What Is Intelligence, Anyway?

Guest Post By Isaac Asimov;

When I was in the army, I received the kind of aptitude test that all soldiers took and, against a normal of 100, scored 160. No one at the base had ever seen a figure like that, and for two hours they made a big fuss over me.

(It didn't mean anything. The next day I was still a buck private with KP - kitchen police - as my highest duty.)

All my life I've been registering scores like that, so that I have the complacent feeling that I'm highly intelligent, and I expect other people to think so too.

Actually, though, don't such scores simply mean that I am very good at answering the type of academic questions that are considered worthy of answers by people who make up the intelligence tests - people with intellectual bents similar to mine?

For instance, I had an auto-repair man once, who, on these intelligence tests, could not possibly have scored more than 80, by my estimate. I always took it for granted that I was far more intelligent than he was.

Yet, when anything went wrong with my car I hastened to him with it, watched him anxiously as he explored its vitals, and listened to his pronouncements as though they were divine oracles - and he always fixed my car.

Well, then, suppose my auto-repair man devised questions for an intelligence test.

Or suppose a carpenter did, or a farmer, or, indeed, almost anyone but an academician. By every one of those tests, I'd prove myself a moron, and I'd be a moron, too.

In a world where I could not use my academic training and my verbal talents but had to do something intricate or hard, working with my hands, I would do poorly.

My intelligence, then, is not absolute but is a function of the society I live in and of the fact that a small subsection of that society has managed to foist itself on the rest as an arbiter of such matters.

Consider my auto-repair man, again.

He had a habit of telling me jokes whenever he saw me.

One time he raised his head from under the automobile hood to say: "Doc, a deaf-and-mute guy went into a hardware store to ask for some nails. He put two fingers together on the counter and made hammering motions with the other hand.

"The clerk brought him a hammer. He shook his head and pointed to the two fingers he was hammering. The clerk brought him nails. He picked out the sizes he wanted, and left. Well, doc, the next guy who came in was a blind man. He wanted scissors. How do you suppose he asked for them?"

Indulgently, I lifted by right hand and made scissoring motions with my first two fingers.

Whereupon my auto-repair man laughed raucously and said, "Why, you dumb jerk, He used his voice and asked for them."

Then he said smugly, "I've been trying that on all my customers today." "Did you catch many?" I asked. "Quite a few," he said, "but I knew for sure I'd catch you."

"Why is that?" I asked. "Because you're so goddamned educated, doc, I knew you couldn't be very smart."

And I have an uneasy feeling he had something there.

Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com

Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com

I.Q.

“It is not enough to have a good mind; the main thing is to use it well.”

- Rene Descartes

A person’s IQ was thought to be a fixed commodity largely determined by genetics. But is your IQ really set in stone or can you cheat a few extra points? Recent hints suggest that a very basic brain function called working memory might underlie our general intelligence, opening up the intriguing possibility that if you improve your working memory, you could boost your IQ too.

Genetics determines a lot and so does the early gestation period. On top of that, there is a few percent that can be improved by training. So if what you want is results, and not an argument about the definition of intelligence, try some of the following tips and boost your brain power.

1. Game on

Turn on your PC. Modern games are great for making your mind work at amazing speeds. It gives your brain a chance to think strategically, and keeps it working.

2. Spin it

If you want to be a da Vinci or Edison, keep a sketch diary. Imagine seeing an object from every angle and sketch the views afterwards. Thinking in pictures is essential for complex reasoning.

3. Buy the paper

While browsing through the sports pages, take a peek at the crossword. It’s a perfect exercise for sharpening your mind. Puzzles with creative solutions exercise and extend your dendrites — the branch-like parts of nerve cells that carry information and promote processing.

4. Have a sniff

Certain fragrances help you think clearly and cut down on mistakes. Lemon scents stimulate your hippocampus, the brain region that controls your ability to concentrate; lavender helps you relax and think more clearly; jasmine has the ability to excite, resulting in quicker thinking.

5. Turn on

A recent study in the UK found that watching The Weakest Link for 30 minutes can raise your IQ by six points. A documentary produced a four-point rise; Friends a rise of one point.

6. Deep Breath

This is one of the easiest and most effective tip to improve the functioning of your brain immediately. More air in means more oxygen in the blood and therefore in the brain. Low oxygen levels in the blood have been shown to decrease it. Since most of us are in the habit of breathing too shallowly, this is a quick way to boost your IQ. One hint: if you breath through your nose, you are more likely to breath deeply.

