Intelligence has been defined in many different ways such as in terms of one's capacity for logic, abstract thought, understanding, self-awareness, communication, learning, emotional knowledge, memory, planning, creativity and problem solving.
Questions tagged [intelligence]
107 questions
11
votes
1 answer
Do Australian Aboriginal people have low intelligence and sexual control?
Margaret Sanger wrote in What Every Girl Should Know: Sexual Impulses--Part II New York Call 29 December 1912 and also in her 1916 What Every Girl Should Know at page 47 and a 1920 version and in later editions:
It is said a fish as large as a man…
DavePhD
- 103,432
- 24
- 436
- 464
11
votes
2 answers
Did the term "meritocracy" originate in a dystopian satire?
When Michael Young, a British sociologist, coined the term meritocracy in 1958, it was in a dystopian satire.
(source: "The War on Stupid People"@The Atlantic)
The satire mentioned was by Michael Young; but no evidence was presented that this…
user5341
- 31,075
- 8
- 130
- 178
11
votes
1 answer
Does James Woods have an IQ of 180?
An article claimed that the Actor James Woods has an IQ of 180:
Woods aced his SATs, got into MIT (but dropped out to pursue acting) and has a reported IQ of 180.
After doing some research, I found a lot of articles which also said that he has an…
kl78
- 257
- 1
- 2
- 10
11
votes
1 answer
Are smarter people more likely to be happy?
The BBC published an article arguing:
People with lower intelligence are more likely to be unhappy than their brighter colleagues
Is that an accurate description of what we know about the correlation between happiness and intelligence?
Christian
- 33,271
- 15
- 112
- 266
11
votes
1 answer
How much traces lasting a million years would human civilization leave after perishing?
While there is a nice webcomic with a similar theme, I'm talking about a hopefully more reliable claim: The Science of Discworld alternates between chapters written by fantasy author Terry Pratchett about the fantasy setting of the Discworld's…
Tobias Kienzler
- 575
- 1
- 5
- 15
10
votes
0 answers
Does the average Ivy League student have an IQ of 145?
Psychology Professor Dr. Jordan B. Peterson gave a talk in March 2017 where he said (in the first minute of the video):
If you go back and look at the records at Harvard, for example, in the early 1960s, the typical IQ for a Harvard student was…
Logan545
- 201
- 2
- 3
10
votes
2 answers
Is this quote correctly attributed to Einstein? “Intelligence is not the ability to store information, but to know where to find it.”
Poor Albert Einstein gets attributed many quotes he never uttered. I have a feeling this is one of them, because I couldn't find a proper citation.
Intelligence is not the ability to store information, but to know where to find it.
Did Einstein…
henning
- 225
- 2
- 11
9
votes
1 answer
Do day-care centres lower the IQ of children?
Toni Bortoluzzi, a former Swiss politician, has recently claimed that the more time a child spends in "nursery" (a.k.a. crèche or day-care centres), the lower their IQ will be in their pre-teen or teenage years.
He claims this is the conclusion of…
Pac0
- 984
- 1
- 7
- 15
9
votes
1 answer
Does meditation increase IQ?
According to this 2016 Inc magazine article
Now, studies show that there is something you can do to dramatically improve your fluid intelligence as well as your overall IQ: meditate.
That's correct: Meditation is not just good for your…
Paul Smith
- 1,131
- 2
- 9
- 10
8
votes
3 answers
Can one be naturally better at computers than English or Maths?
I think everybody heard this claim, and its opposite, a million times. Students or teachers commonly speak about having talents for a particular subject or another.
The subject is debated, for example, here:
Does one have to be a genius to do…
Sklivvz
- 78,578
- 29
- 321
- 428
8
votes
2 answers
Are there large scale studies investigating relationship between IQ and autism spectrum disorders (especially Aspergers)?
There's a lately-somewhat-widely held belief that there's a strong correlation (and to a certain extent, a fairly obvious causation) between Asperger's syndrome (or Autism spectrum disorders in general) and being a "geek".
Since defining a "geek"…
user5341
- 31,075
- 8
- 130
- 178
8
votes
2 answers
Did the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND) accuse China of pressuring the WHO to suppress news about the Wuhan outbreak?
As reported on Arirang TV and in (more clear detail) on Taiwan News
Chinese leader Xi Jinping (習近平) asked World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to suppress news about the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak,…
Fizz
- 57,051
- 18
- 175
- 291
8
votes
1 answer
Do the Irish have on average a 8 point lower IQ then the British?
The website Brainstats lists IQs for different countries and lists 92 for Ireland while it lists 100 for the United Kingdom. Those numbers are surprising to me. Are they backed by good evidence?
Christian
- 33,271
- 15
- 112
- 266
8
votes
0 answers
Will koalas eat pre-plucked eucalyptus leaves?
Various sources online (including a frequent copy-pasta disparaging the animal) claim that koalas will not recognize eucalyptus leaves as food if they are cleanly laid out on a table in front of them, instead of attached to a tree.
University of…
Feryll
- 229
- 2
- 5
8
votes
0 answers
Did almost half of 1000 adults fail a fifth-grade math test?
On several YouTube videos, one being this one, the descriptions of these videos include something like:
Recent studies have shown that almost HALF of over 1000 adults tested were unable to pass a maths test designed for FIFTH GRADERS! We put this…
fi12
- 337
- 1
- 10