Definition of intelligence

Intellectual ability is a complex phenomenon, influenced by factors both environmental and biological. Used in its broadest sense, intelligence is what people use to learn, remember, solve problems and in general deal effectively with the world around them. One survey in the late 1980s asked 25 experts to define intelligence and the researchers received many different definitions some of which are: General adaptability to new problems in life. The ability to engage in abstract thinking. Capacity for knowledge and knowledge possessed. The ability to judge, understand and reason.

Measuring Intelligence

Francis Galton was among the first to measure individual differences in intellectual abilities. Based on quantitative studies of prominent individuals and their family trees, he concluded that intellectual ability is inherited in much the same way as physical traits, and he later published his findings in Hereditary Genius (1869). Eventually, Galton modified his original theories to recognize the effects of education and other environmental factors on mental ability, although he continued to regard heredity as the preeminent influence.

Galton's work was followed in 1905 by that of French psychologist Alfred Binet, who introduced the concept of mental age, which would match chronological age in children of average ability. It would exceed chronological age in bright children and would be below in those of lesser ability. Binet's test was introduced to the United States in a modified form in 1916, and with it the concept of the intelligence quotient (mental age divided by chronological age

and multiplied by 100). For example, if a 6-year-old girl scored a mental age of 9, she would be assigned an IQ of 150 ((9/6)x100).

The dominant method of studying intelligence in this century has been the psychometric approach. Researchers using this approach believe that intelligence can be measured through the administration of various forms of IQ tests. These tests give a score that reflects how far the person's performance deviates from the average performance of others who are the same age. Most modern tests arbitrarily define the average score as 100.

The most widely used modern tests of intelligence are the Stanford-Binet, the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC), the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS), and the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (KaufmanABC). Each of the tests consists of a series of 10 or more subtests. Subtests are sections of the main test in which all of the items are similar. Examples of subtests include vocabulary ("Define happy"), similarities ("In what way are an apple and pear alike?"), digit span (repeating digit strings of increasing length from memory), information ("Who was the first president of the United States?"), object assembly (putting together puzzles), mazes (tracing a path through a maze), and simple arithmetic problems.

Theories of intelligence

Whatever the nature of the IQ test, many researchers believe that a general statistical factor can be extracted from the results of multiple IQ tests mainly due to the fact that people who perform well on one type of intelligence test tend to do well on others also. Charles Spearman named the general mental ability that carried over from one test to another "g" for general intelligence, and decided that it consisted mainly of the ability to infer relationships based on one's experiences.

In the 1960s American psychologists Raymond Cattell and John Horn applied new methods of factor analysis and concluded there are two kinds of general intelligence: fluid intelligence (gf) and crystallized intelligence (gc). Fluid intelligence represents the biological basis of intelligence. Measures of fluid intelligence, such as speed of reasoning and memory, increase into adulthood and then decline due to the aging process. Crystallized intelligence, on the

other hand, is the knowledge and skills obtained through learning and experience. As long as opportunities for learning are available, crystallized intelligence can increase indefinitely during a person's life. For example, vocabulary knowledge is known to increase in college professors throughout their life span.

Another approach is Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, which replaces the general intelligence factor (g ) with seven different types of intelligence: linguistic; logical-mathematical; spatial; interpersonal (ability to deal with other people); intrapersonal (insight into oneself); musical; and bodily-kinesthetic (athletic ability). According to Gardner, each of these areas of competence includes a separate set of problem-solving skills that can be mobilized by various symbolic systems. Every person has all the different types of intelligence, although some may be developed far more fully than others. (The most dramatic example of this is found in savants, mentally retarded people with exceptional abilities in a few highly specialized areas, usually involving calculations.)

In the 1980s American psychologist Robert Sternberg proposed a theory of intelligence that, like Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, attempted to expand the traditional conception of intelligence. Sternberg noted that mental tests are often imperfect predictors of real-world performance or success. People who do well on tests sometimes do not do as well in real-world situations. According to Sternberg's triarchic (three-part) theory of intelligence, intelligence consists of three main aspects: analytic intelligence, creative intelligence, and practical intelligence. These are not multiple intelligences as in Gardner's theory, but interrelated parts of a single system. Thus, many psychologists regard Sternberg's theory as compatible with theories of general intelligence.

