In that wholly remarkable book The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy it is revealed that humans are the third most intelligent species on Earth. More intelligent than us are dolphins, the penultimate intelligence, and mice, the ultimate Earthly intelligence. In Intelligent Life the Nihileafs come across sea-faring anthropoids and are unimpressed; one can assume their reaction to dolphins and mice, with or without sails, would be similar. It’s also entirely possible that the Nihileafs would say the same for any sentient species in the entirety of the universe, regardless of what is to be found (though at that point it would surely be just obstinance on their part). There remains hope yet humans can one day be acknowledged as an intelligent species, perhaps even the first and only in the entirety of existence (dolphins and mice notwithstanding). This can only occur once we stop cutting off clitorises, vilifying immigrants, exploiting the labor of others, and obliterating our environment, amongst other things like genocide and slavery. Though maybe we are not a stupid and ignorant species, but rather a barbaric one? Personally, I like to think of all things, as a whole humans are just uneducated. That is mostly uneducated (though certainly not mostly harmless). Admittedly, human stupidity and idiocy is ripe for ridicule. How stupid are humans? Let me demonstrate. It has taken humanity ten thousand years, give or take a few centuries, maybe even a couple millennia, with innumerable sufferings, cruel ironies, absent gods, and the indifference of nature to come up with nihilism. The Nihileafs realize this near the beginning of their existence. How’s that for intelligence? – Zachary