I’ve actually never understood how these could be billed as “intelligence tests,” though. A lot of those depend on what you’ve been exposed to (some are actually British, and not commonly known to Americans). I see them as a fun exercise in lateral thinking, but I don’t see it as being a great measure of general intelligence.
Agreed. This is closer to testing how widely read a person is and how good that person’s memory is. It certainly is not an IQ test, as some claim. But I find quizzes, puzzles, and riddles such as this help to expand the range of your, as you called it, lateral thinking. The mind is not unlike the major muscle groups. Excercise keeps it strong, yet nimble. Think of this as a stretching excercise for the mind.
Sarah and I were able to knock out 23 out of 33, but without her knowledge of the books in the Bible, I’d have been sub-genius. The fact that I’m better with her than without her doesn’t escape me here. 😉
November 4th, 2006 at 11:42 am
That’s a fun one. I’ve seen it online before in a Web form, where it “grades” your responses. Here‘s one such example.
November 4th, 2006 at 11:44 am
I’ve actually never understood how these could be billed as “intelligence tests,” though. A lot of those depend on what you’ve been exposed to (some are actually British, and not commonly known to Americans). I see them as a fun exercise in lateral thinking, but I don’t see it as being a great measure of general intelligence.
November 4th, 2006 at 11:53 am
Agreed. This is closer to testing how widely read a person is and how good that person’s memory is. It certainly is not an IQ test, as some claim. But I find quizzes, puzzles, and riddles such as this help to expand the range of your, as you called it, lateral thinking. The mind is not unlike the major muscle groups. Excercise keeps it strong, yet nimble. Think of this as a stretching excercise for the mind.
November 4th, 2006 at 12:17 pm
Sarah and I were able to knock out 23 out of 33, but without her knowledge of the books in the Bible, I’d have been sub-genius. The fact that I’m better with her than without her doesn’t escape me here. 😉