Article in largest Dutch daily paper, De Telegraaf interviews Bo Poulsen, Roskilde University.
Dutch 18th century fishing skippers were among the smartest groups of people
in all of early Modern Europe. During the latter half of the 18th century,
skippers from Schiedam were at the top of a list based on average skills in
logic and reasoning for close to 40 groups of people from various branches
of society in Western Europe. The skills needed to fish have been highly
appreciated for centuries, and the Dutch herring fishermen, who
out-performed other countries’ fishermen, certainly profited from their keen
abilities to navigate, count and keep books. Out at sea, they were supermen
gathering the silver darlings of the North Sea.