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IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

aptiquant.com

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Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#31

Post by w1ntermute »

CognitiveLens wrote: post #30

> it is a clear indication that individuals on the lower side of the IQ scale tend to resist a change/upgrade of their browsers. AptiQuant needs to review their correlation/causation definitions. Resisting change is one plausible explanation, but the only thing the data clearly show is that the people who scored low on this IQ test tended to be using out of date browsers at the time they took the test. "Resistance" i…

> I choose to go with the reverse explanation: older browsers actively reduce user intelligence.

Do you have any reason for that? Because frankly it just sounds ridiculous.

It would make sense that someone with a higher IQ would be able to consider the possibility that their browser was replaceable and take the necessary steps to replace it. But I don't see how which browser you use could have an appreciable effect on your intelligence.

Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#32

Post by inconditus »

w1ntermute wrote: post #31
CognitiveLens wrote: post #30

> it is a clear indication that individuals on the lower side of the IQ scale tend to resist a change/upgrade of their browsers. AptiQuant needs to review their correlation/causation definitions. Resisting change is one plausible explanation, but the only thing the data clearly show is that the people who scored low on this IQ test tended to be using out of date browsers at the time they took the test. "Resistance" i…

> I choose to go with the reverse explanation: older browsers actively reduce user intelligence. Do you have any reason for that? Because frankly it just sounds ridiculous. It would make sense that someone with a higher IQ would be able to consider the possibility that their browser was replaceable and take the necessary steps to replace it. But I don't see how which browser you use could have an appreciable effect o…

It was a joke, along the lines of xkcd comics. See: http://xkcd.com/925/

Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#34

Post by astrofinch »

younata wrote: post #18

Excellent. Now I can convert all of the people I know who still use IE to opera. "SMART PEOPLE USE OPERA, YOU WANT TO BE CONSIDERED SMART, DON'T YOU?!"

Did you see the second graph? Firefox is the most popular browser among people who were in the 99th percentile.

Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#35

Post by waterlesscloud »

redthrowaway wrote: post #27
exterm wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, the "free IQ test" thing made me wonder too. I always thought that intelligent people would not be very likely to click on those ads.

Furthermore, what would the usage of adblock be by IQ percentile? Opera's high showing may be due to it's adblock extension still not being as mature as those of Chrome and FF, and so the average Opera user might be less likely to use it. There's no doubt that Opera users would tend to be geeks and nerds anyway, but you could say the same thing of the top FF users. I'm not convinced that the methodology supports the…

I bet adblock usage peaks between 120-130 iq and drops off on either side.

This is a wild, completely speculative hunch for which I have no evidence.

Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#36

Post by waterlesscloud »

astrofinch wrote: post #34
younata wrote: post #18

Excellent. Now I can convert all of the people I know who still use IE to opera. "SMART PEOPLE USE OPERA, YOU WANT TO BE CONSIDERED SMART, DON'T YOU?!"

Did you see the second graph? Firefox is the most popular browser among people who were in the 99th percentile.

But Opera had almost no users below 50th percentile.

Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#37

Post by jigs_up »

balakk wrote: post #24
katieben wrote: post #11

Who uses Opera and why?

I've been using Opera for about 11 years now. When I started, there was nothing that was better. Even with that huge advertisement widget. It still is extremely competitive, if not leading in most things. For casual browsing it is unmatched. It's not about one feature; it's the completeness of the whole browser. Things that you'd expect in Firefox/Chrome in extensions are built in here. It's still as fast as Chrome t…

I gave it shot for a while because I needed the Turbo feature. I liked using Opera, it was fast and the new chrome-like GUI is nice. However... as soon as my internet was back at full capacity I changed back to Chrome. You say you like it because of the completeness, but I found that it was missing quite a few small things which I cannot live without. Off the top off my head I can only remember two things -

Tabs cannot be dragged in and out of windows

Text cannot be selected and dragged into the URL bar

Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#38

Post by w1ntermute »

locci wrote: post #19
neilk wrote: post #14

Amusing, but it's kind of a truism. Changing your browser requires cognitive capacity. Those who change it the fastest have the highest cognitive capacity. Even without other explanations, that explains variations of version within a single browser, and to some extent Chrome and Firefox. The really surprising thing for me was Opera. You can't explain that with mere willingness to update or try something new.

Popular browsers are "dragged down to 100" by the mass of people who install the browser because of techie friends, or fashion. In the second graph you can notice there are many more high IQs individuals using firefox and chrome rather than opera.

> In the second graph you can notice there are many more high IQs individuals using firefox and chrome rather than opera.

You can also notice that as IQ increases, the numbers of Firefox, Chrome, and Safari users eventually peak, but the number of Opera users never does.

Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#39

Post by truthout »

redthrowaway wrote: post #27
exterm wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, the "free IQ test" thing made me wonder too. I always thought that intelligent people would not be very likely to click on those ads.

Furthermore, what would the usage of adblock be by IQ percentile? Opera's high showing may be due to it's adblock extension still not being as mature as those of Chrome and FF, and so the average Opera user might be less likely to use it. There's no doubt that Opera users would tend to be geeks and nerds anyway, but you could say the same thing of the top FF users. I'm not convinced that the methodology supports the…

I'm pretty sure you're wrong. Opera is a niche browser. Any browser with significant market share will reflect a more broad population, by deductive reasoning. A more broad population will be closer to the IQ mean of a population.

Safari, which is second lowest by market share shows the second highest iq. You should be able to figure out why you're wrong.

Other variables definitively exist. But yeah.

You're still wrong.

Re: IQ scores in relation to web browser choice

#40

Post by redthrowaway »

waterlesscloud wrote: post #35
redthrowaway wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Furthermore, what would the usage of adblock be by IQ percentile? Opera's high showing may be due to it's adblock extension still not being as mature as those of Chrome and FF, and so the average Opera user might be less likely to use it. There's no doubt that Opera users would tend to be geeks and nerds anyway, but you could say the same thing of the top FF users. I'm not convinced that the methodology supports the…

I bet adblock usage peaks between 120-130 iq and drops off on either side. This is a wild, completely speculative hunch for which I have no evidence.

So I get putting a lower bound on it, as it would take exposure to technical communities (even if it's just 4chan) that usually comes from inquisition and information-seeking, but what do you propose as the means by which there would exist an upper bound?
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