"not rocket science/not brain surgery"

[Douglas G. Wilson]

At ProQuest I see "don't have to be a rocket scientist" and "don't have to
be a brain surgeon" both from 1978.

IIRC, the first version I heard myself was one with "rocket scientist"
("He's no ..." or "You don't need to be a ..." or whatever) meaning
something like "great intellect", and I'm sure it was earlier than 1975.

-- Doug Wilson


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