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IQ Matters Less Than You Think

nautil.us

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Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#71

Post by JoeAltmaier »

empath75 wrote: post #4

I always tested in the 99th percentile, went to gifted and talented classes, was a merit scholarship semi finalist, etc. I think by any measure I had a high IQ. I also barely graduated high school, flunked out of junior college and spent most of my 20s going to raves instead of accomplishing anything worth while. Meanwhile my sister, who had an utterly average iq by any measure has a masters degree and is a hospital…

It sounds different from that: she worked at all. It didn't take particular persistence after all - you can get a degree by simply showing up.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#72

Post by tyingq »

hokua3 wrote: post #13

IQ measures intellectual ability. Intelligence is a necessary, not a sufficient condition for success.

I think it measures a subset of "intellectual ability".

I have a fairly high IQ, but there are things I'm terrible at, like music and art. I put a lot of effort in, and get no results.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#73

Post by sureaboutthis »

I started to write a much longer response but don't have time. My IQ was tested at 142 some decades ago and, from what I've read, would be higher cause the tests have changed.

I was always very successful in my jobs but, when it came to starting my own business, I needed a lot of active encouragement or I would give up too quickly. However, in two cases, a business clicked with me, for some reason, which made me excited and driven. While others commented on my innovative approach to those businesses that made them successful, it was the enthusiasm that kept me going, followed by the excitement of success. You might say it's the difference between being a good player on a bad sports team versus a good player on a first place team. My IQ, perhaps, helped me see things most did not but it's the enthusiasm that keeps me going and, especially helpful, encouragement and support from others, not my IQ.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#75

Post by neutralid »

k__ wrote: post #10

I know a few people with >130 IQ and they all have executive disfunction and anxiety problems. So yes, the best CPU doesn't help if the IO is constantly blocked.

Extending the computer analogy, what would be ideal characteristics for the software architecture of a successful scientist?

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#76

Post by tostadora »

k__ wrote: post #10

I know a few people with >130 IQ and they all have executive disfunction and anxiety problems. So yes, the best CPU doesn't help if the IO is constantly blocked.

I have an IQ greater than 130, and I have both of them. And an addiction from which I'm recovering, which is not that uncommon for people of high IQ.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#77

Post by teilo »

SolaceQuantum wrote: post #63
TomMarius wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder if there is an online community focused on dealing with this issue.

MENSA?

Meh. Not really, at least not in the US. I mean, I suppose you could treat it as sort of a support group if you want to, but for the most part, it's a big social club and not much more. I stayed in for two years, and then didn't bother to renew. But then, I already have a group of friends, and a family, so there really wasn't anything for me there.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#78

Post by brightball »

qubax wrote: post #55
melling wrote: post #7

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan Press On! has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.” ― Calvin Coolidge

Like all quotes, on first glance it appears insightful and impressive, but a closer second look reveals it to be nonsense. > Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Luck and circumstance can. > Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. The world is also…

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”

Preparation comes from persistence.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#79

Post by bryanrasmussen »

harry8 wrote: post #65
bryanrasmussen wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Every successful person always ascribes that success to their dominant attribute. And coins an aphorism about it. - Bryan Rasmussen

Dominant attribute? Or simply the one they want people to believe about themselves. The dominant for at least some seems to be being able to tolerate their own excessively vile behaviour.

maybe, however the parent quote was from Coolidge, and when I read it I thought - what the hell else would you expect Coolidge to say? He's not going to suggest liking people, being clever and listening, being willing to look at things in a new way etc.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#80

Post by teilo »

account2 wrote: post #28

I wonder how many IQ test misclassify intelligence? Feynman had a score of 125 and many people here have a high score than that. I bet no one here with a higher score of 125 are actually smarter than Feynman though. I think this is just one of many possible such examples where IQ test miss the purported people they were suppose to capture. Feynman’s score wouldn’t even qualify him for MENSA. I wonder how many IQ exam…

I'm around 150, and I don't consider myself smarter than Feynman. And I'm no savant, am socially well adjusted, and not on the autism scale. This, among many other data points, has led me to question the entire concept of IQ.

The measurement of IQ borders on pseudo-science. It measures something, but what exactly? Everyone has a different answer. Ok, sure, intelligence. Now try to define "intelligence" empirically. What isn't a particular IQ test measuring that is relevant to intelligence? Different IQ tests often yield different results. And I'm not talking about online tests, but proctored tests administered by professionals.

How do you account for that amorphous quality known as "intuition"? You can't measure it or quantify it. You can barely define it. It is a finicky, inconsistent beast. Yet it has a profound effect on one's problem solving ability.

If the factors that determine IQ are individually difficult to define, differentiate, and measure, what does that say about the score itself?

In the broadest terms, IQ matters, but not in a way that makes one's score relevant for any practical purpose. You don't need an IQ test to measure competency in a specific task or occupation.

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