IQ's

Water Cooler
#21

Coincidentally I was just reading a wikipedia article on the Nuremberg trials, where they also had a list of the IQ’s of high-profile Nazis that were on trial (based on legit psych tests that they took rather than some internet bul$hit extrapolation for what Newton’s IQ might be). Lots of them were highly intelligent based on that measure, and obviously well-educated too.

Not sure about what their EQ measure would be (I don’t know what test can measure that anyway), but probably very conditional on what particular race of human beings they are interacting with. Which leads me to believe that EQ, if it can be defined in a meaningful way at all, would be very unstable and vary substantially if the same person takes different tests. IQ test results, on the contrary, have been shown to be remarkably stable through time, so they consistently measure something in a relatively objective manner - whether you can call that something ‘intelligence’ is of course debatable.

#22

^ Respect.

#23

Why would Nazi’s not be intelligent? Sure, they wanted to rule the world, but that’s a question of ideology, not intelligence.

Not sure if EQ is definable at all. However, maybe we can infer some kind of “implied EQ” based on the person’s social standing, adjusting for inherited wealth, etc.

#24

^ My friend Mobius was reinforcing my point that decision making (these were war criminals) and intelligence may not be necessarily correlated despite 1recho’s rambling about W and the war in iraq.

#25

I didn’t say anywhere I expected Nazis to have low IQ, I just question the statement that good education provides a basis for developing high IQ and EQ at the same time. Unless you can argue that the ideologists of the Holocaust had high EQs as well.

#26

But EQ is completely society based, right? I’m sure those highly educated Nazis had great EQ, as defined by Nazis. In hunter-gatherer society of 20 person groups, high EQ = being the male who wields the biggest club. We condemn Nazi actions today based on our own set of principles, which might be considered terrible at some point by future society. For instance, raising entire species of cows and chickens to be slaughtered for Happy Meals might one day be considered an atrocity. Who knows?

#27

I always thought of EQ as the ability “to make friends and influence people”. Hard to argue that Hitler didn’t have the second part of that down.

#28

Maybe it’s society based to some extent, although I was going with bchad’s simple formulation of EQ as “ability to deal with normal humans.” Someone’s inability to interact and establish connection or dialogue with certain groups of human beings should objectively lower their EQ, regardless of whether it is driven by personal traits or broader societal norms that shape their behavior. Otherwise almost everyone would have high EQ in the context of certain social group sharing identical views, which makes the definition of EQ quite meaningless.

#29

Good decision making is one evidence of high intelligence. Stupid people make consistently bad decisions. The point about W was that it’s hard to believe he is more intelligent than HW, based on a string of bad decisions (not to mention his awful English and faux-pas like rubbing Merkel’s shoulders.)

Easy with the ad-hominem attacks, homie.

#30

But then you have to define “normal humans”. Someone who can deal well with normal US people might be clueless in China. We can’t objectively call China at abnormality, given that they have 4x as many people as the US. I also disagree that defining noms based on society would result in everyone having “high EQ in the context of certain social group sharing identical views”. Every society - China, US, Nazis - has leaders and non-leaders. So, they achieve different standing in their respective societies despite identical beliefs.

#31

There was nothing ad hominem. I didn’t say, 1recho is wrong because he’s a stupid no good or whatever (attacking the person rather than the argument). I said the argument was stupid. Timothy McVeigh’s IQ was 126 while Ted Kaczynski’s IQ was 167, and neither of their decision making seems that intelligent to me. Meanwhile, there are many low IQ people that constantly make safe, smart decisions. It’s your association of IQ (raw intelligence) and decision making (demonstrated intelligence) that I felt was naive, and your need to drag your political views into the discussion in the form of a tirade just to beat a dead horse one more time was also boring. How many high IQ ivey league CEO’s have run companies to bankruptcy?

http://changethis.com/manifesto/6.TalentMyth/pdf/6.TalentMyth.pdf

#32

I understand your argument, but you’re just putting societal filters on the definition of EQ whereas I thought of it as a more general measure. A properly designed IQ test would look for a human’s ability to identify patterns in sequences of shapes, which seems hardly culturally specific. Similarly, your ability to feel compassion for the suffering of another human being, or helping out someone who might be in trouble - things like that could be EQ measures that are less society-specific.

