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5.4 Intelligence
(452 words)
I 1 There are many ways to describe a person’s way of thinking: He
can be artistic, creative, clever, or knowledgeable, or she can have
a good memory. But to explain how well people can solve
problems and understand the world around them, we use the
5 term intelligence.
II One widely accepted definition of intelligence was published in
1994 in an article called “Mainstream Science on Intelligence”:
III A very general mental capability that, among other things, involves
10 the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly,
comprehend complex ideas, learn quickly, and learn from
experience. It is not merely book learning, a narrow academic skill,
or test-taking smarts. Rather, it reflects a broader and deeper
capability for comprehending our surroundings—“catching on,”
15 “making sense” of things, or “figuring out” what to do.
IV Researchers have argued about whether it’s possible to quantify
intelligence. The most accepted way to do this is with an
intelligence quotient (IQ) test that includes math and logic
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20 problems, memory and visual exercises, and questions about
rearranged words or sentences. An average IQ score is 90 to 110, a
score above 130 is considered superior intelligence, and a score
below 70 indicates mental retardation. These tests have faced
criticism, however, for being culturally biased and not allowing
25 for multiple correct answers on subjective questions.
V Because IQ tests measure not just the quantity of a person’s
knowledge but also the ability to understand ideas, learning new
information doesn’t necessarily increase your IQ. It may exercise
your mind, however, which could help you develop greater
30 cognitive skills. Overall, a person's IQ does not tend to change
much over the years.
High intelligence seems to run in families, although studies
have not found specific genes that make much of an impact. It’s
also been suggested that the ratio of body weight to brain volume,
35 and the location of gray matter in the brain, might affect
intelligence levels. Family upbringing seems to affect childhood
VI IQ, but by late adolescence, this factor is less important: Adoptive
siblings, once they’re grown, tend to show vastly different
intelligence levels, while twins and other full siblings seem to be
40 much closer in IQ.
VII ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
1. In 1983, the psychologist Howard Gardner (1943-) defined
several types of intelligence, including verbal, visual,
physical, musical, mathematical, introspective, and
45 interpersonal. Most standard definitions of intelligence do
not factor in many of these traits.
2. After the death of Albert Einstein (1879-1955), his brain was
measured and found to be 15 percent wider than most
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human brains. It also contained abnormal-looking parietal
50 lobes, which some theorize may have aided his
mathematics skills.
3. American Mensa, an “organization for smart people,”
requires a score of 130 on the Stanford-Binet 5th edition IQ
test to qualify for membership.
