# Has anyone calculated how much human capital humanity lost due to the persecution of the Jews in ww2 **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 8, 2016, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-calculated-how-much-human-capital-humanity-lost-due-to-the-persecution-of-the-jews-in-ww2/759434 "2016-07-08T21:27:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-calculated-how-much-human-capital-humanity-lost-due-to-the-persecution-of-the-jews-in-ww2/759434/21 "2016-07-10T03:12:24Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > I remember hearing years ago from Fareed Z. that a study was done to calculate wasted productive man-hours spent playing Angry Birds. It was astronomical! > > Therefor, I put forth that “Angry Birds = Hitler”. Is that like my theory that TETRIS was a KGB plot to undermine American productivity? Most of the Einsteins left while the leaving was good. Including Einstein. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-calculated-how-much-human-capital-humanity-lost-due-to-the-persecution-of-the-jews-in-ww2/759434/22 "2016-07-10T17:17:47Z")
> [@brickbacon](#): > > Unless you believe Jewish individuals are special in some way, it doesn’t stand to reason that more Jews means more Jewish laureates. Winning a Nobel is often not just about doing exceptional work, but also being lucky enough to be alive when your work is recognized, living in one of a handful of countries, working in a certain field, and just sheer luck. > > There were a ton of forces that pushed Jews into the sciences, and there were often quotas that excluded many… No war probably means fewer Jews in the US which also probably means fewer Jewish laureates. That’s even putting aside the issue that the number of Jews in the world is not just based on demographics, but also choice and observance. If Jewish people are normal, then of course some who would have been laureates died. And thus there were fewer of them than there would otherwise be. During that time period, the positions those Jewish people would have filled would be taken up by others, who would have the same likelihood of being Jewish as anyone else. If you have a set of different color balls, and you take out a large portion of the blue ones, of course there will be a lower likelihood of choosing a blue one. ---
**Author:** ![brickbacon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/898d66/32.png) [@brickbacon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brickbacon)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-calculated-how-much-human-capital-humanity-lost-due-to-the-persecution-of-the-jews-in-ww2/759434/23 "2016-07-10T19:49:05Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > If Jewish people are normal, then of course some who would have been laureates died. No, not necessarily. More people in a certain group in general doesn’t mean more Nobel prizes for that same specific group of people. If more Jews meant fewer Jews in the US, or stricter quotas in higher ed due to antisemitism, then there would likely be fewer Jewish laureates. Obviously it could go the other way too, but I don’t think one conclusion is more logical than the other. You conclusion is like arguing more Chinese people means more Chinese NBA basketball players. > [@BigT](#): > > During that time period, the positions those Jewish people would have filled would be taken up by others, who would have the same likelihood of being Jewish as anyone else. What is this supposed to mean? > [@BigT](#): > > If you have a set of different color balls, and you take out a large portion of the blue ones, of course there will be a lower likelihood of choosing a blue one. You are assuming the chances of choosing a blue ball are equal to other colors. That’s not actually the case for a variety of reasons in this case. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-calculated-how-much-human-capital-humanity-lost-due-to-the-persecution-of-the-jews-in-ww2/759434.md?page=1)