Does it really? I’ve worked with good programmers who will look thick as two short planks if you ask them to solve a maths problem, summarise a science article, rebut a philosophical argument, analyse a novel’s structure, figure out an unknown word’s meaning, etc etc. We all know STEM people who seem bafflingly stupid outside of their chosen specialties. Those who have well-rounded educations more often seem more smart and able to reason than people whose only tool is the rigid logic of programming/math. I don’t think STEM is an automatic pathway to above average smarts.