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from the tv-and-video-games-cause-brain-rot dept.
A Norwegian study published Monday found a seven-point dip in IQ test scores per generation among men born from 1962 to 1991. The results suggest a reversal in the Flynn effect, an observed increase in IQ scores throughout the 20th century in developed countries.
Coverage from The Week adds:
The reasons for the Flynn effect and its apparent reversal are disputed. "Scientists have put the rise in IQ down to better teaching, nutrition, healthcare and even artificial lighting," says The Times.
But "it is also possible that the nature of intelligence is changing in the digital age and cannot be captured with traditional IQ tests", adds the newspaper.
"Take 14-year-olds in Britain. What 25% could do back in 1994, now only 5% can do," Shayer added, citing maths and science tests.
More from The Daily Mail:
Two British studies suggested that the fall was between 2.5 and 4.3 points every ten years.
But due to limited research, their results were not widely accepted.
In the latest study Ole Rogeburg and Bernt Bratsberg, of the Ragnar Frisch Centre for Economic Research in Oslo, found that Norwegian men's IQs are lower than the scores of their fathers when they were the same age.
The pair analysed the scores from a standard IQ test of over 730,000 men – who reported for national service between 1970 and 2009.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by VLM on Thursday June 14 2018, @02:15PM (11 children)
This is redefinition of intelligence as success... obviously a critical component for success for women in a beauty pageant is nice curves, but its hard to claim "intelligence is fitness for success" and "success at a beauty pageant is nice rack" therefore nice rack equals intelligence. I'm not complaining when it happens to coincide, nor claiming there's an anti-correlation effect, but am claiming there's not much correlation beyond simple random chance.
Race car driver would be another analogy, great reflexes and high risk tolerance don't usually correlate with anything most would consider intelligence.
I'd stick with the opposite cause effect relationship where success requires intelligence but not every required component of success is intelligence.
(Score: 3, Informative) by JoeMerchant on Thursday June 14 2018, @03:18PM (5 children)
What world are you living in?
In mine, success requires an IQ score of perhaps 70, and a myriad of other factors that an IQ score of 170 won't substitute for.
Agreed, however, that: intelligence.NE.success
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 3, Informative) by curunir_wolf on Thursday June 14 2018, @07:56PM (4 children)
Actually, IQ is an excellent predictor of success ON AVERAGE. Extremely well correlated. There are always outliers.
84, according to the military. That's the minimum they will accept, because over the years they have determined that anyone with less basically cannot be trained for any job.
And that's pretty scary. Probably the scariest statistic of our time. It comes out to about 10% of the people are below 84 IQ, and they cannot do any job in the modern world. The menial tasks they have been able to do are by large measure going away.
I am a crackpot
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 14 2018, @08:27PM (2 children)
Menial jobs don't have to go away. Just because we can automate doesn't mean we should. Human beings need to feel useful, so there are some jobs that should be kept around. We've let economic efficiency and "profits" override what is good for our civilization.
(Score: 2) by VLM on Thursday June 14 2018, @10:36PM (1 child)
Menial service labor as opposed to skilled labor. The best bartender is probably a fifty cent bottle cap opener, but people like having bartenders around, so we have a lot of bartenders.
(Score: 2) by deimtee on Friday June 15 2018, @11:32AM
I would agree with the GP with regards to those jobs not having to go away. A manufacturing company I used to work for many years ago was next door to a sheltered workshop - basically somewhere to house intellectally challenged people while finding them something to do.
We would occasionally have some simple repetitive task that needed to be done thousands of times, and they would get the job. One carer would come in with them. We would explain to him/her the job, and he/she would explain it to them, and supervise while they did it. They were the happiest, most diligent and enthusiastic people I ever worked with. They loved feeling useful, even if it was just assembling boxes.
As a society we have lost sight of that. It should not be just about if a robot can do it better and faster, but what is better for people.
If you cough while drinking cheap red wine it really cleans out your sinuses.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 14 2018, @08:30PM
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder costs the US 6 trillion (yes trillion) dollars over a lifespan. Four percent of pregnant women meet the clinical definition of alcoholic.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 14 2018, @04:23PM (4 children)
Research has shown that average IQ of race drivers is 130-135. Other research has shown that the primary burden on a race driver is the enormous flow of information they have to process. I assume from this that IQ does correlate with mental bandwidth, hence the high IQs.
So, "race driver" isn't the example you want - I would suggest "Fashion Model" or "Ditch Digger" where intelligence isn't really required.
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 14 2018, @04:36PM (1 child)
or POTUS
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Thursday June 14 2018, @06:21PM
He already said Fashion Model.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 14 2018, @06:23PM
You need an IQ of 130 or greater to figure out how to get people to pay you millions for turning left for a living.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by VLM on Thursday June 14 2018, @10:32PM
Thats probably the pro sports effect where its not hard to drive fast and dangerous but since almost anyone could qualify, being one in a million who gets to do it selects for people very skilled at rising to the top of the pack. See also, pop star music.
General construction labor, perhaps.... not smart or sober enough to learn a profitable trade, but can carry heavy objects until body breaks down...