A question for the enlightened.

[jerusalem1]

All of this and I forgot to mention the fact that IQ itself is controversial. It may not seem controversial now, but it is.

IQ has proven to be a decent predictor of academic achievement (not social or economic success). It is used mainly for this purpose, for measuring childhood scholastic development.

At the core of the issue for psychologists is what Spearman called "General Intelligence" ("Spearman's G") which has never be observed or proven to exist and is the subject of much controversy.

The IQ tests established to predict scholastic development are culture specific and tend to break-down in efficacy when used across cultures.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_in ... nce_factor

They are finding ways to brain scan for IQ now. It is even easier to scan for Genius status, because Genius have unique brains. men have more Grey Matter, and women Genius have more white matter. Grey matter is better for mathematics, and white matter is better for higher vocabulary. Lol, you could say that a female genius can talk one hell of a lot!

No wonder you talk too much.

[Animus]

The article "What IQ Tests Miss" was pretty good. The author expresses a view of a condition he calls "dysrationalia" which he says IQ tests don't account for.

The author says that even high IQ people given certain disjunctive reasoning tasks fail as often as low IQ people. One such example is the following:

Jack is looking at Anne, Anne is looking at George. Jack is unmarried and George is married. Is an unmarried person looking at a married person?

A) Yes B) No C) Unable to determine


Here is another one:

A baseball bat and ball combined costs $1.10. The bat costs $1 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost?

One of the examples revealed national bias. The question was raised; A german automobile has a fatality rate 8x greater than the average family car. The Department of Transportation in the USA is considering banning sale of the vehicle or banning its use on US roads. Do you think the german car should be banned from sale in the US? Do you think the german car should be banned from use in the US?

This question received a "Yes" answer about %70. The question was then reversed and the car with 8x more fatalities was the Ford Explorer and the German government was considering banning it. In this situation only %50 of Americans thought it should be banned from German sale and use.

[1456200423]

-tomas yaps earlier-
We are just another colony created for this specific Earth climate. The Totality has many creations out there specifically designed to inhabit that climate. No doubt whatsoever. I don't see man ever living on the Moon, Mars. Gotta run to the Space Shuttle.

-lucky numbers-
Now that Mars is warming up, humans could easily find a way to colonize it.

-tomas-
As I write this Elizabeth is testing a few beluga whales for high IQ, we'll be taking approximately 16 along on the space shuttle. Their primary mission will be to search for ocean water. Rumor has it the entrance to the wading pool is under the "face" on Mars.

Judging by the meteorite impact sites, Mars is covered with frozen h2o just few meters down from the surface. There has to be plenty of liquid water in the 70 degree latitudes in summer with temperature reaching +20 in some spots.
http://www.obspm.fr/actual/nouvelle/nov04/mars04-f1.png

-lucky numbers-
What is to stop human colonizing Moon or Mars?

-tomas-
Word has it that the beluga's have been organized by Barack Obama's ACORN affiliates. Seem the whales want extra plankton stored ahead of time on Mars. And, here's the kicker, they want exclusive movie rights written into their contracts without their thumbprints being revealed! They also want government-subsidized health care for life for their spouses and free submarine rides at Disney World, Florida, upon their return to Earth. (I think that last part was Elizabeth's idea though ACORN will disavow any knowledge or involvement).

I think those are very reasonable demands. Why are the belugas so secretive though?
Hope it all works out. :-)

Denmark Dolphin Slaughter
The sea is stained in red and in the meanwhile its not because of the climate effects of nature.
http://www.rense.com/general88/barb.htm

Senseless tradition. :-(
http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Gua ... ch-002.jpg

Whaling in the Faroe Islands has been practiced since 1584.

As of the end of November 2008 the chief medical officers of the Faroe Islands have recommended that pilot whales no longer be considered fit for human consumption because of the levels of toxins in the whales.

Islanders in motorboats first drive the whales into a bay. The chase may be lengthy. The whales are eventually driven into the shallows. The islanders hammer 2.2 kg metal gaffs into the flesh of each whale until the hooks hold. A 15 cm knife is then used to slash through the blubber and flesh to the spinal column. Next the main blood vessels are severed.

The Faroese treat the hunt as a festive occasion. Children are often given a day off school.[citation needed]

[bruhaha2]

Senseless tradition. :-(
http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Gua ... ch-002.jpg

Whaling in the Faroe Islands has been practiced since 1584.

As of the end of November 2008 the chief medical officers of the Faroe Islands have recommended that pilot whales no longer be considered fit for human consumption because of the levels of toxins in the whales.

Islanders in motorboats first drive the whales into a bay. The chase may be lengthy. The whales are eventually driven into the shallows. The islanders hammer 2.2 kg metal gaffs into the flesh of each whale until the hooks hold. A 15 cm knife is then used to slash through the blubber and flesh to the spinal column. Next the main blood vessels are severed.

The Faroese treat the hunt as a festive occasion. Children are often given a day off school.[citation needed]

While I can't say I fully agree or disagree that this is senseless, let me give part of my view.

Are we to step out of the waters of earth's evolution and into our own simply because we've developed reason? I suppose it would be our responsibility now to be as Adam and Eve were intended, except instead of being masters we will be a guide to other animals with intention to teach them after we've helped them evolve to the point of awareness.

I realize slaughtering them in no way helps their evolution towards reason, and yes, I think slaughtering them is wrong, but we are, for now, bound to earth, and thus bound to them. Aiding in their evolution should be one human priority, and I'm surprised it's not. If we are indeed the only intelligent life in this galaxy, it would seem an obligation to bring them on par with us; not out of pity, but out of compassion.

[Gurrb]

i was not aware daniel tammet scored well on IQ tests. it was my understanding he did not, because of his inability to creatively think, and to produce unique thoughts.

[Gurrb]

animus, i see you subscribe to psychology today.

[Steven Coyle]

Charlie Chaplin dumb.

[Gurrb]

if we satisfy god, what is our purpose anymore? we would be gone. our perfection through existence is our imperfection.

[Animus]

animus, i see you subscribe to psychology today.

Sorry, I missed this Gurrb.

I have picked up a few issues, but I've found it to be a lot of trivial nonsense like "The psychology of mascara" which I'm not particularly interested in. It appears to me to be a magazine directed primarily at women who would otherwise be subscribing to Cosmopolitan and similar chick mags.

I do however subscribe to Scientific American Mind and frequently pick up issues of Scientific American, Skeptic and Discover.

[Gurrb]

i do as well, couldn't remember which one it was that those questions were from. (scientific american mind, that is)