The Illusion of an IQ Test

[g0pher]

People talk about high and low IQ all the time, fuckit, I even got an IQ of 126!
But I think IQ tests Bullshit man, I mean really, all they do is test some arbitrary stuff which a culture values..

E.g.
Einstein had a higher IQ, compared a Streetwise Ghetto thief
In our Day and Age, We find that we value Einstein more
But I bet 1 thing.

Einstein would'nt know SHIT about stealing a Chicken and not getting caught.
in a raw nomadic world of hunter gatherers Einstein would have been seen as a Dumb Shit,

And the Ghetto chicken thief as intelligent & resourceful
The IQ is just a measure of only what a culture values, not really "intelligence" in its full sense, if there IS anything such as "intelligence" in its full sense.

Conclusion: To say person A has a high IQ, and person B a low IQ, really says nothing about each ones "intelligence" as B most likey can do things A finds impossible to do.

[Jimbozu]

I'm pretty certain that if Einstein had spent his childhood stealing from people and hiding from the cops, he would be way fucking better at it than you. He applied himself to math and physics and so thats what he was good at. I agree with you that IQ doesn't tell us much, but no one ever really claimed it did. All your IQ does is rate you on a specific scale against other people, the scale is specifically designed to test for what we consider "intelligence" or the ability to think well.

To say that anything can be considered intelligence is incorrect though. Would you consider a fish intelligent because it's basically infinitely better at extracting oxygen from water? Of course not, regardless of how good a fish is at "breathing" underwater, they still lack the ability to think abstractly, and are therefore unintelligent.

[Palmer Eldritch]

you're right, IQ tests are culturally biased towards western values. I consistently got between 140 and 150 in IQ tests while in grade school because capitalist societies reward mathematical skills, spatial reasoning and creative problem solving (finance, engineering and management), which I happened to be good at but I wouldn't ever consider myself a genius like those numbers are thought to represent.

I always thought my high scores reflected my ability to observe, replicate and synthesize shapes through illustration, which benefits many other aspects in my life, rather than being smart. Essential spiritual and social skills in other cultures aren't even considered and if they were, my score would be just as average as everyone else.

If intelligence were to be measured in a meaningful way, it should be done in the context of the culture that the test taker comes from.

[NeOmega]

The only thing an IQ is really good for anymore is spawning pompous self-proclaimed geniuses that feel it necessary to hold themselves higher than you.

Oh, and making people click banner ads on websites, thinking they can actually get an accurate representation of their intelligence via an online 20 minute multiple choice "quiz". Oh, the internet.

[skittlette]

Einstein didnt know how to tie his shoes

[bkadoctaj]

Originally Posted by g0pher

People talk about high and low IQ all the time, fuckit, I even got an IQ of 126!
But I think IQ tests Bullshit man, I mean really, all they do is test some arbitrary stuff which a culture values..

E.g.
Einstein had a higher IQ, compared a Streetwise Ghetto thief
In our Day and Age, We find that we value Einstein more
But I bet 1 thing.

Einstein would'nt know SHIT about stealing a Chicken and not getting caught.
in a raw nomadic world of hunter gatherers Einstein would have been seen as a Dumb Shit,

And the Ghetto chicken thief as intelligent & resourceful
The IQ is just a measure of only what a culture values, not really "intelligence" in its full sense, if there IS anything such as "intelligence" in its full sense.

Conclusion: To say person A has a high IQ, and person B a low IQ, really says nothing about each ones "intelligence" as B most likey can do things A finds impossible to do.

IQ is a scale like any other graduated concept. You know, a hierarchy?

[the roach]

I dunno, Einstein was smart enough to get the fuck out of Europe in the 40's, win a Nobel peace prize and become the most popular scientist of the 20th century,
he probably could have at least figured out some plan of stealing a chicken without lifting a finger.

[CosmicSerpent]

Originally Posted by the roach

I dunno, Einstein was smart enough to get the fuck out of Europe in the 40's, win a Nobel peace prize and become the most popular scientist of the 20th century,
he probably could have at least figured out some plan of stealing a chicken without lifting a finger.

Haha, my thoughts exactly.

I don't think IQ tests are 100% accurate, but they are a pretty good assessment of a person's ability to attain knowledge (not the actual amount of knowledge that they have). This is measured by the person's capacity to reason, to plan, to solve problems, to think abstractly, to comprehend ideas, to use language, and to learn. This is why your IQ score remains basically unchanged from childhood to old age. It doesn't matter how many books you've read, how many degrees you have, or what you've studied. I took an IQ test in the third grade and scored 134. I haven't taken one since, so I don't know if it's the same, but I would assume so.

So I wouldn't say that Einstein would be considered a "dumb shit" in a raw nomadic world of hunter-gatherers. In fact, if he has such a high IQ, then he would be able to adapt more quickly and successfully than most people. If Einstein were born in the Stone Age, he wouldn't have been a physicist, but I bet you he would have been one smart caveman. He probably would have been the one who discovered agriculture, astronomy, or metal tools. And I'm pretty sure he would have no problem stealing a chicken. I don't know what makes you think he wouldn't be capable of that.

There probably is a small Western bias, but it would be extremely difficult to have one universal test for the whole world. I know there are several different kinds of IQ tests, but I'm not sure if there is an "Eastern" version or something similar.

[Highbinder]

Originally Posted by skittlette

Einstein didnt know how to tie his shoes

He also had multiple identical suits. And hated the (now famous) photo of him sticking his tongue out.

/Einstein trivia

[Pacaveli]

Einstein had like 0 social skills and no sense of direction, he did not know how to find his way to his house frmo close distances (so ive heard)

[drdsRawsm]

you obviously do not understand the word inteligence. having the ability to swing on vines in the jungle is not intelligent. Einstein probably couldnt do that. well... pretty much what cosmic serpant said.