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Tom Donaly wrote:
Anyone who thinks that there is a test that measures "intelligence"
isn't smart enough to belong to Mensa.

What is measured is IQ (intelligence quotient). The
field of IQ measurements is approximately as mature
as the field of radio having been around for more
than a century.

http://www.us.mensa.org http://www.mensa.org.uk
--
73, Cecil http://www.qsl.net/w5dxp

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"Cecil Moore" wrote in message
om...
Tom Donaly wrote:
Anyone who thinks that there is a test that measures "intelligence"
isn't smart enough to belong to Mensa.

What is measured is IQ (intelligence quotient). The
field of IQ measurements is approximately as mature
as the field of radio having been around for more
than a century.


psychiatry has been around hundreds of years and it's still considered
primitive by many. relativity has also been around 100 years, and it's
still pretty damn speculative.

and IQ is not intelligence. it has a 0.9 correlation with g factor as i
recall.

psychometrics have biases too. for instance, if the test uses the term
"quarter" as a unit of currency, the test is tied to the US and a few other
countries. a test that uses integer sequences like the Fibonacci is going
to be easier for a mathematician, who is trained to look for those patterns.
a test which uses analogies from 18th century English literature is not
going to be accessible to some people from Asia.

i could go on and on. some of my criticism is not leveled at
Stanford-Binet, but psychometrics in general.

also, i'd hope that whoever wrote the test is significantly smarter than me.
if not, what is the point? that dumb people can invent questions that i
can't answer?

Gravity

http://www.us.mensa.org http://www.mensa.org.uk
--
73, Cecil http://www.qsl.net/w5dxp

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"Cecil Moore" wrote in message
om...
Tom Donaly wrote:
Anyone who thinks that there is a test that measures "intelligence"
isn't smart enough to belong to Mensa.

What is measured is IQ (intelligence quotient). The
field of IQ measurements is approximately as mature
as the field of radio having been around for more
than a century.

http://www.us.mensa.org http://www.mensa.org.uk
--
73, Cecil http://www.qsl.net/w5dxp

Hi Cecil

The "joke" about the lizard in the mensa site http://www.us.mensa.org is
certainly enough to make me want to back away from any organization that
writes about a lizard then expects you to laugh because it isnt a lizard.
I can see why you would let your membership expire.

Jerry

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gravity wrote:
psychometrics have biases too. for instance, if the test uses the term
"quarter" as a unit of currency, the test is tied to the US and a few other
countries.

As a matter of fact, I took both the American and English
IQ tests when I took the MENSA tests. My percentile rating
was twice as good on the American test with its dollars
and cents as it was on the English test with its pounds
and shillings. Obviously, those tests are biased. The
English language is a prerequisite, for instance.
--
73, Cecil http://www.qsl.net/w5dxp

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Jerry Martes wrote:
The "joke" about the lizard in the mensa site http://www.us.mensa.org is
certainly enough to make me want to back away from any organization that
writes about a lizard then expects you to laugh because it isnt a lizard.

A lizard is a reptile. Isn't a newt an amphibian?

I can see why you would let your membership expire.

MENSA doesn't offer senior discounts. :-)
--
73, Cecil http://www.qsl.net/w5dxp

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"Cecil Moore" wrote in message
. com...
gravity wrote:
perhaps this comment was a bit harsh.

There have been some relatively famous members
of MENSA. Isaac Asimov comes to mind. He described
members of MENSA as "intellectually combative".
--
73, Cecil http://www.qsl.net/w5dxp

I worked with a guy who joined Mensa. He only attended a few meetings
before abandoning them. He said they all just tried to impress each other
with how smart they were.

****** Newsgroups replace Mensa -- Film at 11:00 *********

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gravity wrote:
i've heard it's mainly underachievers. however, i like being around smart
people, so i will consider joining. i'm not looking to impress anyone, but
the conversations at workplaces are very dull to me.

You take an average lady to a nice restaurant and engage
in small talk while buying her dinner and a few drinks.
If she likes you well enough, she will go home with you.

The only difference in MENSA ladies is that they don't
like small talk. :-)
--
73, Cecil http://www.qsl.net/w5dxp

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"Sal M. Onella" wrote in message
news:UyKlg.103$lv.33@fed1read12...

****** Newsgroups replace Mensa -- Film at 11:00 *********


There is a rec.org. mensa newsgroup... Several Hams on it too, but many have
left. A few years ago it was very active with some engineering professors.
It's been hijacked by political talk lately; however, some political
discussions are fun.

Alan
WN4HOG