Doesn't it seem like people from European countries are generally smarter than americans?

yes, it's true that the average educational levels are higher even in countries like slovakia and romania, which is the whole point. obviously high average educational levels are NOT what makes a country successful. india and china are far behind us on these scores, by the way. and i am not sure how reliable these thing are anyway: when i visit especially the uk, i meet young people who have no more idea of the world than do american kids.