There are many aspects to the intellect, to being intelligent. One sure aspect is the amount of information one knows. Many people are perceived as smart simply because of how much information they know; and to a large extent, that is accurate. The more information you know, the more informed you are, the better decisions you can take or provide, and therefore the smarter you are. (This is not the only aspect to intelligence, but it is a fundamental one. Without information, it is hard to be smart.)
If that is the case, then the more information is available and accessible, the smarter people will get. Top of mind, I can think of three major breakthroughs in the history of mankind that have helped propel intelligence to new heights. The first is writing, then the printing press, then the internet. All of these technologies helped increase the amount of information and its ubiquity.
From that point of view, the world's intellect has been rising much like inflation. It is gradually growing year on year. Some years or periods it takes a significant leap, others it decelerates. But on the whole, people are getting smarter.
You are to Socrates what Socrates is to a caveman.
Yes Socrates may outsmart you on theoretical philosophical ideas like fairness, justice and form; yet you will easily outsmart him in almost every other aspect of life; in biology (understanding concepts like photosynthesis and evolution), in chemistry (the table of elements and the atoms and molecules that make up matter), in psychology (understanding the subconscious and how to raise children), in physics (understanding the universe and the interplay between energy and mass), in technology (how cars work and planes fly), in hygiene (how to wash and how to clean things before using them), in health (how to eat and how much to sleep) and so on ... The list of things you are smarter than Socrates in is virtually infinite. Just imagine meeting Socrates today and having a conversation. You, a 21st century human, and him from 2400 years ago.
He would be in more awe of you than you of him.
All of that because of the abundance and accessibility of information!
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