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IQ Matters Less Than You Think

nautil.us

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Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#221

Post by cc-d »

pessimizer wrote: post #201
cc-d wrote: post #190

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Feynman is a notable exception to the trend. Using a single exceptional result as evidence for decrying a trend is foolish. IQ tests obviously do not account for __every__ variable which we cumulatively call "intelligence", but IQ is heavily correlated with the ability to succeed at tasks society classifies as "smart people stuff". The difference in intelligence between two individuals is much less pronounced if both…

> IQ is heavily correlated with the ability to succeed at tasks society classifies as "smart people stuff" Or, more precisely, IQ is heavily correlated with the ability to succeed at taking IQ tests.

>Or, more precisely, IQ is heavily correlated with the ability to succeed at taking IQ tests.

...and succeeding at taking IQ tests is also predictive of an individual's potential to succeed at, using the Feynman example, physics.

Lets say you were to gather two pools of individuals, one pool with IQ test results of 2 standard deviations below, the other with results of 2 standard deviations above, and provide them with the necessary materials and instruction to understand physics 101. Incentivize the participants by offering a $2000 cash reward for demonstrating the knowledge they were tasked with learning, lets say by answering X questions presented to them in whichever format would be optimal for their success.

How many from group -2 SDs do you think would receive the $2000, compared to group +2 SDs? -1 SDs compared to +1 SDs?

The choice of physics was arbitrary as well. You could assign almost any field of study, and you would still get almost identical results in performance.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#222

Post by gargarplex »

zakm wrote: post #74
breitling wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't think you're smarter than you are.

I don't know what the meaning is, but I'm pretty sure that's not it.

People with really high IQs get themselves into real trouble because they think they're capable of handling it. This makes me think of Long Term Capital Management and geohot with his self-driving cars.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#223

Post by madeuptempacct »

astura wrote: post #180
madeuptempacct wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Very much this - average genes, hard work, and sacrifice can generally guarantee upper middle class (barring accidents). Basically, all you need to get there is being a good cog in the machine. That is to say - you come in groomed, you do your job, you study or take night classes, you don't spend your money on having a life, you don't make mistakes which come with fun. Eventually, you will get to your $100,000/year a…

$100,000/year salary and $1M net worth are incredibly specific numbers, where are you getting them from? It's a tautology to claim "average genes, hard work, and sacrifice can generally guarantee upper middle class" because if someone isn't upper middle class you can just claim they don't have average genes, they didn't work hard enough, or they didn't sacrifice enough. None of those things are measurable.

That's realistic income at 45 with a 4-year degree in some engineering discipline. You can save a mil at that income in 15-20 years.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#224

Post by toasterlovin »

mcguire wrote: post #153
toasterlovin wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW, IQ is not pseudo-science. The research around IQ is some of the most robust psychological research that exists. In fact, it is one of the few areas of psychology that has basically been unscathed by the replication crisis.

Some of the most robust psychological research, as long as you define intelligence as the ability to do well on an IQ test.

IQ significantly predicts real world performance in a bunch of areas.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#225

Post by MaxBarraclough »

cm2187 wrote: post #89

The title is a bit misleading. The study is basically comparing the path of the top 1% to the top 2% of the IQ distribution and arguing that it doesn't matter that much in term of extraordinary achievements (nobel prize, etc). If you compare the top 20% to the bottom 20% of the distribution I bet there will be a strong correlation to professional sucess.

It's well understood that IQ is linked to academic achievement.

https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=G_factor_(psychom...

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#226

Post by WillPostForFood »

jacquesm wrote: post #18

I know plenty of people for whom their high IQ is actually a hindrance rather than a help. So even for them it matters (greatly) but not in a positive way. The best determinants for being successful, in spite of a high IQ or lack thereof are the ability to focus and to have stamina.

High IQ Low Focus is going to be better than Low IQ Low Focus. Where it is going to be unclear is High IQ Low Focus vs Low IQ High Focus. Unfortunately, focus and IQ generally correlate, so the genetic winners get even more inherent advantage.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#227

Post by colemannugent »

pessimizer wrote: post #209
toasterlovin wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I said that the IQ measurement is itself not worth much except as a general guide in fairly broad ranges. IQ predicts about 30% of a whole host of life outcomes (mostly related to job performance, educational attainment, earnings, etc.). That might not seem like a whole lot, but it's the best single predictor of life outcomes that exists, aside from looking at a person's parents and siblings.

But IQ itself is predicted by parental earnings and parental educational attainment (and, IIRC, mostly by the sheer volume of reading for pleasure during childhood.) There's a chicken/egg thing here that I think is a cart/horse thing.

Education doesn't have as much effect as you might think. It seems that nutrition has a very significant effect on IQ: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0191886990...

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#228

Post by danans »

toasterlovin wrote: post #97
teilo wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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. W…

FWIW, IQ is not pseudo-science. The research around IQ is some of the most robust psychological research that exists. In fact, it is one of the few areas of psychology that has basically been unscathed by the replication crisis.

The measure is not pseudo-science, but the attempts to draw sweeping conclusions from it at the individual or societal level are pure nonsense.

Ethical psychologists don't consider IQ in isolation the way that pop culture and many in forums like HN do.

Re: IQ Matters Less Than You Think

#229

Post by ikeyany »

sureaboutthis wrote: post #73

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 exci…

> My IQ, perhaps, helped me see things most did not but it's the enthusiasm that keeps me going

You need a sufficiently high IQ to seek out and achieve the higher things, such as productive sources of enthusiasm. Those with lower IQ will be less inclined to figure out how to become self-actualized.

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