#33

having a high IQ doesn’t have any connection with having moral standards. The greatest villians can surely be super geniuses. high IQ also doesn’t say anything about work ethic or being lazy. Hence why people get C’s in school and stellar SAT scores.

Also, the smartest people frequently aren’t always the one in charge.

just as the most qualified person doesn’t always get the job.

#34

This is the link that I’m arguing against. I strongly feel that being “smarter” as measured by test taking ability does not make you more capable or qualified. Enron was full of top Ivy League graduates. “Smart” people often overly focus on ideas and fail in their ability to execute or demonstrate consistancy in the day to day. They are also often prone to hubris such as poor acquisitions or misguided efforts. They may also lack the ability to lead.

#35

Hmm. In that case, we have just chosen to define EQ differently. For example, consider a Texas oil baron whose business acumen and ability to network with other Texas businessmen enable him to amass a billion dollar mining empire. However, he is completely intolerant of other cultures and of the environment, animals, or suffering of other humans. Clearly, he would not be successful without some talent that we could desribe as “EQ”. However, based on your suggestions, which include compassion and morality, he would most likely have a low EQ score.

Ideally, IQ should be viewed independently from societal context. However, I don’t know if the same thing makes sense for EQ. Relatability is defined by subjective preferences, which differ based on society. In Qarth, “the greatest city that ever was or ever will be”, weeping men are considered civilized and are respected. However, to the Dothraki, this is a sign of cowards and beggars. It is unclear that we can define a neutral measure of EQ that would apply equally to these two societies.

#36

“Intelligence is Overrated”

http://www.forbes.com/sites/keldjensen/2012/04/12/intelligence-is-overrated-what-you-really-need-to-succeed/

Emotional Intelligence

EQ is the most well known of the three, and in brief it is about: being aware of your own feelings and those of others, regulating these feelings in yourself and others, using emotions that are appropriate to the situation, self-motivation, and building relationships.

Top Tip for Improvement: First, become aware of your inner dialogue. It helps to keep a journal of what thoughts fill your mind during the day. Stress can be a huge killer of emotional intelligence, so you also need to develop healthy coping techniques that can effectively and quickly reduce stress in a volatile situation.

Moral Intelligence

MQ directly follows EQ as it deals with your integrity, responsibility, sympathy, and forgiveness. The way you treat yourself is the way other people will treat you. Keeping commitments, maintaining your integrity, and being honest are crucial to moral intelligence.

Top Tip for Improvement: Make fewer excuses and take responsibility for your actions. Avoid little white lies. Show sympathy and communicate respect to others. Practice acceptance and show tolerance of other people’s shortcomings. Forgiveness is not just about how we relate to others; it’s also how you relate to and feel about yourself.

Body Intelligence

Lastly, there is your BQ, or body intelligence, which reflects what you know about your body, how you feel about it, and take care of it. Your body is constantly telling you things; are you listening to the signals or ignoring them? Are you eating energy-giving or energy-draining foods on a daily basis? Are you getting enough rest? Do you exercise and take care of your body? It may seem like these matters are unrelated to business performance, but your body intelligence absolutely affects your work because it largely determines your feelings, thoughts, self-confidence, state of mind, and energy level. Top Tip For Improvement: At least once a day, listen to the messages your body is sending you about your health. Actively monitor these signals instead of going on autopilot. Good nutrition, regular exercise, and adequate rest are all key aspects of having a high BQ. Monitoring your weight, practicing moderation with alcohol, and making sure you have down time can dramatically benefit the functioning of your brain and the way you perform at work.

#37

$hit, apparently there’s MQ which is probably what I was talking about all along.

Also BQ = being HCB/BSD as in tall, skinny, good-looking >> (IQ + MQ + EQ)^2, so focus on improving that if you can.

#38

I have developed my own IQ test. I scored 200 and no one else has ever scored higher than 16.

#39

Unfortunately, one may have the capability to build relationships and build empathy while still using it in a way that has nothing to do with compassion. A lot of politicians worldwide may be doing just that.

I don’t think EQ has anything to do with morals. EQ is probably like leverage for your morals. If you want to make people feel better, EQ seems helpful. If you want to manipulate them, EQ is probably helpful as well.

#40

Pretty sure meditation increases EQ as well. I actually don’t understand why more smart people don’t meditate – the research is amazing. You too can be an ubermensch!