Terrence Tao 1975– On November 2, 2021, I published a post titled, Are IQ and Intelligence Illusory Concepts? It was a post that generated a considerable response. (accessible at: https://www.intelligence-and-iq.com/are-iq-and-intelligence-illusory-concepts/) In that post, it was argued that the existence of child prodigies establishes the fact that not all members of our species are identical in …
During his teenage years, a male of IQ 140 learns that it’s not “cool” to talk about quantum physics, or discuss the philosophy of Nietzsche when gathered in a bar after a football game or in the clubhouse after a round of golf. Athletics are an acceptable topic, as are girls, cars and other people. …
From the early 1930s and beyond, IQ tests were periodically restandardized. This meant that the researchers had to administer the IQ tests to a large number of people and set the average performance at 100. However, it was discovered that people, on average, were achieving scores substantially higher than 100 on the same IQ tests …
In the time that I’ve been answering questions about IQ and intelligence, I’ve received a disproportionate number of questions about IQ from those in academia–especially students who are comparing themselves to their colleagues. This is to be expected, just as we might expect golfers to inquire about the physiological aspects of hitting a long drive. …
How often do people who are not in academia discuss IQ? Read More »
There is no metric for identifying genius. A person is regarded as a genius if they have produced a work of art or advanced a scientific theory that is seen as a new breakthrough in their field. In science, it’s a theory or discovery that changes the existing paradigm. When Newton advanced his theory of …
How is a genius different from someone who merely works hard? Read More »
The three concepts: smart, intelligent, and knowledgeable are strongly correlated although they have slightly different nuances. Smart Smartness–what the Ancient Greeks called phronesis–is the vaguest of the these concepts because its measure is purely subjective. Often, it’s associated with “street smarts” or the ability to navigate through human relationships with some degree of skill. In the …
The self-esteem of high IQ individuals spans the full range from low self-esteem to high self-esteem. Many very high IQ people have low self-esteem because they compare themselves to those at the top of the IQ scale. The great physicist, Paul Ehrenfest, who collaborated with Einstein and found a contradiction in the equivalence principle, committed …
What is the self-Esteem of individuals of high IQ? Read More »
This question was posed by, Lara, a visitor to Quora to which I offered the following response. Lara, it all depends upon how you want to live. Modern science and technology stands on a foundation of mathematics developed by high IQ mathematicians. Among these high IQ mathematicians were those who developed the computer technology, including …
Historical Background In 1690, English philosopher John Locke stated that we all come into the world as intellectually “blank slates” (Tabula Rasa, in Latin) and acquire knowledge and intelligence that are written on these slates by our experiences. The political view underpinning Locke’s assertion was that if, indeed, we all enter the world as blank …
High intelligence is probably a prerequisite for genius, especially the kind of genius that is expressed in abstract fields like mathematics, physics and the other sciences, because measures of intelligence are highly correlated with performance in these fields. In the arts, high intelligence may be less important than a special creativity, skill or knowledge. Shakespeare’s …
What’s the difference between a highly intelligent person and a Genius? Read More »
