> Engineers are naturally skeptical, but this skepticism can grow out of control.
You've hit on one of the most important quality filters here. If someone is really, deeply intelligent, one of their analysis tasks will include a diligent try at making your idea work. The weirder your idea, the more curious about it they will be.
As a person who doesn't really believe in the innately "deeply intelligent", I'll add that this is a skill that can be practiced, like any other, and the more curiosity you cultivate and act upon, the more you'll learn and get better at learning. You'll be much more pleasant to be around (instead of being known as a knee-jerk critic) and before you know it, they skills and insight you gain may have people calling you "deeply intelligent" :)
You've hit on one of the most important quality filters here. If someone is really, deeply intelligent, one of their analysis tasks will include a diligent try at making your idea work. The weirder your idea, the more curious about it they will be.