Friday, April 1, 2016

Intellegence: A Test and an Article

I recently took this IQ test and was relatively pleased with the results. While I was taking the test there were many pattern, special, and logic questions which definitely challenged my brain. With senioritis creeping in I was a bit tempted to skip these challenging questions, but I powered through and experienced quite the sense of satisfaction when I figured each question out. My final score was 124. I think this result is valid because I was able to take the test during the class period without any interruption.  The testing environment was quiet so I wasn't overly distracted. This explanation claims my score warrants "very superior intelligence" which is flattering. I know I'm no genius but I do like to think of myself as intelligent- able to succeed academically as well as solve problems.



I also recently read about the Cyril Burt Affair. Cyril Burt's influence and acclaim in the scientific community for his work on intelligence came crashing down after his death. The controversy over whether his data about heredity of intelligence was fraudulent came from the reports of several different researchers. He was not alive to be able to defend himself and his legacy was as such very corrupted. I thought it was interesting that Burt claimed to have studied 51 pairs of twins who were raised apart, which seems like a high number for such a specific criterion, and this indeed was a red flag to other researchers. Also of particular interest was the fact that the writer of his biography thought the book would clear his name but after his investigation concluded the accusations were most likely true. However, some have supported him claiming he was just eccentric and lost data in World War II. As of now, the issue has still not be settled with research existing on both sides of the debate. This seems to go to show the complexities of different theories of intelligence. A brief biography of Burt's life can be found here


Photo from: http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/covers/9780198523369.jpg

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