Dangerous High-Entropy Smart People: How the Pursuit of Fame and Fortune Drives Civilization Toward Self-Destruction

This paper analyzes the phenomenon of “intelligence divorced from wisdom” in modern high-entropy civilization from the perspective of scientific philosophical reflection. It argues that the true threat to civilization is not ignorance but highly intelligent individuals lacking wisdom and their cumulative systemic effects. In high-entropy civilizations, competition over technology, institutions, capital, and discourse rewards intelligence rather than wisdom, driving structural fragility, institutional hollowing, and systemic collapse. Through analysis of contemporary social phenomena, historical low-entropy experiments, and behavioral modeling in the film Don’t Look Up, this study elucidates the operational logic of high-entropy civilization, the destructive effects of elite calculation, and the marginalization of wisdom in modern society. The research suggests that civilization can only reduce entropy and achieve sustainable development when intelligence is constrained by wisdom and aligned with natural laws.