7. Daydream

Letting your brain run free is the best way of truly expanding your brain power. Every day, consciously defocus for 10 minutes, and see where it takes you.

8. Detox

To make sure you’re thinking clearly, avoid caffeine — just one cup can cause a sharp rise in feelings of anxiety, US scientists have found. And like smoking, caffeine also prevents the absorption of key vitamins essential for optimum brain function. Replace coffee or tea with water and if you smoke, don’t.

9. Multi-task

Performing two tasks simultaneously provides you with invaluable brain tools. Put a TV next to a radio and try to take in information from both, then try to concentrate on each individually. You’ll find you can focus on any single problem much better.

10. Sit up straight, and close your mouth

Good posture affects our state of mind, and helps us to think more clearly. Wanna prove it to yourself? Try solving some math in your head while slouching, looking at the floor and letting your mouth hang open. Then do the mental math while sitting up straight, keeping your mouth closed and looking forward or slightly upwards. You’ll get the point.

11. Stretch yourself

Think of two unconnected objects… a frog and a moped, say… and try to think of as many links between them as you can. This breaks down the critical ability that interferes with the flow of ideas.

12. And… relax

Simply relaxing increases your ability to learn. In tests, systematically flexing every muscle for 30 minutes boosted subjects’ ability to solve puzzles by up to 25 percent.

13. Spell it out

Facing a problem? Write it down and draw lines radiating out to words and ideas linked to each one. Your mind will be able to visualize an answer far more easily.

14. Make connections

To grow longer dendrites, do something new. Try learning a new language or developing a skill such as drawing, and you’ll see instant changes in how you think.

15. Step it up

Aerobic fitness helps fluid intelligence (learning new things), frontal lobes (planning ahead) and your ability to make rapid-fire decisions. Go for at least three 30-minute cardio sessions a week.

16. Get dreaming

You knew this one, right? Uninterrupted sleep is key to information-processing. Avoid caffeine six hours before bed and relax with a hot bath and a milky drink (packed with sleep-inducing tryptophans).

17. Take a stroll

A recent study found that just 45 minutes of walking three times a week increased subjects’ ability to perform multiple tasks by up to 15 percent, improving bloodflow to the frontal lobes of the brain.

18. Watch the clock

Use your brain when it’s at its sharpest — early in the morning. Research shows that taking tests before midday boosts success rates by up to five percent.

19. Consume ginkgo biloba

Whether in capsules or tea or off a neighbors tree, ginkgo leaves have been shown to increase blood flow to the brain, helping memory and concentration. The effect is quick, and doesn’t seem to diminish with regular use.

20. Graze

To give your brain a steady supply of energy and minerals, eat little and often. Eating large meals shunts blood to your digestive tract, away from your brain.

21. Go classical

In a US study, listening to a Mozart piano sonata improved students’ 3-D problem solving abilities (as opposed to verbal or language skills) by 15 percent. Aim for 10 minutes of Classic FM a day.

22. Practice

IQ tests are just one form of measuring intelligence, so if you’re really trying to impress, the answer is simply to practice again and again and again.

23. Eat your meat

A meal that’s overloaded with carbohydrates can spell trouble for the brain. In a Harvard study, people who ate pure carbohydrates had up to twice the difficulty concentrating and performing mental tasks as those who’d eaten turkey, which is practically carb-free. This is due to the insulin that is dumped into your veins after the sugar is. Don’t eat white flour, sugar, potatoes, and other carbs before an important meeting.

24. Freshen up

Chewing gum improves memory and thinking, UK researchers have found. Chewing raises your heart rate, delivering more oxygen and glucose to the brain, while saliva triggers a surge of insulin, stimulating learning and memory receptors in the brain.

25. Make friends

Preferably ones with large amounts of frizzy grey hair. Recent research showed that hanging out with boffins can boost your IQ by up to 10 percent.

26. Go herbal

Plants naturally encourage your brain and body to work together. Rosemary increases bloodflow to the brain and sage improves concentration.

27. Head for the bees

To boost your brain power look for vitamin B, found in oats, tuna, chicken, wholewheat and bananas. Vitamin B6 aids memory, while 1, 2, 3 and 12 help manufacture and repair brain tissue.

Let the “experts” argue about whether you can boost IQ or not, in any absolute sense. If you slept well, exercised, then sat up straight and breathed deeply as you took the test, don’t you think you would score a few points higher on an intelligence quotient test? More importantly, wouldn’t you be better prepared for whatever mental tasks you faced?

Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at www.God-101.com and the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com