I just came across a story that won’t let me go. It’s about a woman who was once recognized as the world record holder for the highest IQ—228 points. Clearly higher than Einstein, Hawking, Musk. And yet she was mocked by thousands of people for the answer to what seemed like a simple question.

Marilynn vos Savant wasn’t a normal child. At age 10, she could memorize entire books, and she read all 24 volumes of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. She had the highest IQ in the world—at least officially, when Guinness World Records recognized her achievement in 1985. But no one really cared about her. She was a girl, went to a regular school, and dropped out of the University of Washington to support her family.

Then came the turn in 1990. She worked at Parade and wrote a famous column. Everything went well until one single question—the Monty Hall problem. A game show, three doors. Behind one is a car, behind two are goats. You choose a door. The host opens another one and shows you a goat. Do you switch?

Her answer: Yes, you should switch.

That was it. More than 10,000 letters came in. Almost 1,000 of them had doctoral titles. 90% of people were sure she was wrong. “You’re the goat!” “You totally messed it up!” Even: “Maybe women think differently about math.”

But here’s the interesting part: she was right. The probability of winning by switching is 2/3, not 1/2. MIT ran computer simulations. MythBusters tested it. Scientists admitted their mistakes.

What fascinates me: a woman with the highest IQ in the world was ignored or attacked by the masses, even though she was objectively correct. It shows how much our brain tends to “reset” situations when new information comes in. How small sample sizes can cloud our judgment. How many people automatically assume the odds are 50/50, even though the math says otherwise.

The Monty Hall problem is actually a lesson in cognitive bias. And Marilynn vos Savant—someone with the highest IQ in the world—had to be educated by the public that she was right. Sometimes the most intelligent people are also the loneliest.