Demographic comparison of IQ scores

The statistics gathered from this test reveal the following interesting facts. Those with higher education outscored everyone else.

Those with jobs in technical or professional fields or who hold positions in senior management came out as clear winners in the IQ stakes. At the bottom of the list are the unemployed. New Zealand is the brainiest of the bunch. Neighbors Australia follows and then come Ireland, the U.K the U.S.A and Canada. Brown haired men scored higher than their blonde and red haired counterparts. Black haired men scored significantly lower than everyone else. As with men black haired women scored below the rest. People who have a political inclination toward the center or who vote greens scored highest with right wing voters not far behind. The socialists scored at the population average of 100 while those who chose communist and 'other' came last.

The statistics are displayed graphically here

Some famous IQ's

Leonardo Da Vinci Artist, Inventor 220 IQ Voltaire Writer 190 IQ Garry Kasparov Chess grandmaster 190 IQ Galileo Galilei Physicist/Astronomer 185 IQ Descartes Philosopher/Mathematician 180 IQ Immanuel Kant Philosopher 175 IQ Plato Philosopher 170 IQ Charles Darwin Naturalist 165 IQ

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Composer 165 IQ Albert Einstein Physicist 160 IQ Bill Gates 160 IQ Nicolaus Copernicus Cleric/Astronomer 160 IQ Rembrandt van Rijn Painter/Etcher 155 IQ Abraham Lincoln President 150 IQ Napoleon Bonaparte Emperor 145 IQ Richard Nixon President 143 IQ Hillary Clinton Senator 140 IQ Madonna Singer 140 IQ

Interesting facts about your brain and intelligence Your brain has about 100 billion neurons. A typical brain cell has from 1,000 to 10,000 connections to other brain cells. Studies have shown that children who are breast fed display IQ's up to 10 points higher by the age of three. The right side of your brain controls the left side of your body, and the left side of your brain controls the right side of your body. Your brain weight accounts for about 2 percent of your body weight. But your brain uses 20 percent of your body's oxygen supply and 20 to 30 percent of your body's energy. When you are born, your brain weighs about a pound. But by age 6, it weighs three pounds. What happens? Learning to stand, talk, and walk creates a web of connections in your headtwo pounds worth!

Your brain is full of nerve cells, but it has no pain receptors. Doctors can operate on your brain while you're awake and you won't feel a thing. In 1984 the political scientist James Flynn reported that Americans had gained about 13.8 IQ points in 46 years. If people taking an IQ test today were scored in the same way as people 50 years ago then 90% of them would be classified in the genius level.

A message for action travels from your brain to your muscles as fast as 250 miles per hour. Studies show that IQ is modestly related to the speed at which you do some pretty simple things such as comparing two lines to see which is longer. An analysis of 1 million students in a New York school district showed that school cafeteria food affected IQ scores to an astonishing degree. When preservatives, coloring, dyes and artificial flavors were removed from the cafeteria menu researchers found that 70,000 students performed two or more IQ grade levels higher than before. Even though there are huge differences in weekly earnings between people of various educations levels there are also great discrepancies between people with comparable schooling and higher intellectual capabilities. IQ is not influenced by family size or birth order. There is some confusion on this matter due to the fact that smart families usually have few children. However there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that you will have a low IQ if you belong to a large family. There is also no evidence that the first born child will be more intelligent than the rest. Modern neuroimaging techniques show that to some degree brain size is correlated to IQ. IQ has been shown to increase with more schooling, better educated parents and better toys.

More interesting facts about intelligence can be found here

More reading (bibliography)

Herrnstein, Richard J., and Charles Murray. The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life. New York: Free Press, 1994. Sternberg, R. J. Beyond IQ: A Triarchic Theory of Human Intelligence. Cambridge, Eng.: Cambridge University Press, 1985. Goleman, Daniel. Emotional Intelligence New York: Bantam, 1995. Gardner, Howard. Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. New York: Basic Books, 1983. Eysenck, H. J. The IQ Argument: Race, Intelligence, and Education. Library Press, 1971. Fraser, Steven. The Bell Curve Wars: Race, Intelligence, and the Future of America. New York: Basic Books, 1995. Kline, Paul. Intelligence: The Psychometric View. London: Routledge, 1991.