The short answer to this question is a resounding “yes”! There are many examples of people who have not had access to formal education, but who have made significant contributions to the world of ideas and innovation. One of the most interesting stories is that of Srinivasa Ramanujan. One morning in 1913, Godfrey Hardy, the …
An evolutionary asset of the human brain is its adaptability. By the time you emerged from your mother’s womb, your brain contained about 100 billion neurons ready and waiting to connect with each other in response to the sensory experiences of your infancy. During your first two years on the planet, the neurons in your …
Is it possible for a person’s IQ to decrease from not using their brain as much? Read More »
Throughout history, human societies have been hierarchal with each individual holding a rank or status based upon variables such as wealth, physicality, intelligence or birthright. In the most primitive societies, physical contests determined who rose to tribal leadership and top status. Consequently, males were dominant and females were allotted lower status. As societies became larger …
What is the reason for society’s obsession with intelligence? Read More »
The combination of intrapersonal and interpersonal skills, is said to constitute emotional intelligence (EQ). For those who have a high IQ, say 130 or greater, obtaining a correlation between IQ and EQ is mainly anecdotal because EQ is much more difficult than IQ to measure. Tests such as the MSCEIT, designed to measure emotional intelligence, are difficult to norm …
The answer to this question depends upon your definition of success. Consequently, I’ll rephrase the question to, “Why do some people of high IQ not achieve their goals? The biggest reason that people fail to achieve their goals is insufficient commitment. Whether the goal is to lose weight and become physically fit, to become a …
Why do some people with high IQs not achieve success? Read More »
Yes, research has revealed that some people do, indeed, have higher intelligence than others. This was established unequivocally by Bouchard and others during the 1990’s in their study of identical twins who were raised in different environments. Since the twins in Bouchard’s Minnesota study were raised apart, no part of the correlation in the IQ …
How come some people are so smart and others not; is it genetic? Read More »
Reading, in itself, is a cognitive activity that involves the interpretation of script and its translation into concepts. So there is an inherent stimulation of the brain during the process of reading. Some recent research suggests that there is more mental activity involved in reading, than in the more passive observation of a television screen, …
Can reading too much fiction be detrimental to the brain? Read More »
What follows is a long answer to a short question, but it may be needed to provide a perspective. To gain an insight into the underlying motivations in human behavior, it is useful to examine a predominant theory of our evolution as a species. In the early stages of our existence, we survived as hunter-gatherers …
This is the last of a 3-part story that investigates what we have learned from three athletic “phenoms” about the brain and its adaptability during its period of greatest neuron growth. In Part 1, we looked at the early life of soccer star Pelé, and examined the flow state he experienced, during his moments of …
What Have We Learned About The Brain From The Athletic Phenoms? Part 3 Of A 3-Part Story Read More »
In What have we learned about the brain from the Athletic Phenoms? Part 1 of a 3-part story, we observed that the once-in-a-generation “phenoms” who emerge in the sports world have early-life commonalities that suggest something about our acquired intelligence. In that post, we looked at the legendary athletic performance of Pelé, the soccer superstar …
What have we learned about the brain from the Athletic Phenoms? Part 2 of A 3-part story Read More »
