the tournament is stacked with white men. No surprise there.
posted by Jix on 3-17-2009 at 1:05 pm
Of course, the tournament is stacked with white men. No surprise there.
You can fit Evel Knievel on there but not George Washington Carver? Paris Hilton but not Virginia Woolf or Ada Lovelace (where is Babbage, for that matter?) or Maya Angelou?
posted by Jix on 3-17-2009 at 1:33 pm
Where is Werner Heisenberg???????? He single handedly came up with many of the things we have learned about quantum theory. hawking would be nowhere if it wasn’t for Heisenberg
posted by Forest on 3-17-2009 at 8:45 pm
Oh no. I don’t know what to do about Galileo vs. Hawking. Seriously. That match up blows my mind. This may be the most important decision of my life.
posted by Amber on 3-17-2009 at 10:24 pm
Yay! Colbert!
Not-so-yay: Choosing between him and Rowling. Ouch.
posted by Ash on 3-18-2009 at 5:04 pm
Leo all the way!!!
posted by Dave Tsunami on 3-20-2009 at 11:29 am
Aristotle would win, but then Leibniz and Descartes would be up there. Shakespeare was clever, but Goethe could do everything that Shakespeare did and more.
posted by Philosophia on 11-13-2011 at 3:23 pm