Monday, March 16, 2009

IQ and Genius

You'll see casual statements about "what Leonardo Da Vinci's IQ was." 

It's all wild guesses. Da Vinci never took an IQ test.

My wife remarks that we do know the IQ for one modern genius, Richard Feynman:
His measured IQ was in the high range - 124 - but not what IQ test-makers consider genius (135+). Contrary to traditional thought, but consistent with research findings, most people recognized as geniuses through their work do not have IQ's in the 135+ range.
A lot of what makes us call a person a "genius" is their creative brilliance - not their general intelligence as such.

Of course Feynman started out smart,
but something more on his part
made him a truly stellar
research feller.

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