[ WP ] A man with above average intelligence wishes for the world to be smarter . He is delighted to find that his wish has come true , until he realizes that he is now the least intelligent man in the world .

`` Why does n't he get it? Is it because he's an adult?'' asked Billy with a puzzled smile. He was the middle-schooler who had been assigned to teach me. Based on his face, I had assumed he was born with down syndrome when we first met. It felt like he had read my mind because he happily admitted that, yes he was born with `` Trisomy 21,'' which I learned was the technical name of the disease... or rather genetic disorder, he was quick to correct me. 
 
 `` No, even adults experienced radical neuro-acceleration from the Nuemann Singularity,'' Katrina patiently explained. `` Did you stop reading the town's science journal? The high school proved that he simply did n't exist at the time of the event. They published their findings locally to ensure wider readership in the town journal.'' Katrina was the other elementary school child who had been assigned to teach me about the current state of the world and its breathtaking sprints of advancement. As far as I could tell, Katrina had been a normal elementary school child when I made my wish. But even she was sometimes vexed at the relatively slow rate of our lessons. 
 
 `` ’ When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth. ’ I read some of the Sherlock Holmes books last night, like you said Mr. Jameson, ” said Billy. His deft response to Katrina ’ s admonishment caught me off guard. Thankfully, his unflappable cheeriness kept the mood light. 
 
 “ And which one was your favorite? ” I asked, relieved to finally be able to participate in the discussion. 
 
 “ I really liked The Hound of Baskervilles, it kept me guessing until the end! ” 
 
 “ Well, I think I feel a bit like Watson to everyone ’ s Holmes these days. ” 
 
 “ I know, ” Billy said sadly, and we were quiet for a moment. “ For a long time I felt the same way too, but no one gave up on me, so I won ’ t give up on you either! ” Billy finally said, his usual cheerfulness now mixed with determination. 
 
 I nodded and smiled. 
 
 “ It ’ s just… ” he went on but hesitated, “ How do you think you ended up like this? ” 
 
 For the most part, Katrina kept to her e-reader during our lessons. She would often split her attention between whatever she was reading on the device, which pages she seemed to change every few seconds, and Billy ’ s explanations. All while correcting us whenever we got something wrong. But now her attention was focused totally on me, with the familiar inferno of intelligence that burned in her eyes as unsettling as always. I decided I should just tell them everything and let them make of it what they wanted. 
 
 “ As you already know, before the singularity I was an untenured professor and part-time librarian at our famous university. But just before the singularity the library received a strange package during my shift. It felt like a book wrapped in paper. I wasn ’ t sure who it was for, so I opened the package. It contained a strange book with markings on the front cover that I didn ’ t recognize, and a clip on the side, like a diary. Since I didn ’ t know if it was going to be for our rare acquisitions collection, or maybe a professor, I unclipped and opened it. 
 
 “ Suddenly, time froze around me and a voice in my head asked thanked me for freeing it from the book. In thanks, it explained that it would grant me one wish. I tried to ask it a few questions, but all it said was that this was some cosmic bargain that was already struck. Now, ever since I was Katrina ’ s age I thought about what I might wish for, should the opportunity present itself. And so, I conveyed what I believed to be a most carefully phrased wish: ‘ I wish that everyone was at least as intelligent and thirsty for knowledge as I am, and most people even more so. ’ 
 
 “ With that the world seemed to go black and I woke up maybe a day or two later in my bed. As I tried to get up the voice came back and said, ‘ You picked a good one! It took me a long time to grant your wish, and I had to use your brain as a starting point. But you should be really happy with the new world. ’ ” 
 
 “ Wow! ” said Billy at the conclusion of my story, “ Is that really true?! ” 
 
 “ He thinks it is, at least, ” responded Katrina before I could. “ None of his usual tells from when he lies about understanding us. And it ’ s the same tone of voice and modulation he uses to tell us about other parts of his past, too. My only question is, why tell us? And why now? Did you suddenly realize you aren ’ t happy with this new world? ” she asked, her brow furrowed in concern. 
 
 “ No, I like it, ” I lied. 
 
 Katrina sighed, and chewed her lips before suggesting, “ Why don ’ t you two go for a walk? It always cheers Mr. Jameson up. ” 
 
 I could hear her typing something as Billy and I walked out of the room.
