Don’t think its a great example of “people wanting to die” as others have said below and gone into detail. I’m choosing to add to the conversation because I think there is a great takeaway from this and that is people value life for different reasons. They can crudely be defined as “simple-minded” or more appropriately “traditional” and represent a very large percent of the population. Those of you who grew up in rural areas like myself are likely very familiar with the archetype described by the OP. I think a great question from this is...
Should we be encouraging people to seek out a life with more questions, more complexity, and more interests. Or should they be left as they are? This is a big political and sociological question. Should those who wish to live a more simple life be allowed to do so, and if so would that interfere with a more erudite population? (I think it may already be doing so). Should our approach be to evangelize, or should it be more of a separation / detente?
My suggestion would be for your brother to pursue education in an area that is important, yet less familiar to him. Depending on what he chooses can help dictate the where he lives and how he could fund it.
Ex. I recently took 5 months in between jobs that were largely managerial and qualitative in nature to participate in a full-time code school program. Besides the practical use of learning to code, the greatest benefit to me was in the way it pushed me to be more structured with my thinking and explicit in my instructions to others. As your brother is a CS/Math major, I would think something along the lines of philosophy and history might be interesting topics to explore. Below are some examples.
What to study: History/Philosophy Focus: Modern Philosophy and the making of the modern world Where to live: Paris, London, Berlin—Bonus points if you live with a local host family What to read: Hobbes, Rousseau, Locke et al. What to do: Learn the basics of another language, travel, experience the culture, and connect it to your readings and apply your new found appreciation for history and philosophy to your work. It will help you frame your arguments. How to fund: English and Math tutoring
What to study: History/Philosophy Focus: Ancient Philosophy and Alternative Economics Where to live: China What to read: The 5 classics, the 4 books, History of China Podcast (its excellent), Poetry, Communist/Maoist lit. etc. What to do: travel, learn about Chinese culture and basic Mandarin (Peking Uni in Beijing offers courses in culture and language at a fairly cheap rate) How to fund: English and Math tutoring will work most anywhere, but China has more options for Americans in terms of paid gigs. He would be a hot commodity in China.
Bonus Points: Focus on physical fitness and developing a routine to manage physical health (prep for life at a desk)