I consider myself to be of average intelligence but now I may have to rethink my self observation. According to a recent scientific study I actually exhibit several signs that point to me being very intelligent. How do you measure up:
Are you an oldest child? If so chances are you are highly intelligent. Older siblings are usually the go to person when younger siblings have questions or issues. As an only child I guess technically I am the oldest sibling to myself.
Did you take music lessons as a child? Well if you did studies show that children as young a 4 have shown an increased mental capacity for verbal intelligence after just a month of music lessons. Not sure what music does for verbal intelligence, but if science says so it must be true, right? I took accordion lessons as a young person. Come to think of it I remember my music teacher telling me on several occasions to stop talking and start playing. I guess my verbal truculence was actually a by-product of those lessons.
Do you own a cat? A study in 2014 showed that people who owned dogs were more outgoing than people who owned cats, but cat owners were on the whole more intelligent. I actually live with several cats so I will assume I am smarter than the average cat owner.
Were you bottle fed or breast-fed? Apparently breast fed babies develop IQs that are 7 points or higher, than bottle fed babies. Good to know. Until now I figured being breast fed as a baby was the reason why I preferred chicken breasts over drum sticks or wings.
Did you have sex in high school? Apparently high schoolers who engage in sexual activity have lower IQs than their fellow students. Probably because the kids who weren’t getting any were home studying instead of, well you know…..I guess this behavior continues into the college years, since students who party all the time are generally dumber than the kids who study.
Are you funny? Well if you have a talent for making people laugh you are apparently a very intelligent individual. Funny people tend to score higher on intelligence tests. Just an observation, maybe this is because funny folks aren’t taking the test as seriously as unfunny folks. Just a theory.
Do you have a small circle of friends? I have always had just a few friends that I consider good friends. No, I ain’t talking about Facebook or Twitter friends. I mean people who I have actual face to face contact with. Anyway, people with above average intelligence get along nicely in life with a smaller group of friends than the average bloke.
I encourage readers to see how many signs of above average intelligence that exhibit. Share if you like.
The Skeptical Observer 