Showing posts with label Psychology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Psychology. Show all posts
Intelligence Quota
Monday, October 6, 2008Posted by
Sim
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I.Q tests were developed during the 1920s by French psychologists in an attempt to categorize French children into different groups of intelligence. The French I.Q test for children was taken and then bettered by American psychologists, who then produced a method of I.Q testing which most people are familiar with today - a version which has been described as one of the most influential scientific inventions of this century (trust the Americans to take the credit).
How the scoring works is that the participant's number of correct answers is compared to the average expected score of someone their age, this score is then multiplied by 100 which is only don to make the number prettier and more rounded. For instance:
participants score = 10
expected score = 10
ps10 / es10 = 1
1 x 100 = 100 , thus the participant has an I.Q of 100.
This I.Q of 100 is also the statistical average I.Q of the human population, and most people tend to lie between 90 - 110. I myself have an I.Q of 132 (as of 2005, but I have lost many a braincells since then). Frankly I think using and I.Q test to measure one's intelligence is stupid and completely inaccurate (as seen by my result) as there are many different types of intelligence most of which aren't tested under traditional I.Q tests.
Bodily-Kinesthetic
This area has to do with movement and doing. People are generally good at physical activities such as sports or dance and often prefer activities which use movement.Interpersonal
This area has to do with interaction with others. People in this category are usually extroverts and are characterized by their sensitivity to others' moods, feelings, temperaments and motivations, and their ability to cooperate in order to work as part of a group.Verbal-Linguistic
Verbal-linguistic intelligence has to do with words, spoken or written. People with verbal-linguistic intelligence display a facility with words and languages.Logical-Mathematical
This area has to do with logic, abstractions, inductive and deductive reasoning, and numbers.Naturalistic
This area has to do with nature, nurturing and relating information to one's natural surroundings. This is the eighth and newest of the intelligences, added to the theory in 1999.Intrapersonal
This area has to do with introspective and self-reflective capacities. Those who are strongest in this intelligence are typically introverts and prefer to work alone.Visual-Spatial
This area has to do with vision and spatial judgment. People with strong visual-spatial intelligence are typically very good at visualizing and mentally manipulating objects.Musical
This area has to do with rhythm, music, and hearing. Those who have a high level of musical-rhythmic intelligence display greater sensitivity to sounds, rhythms, tones, and music.There is also suggestion of an emotional intelligence, but this seems to be contrite effort to be P.C and provide a way for every dumbass to feel that they are intelligent in one way or another. Lets just stick to the most reliable source of intelligence measurement : NCEA.
Labels:
Psych 108,
Psychology
Doppelgänger
Tuesday, September 23, 2008Posted by
Sim
Doppelgänger
In the vernacular, "Doppelgänger" has come to refer (as in German) to any double or look-alike of a person. The word is also used to describe the sensation of having glimpsed oneself in peripheral vision, in a position where there is no chance that it could have been a reflection. They are generally regarded as harbingers of bad luck. In some traditions, a doppelgänger seen by a person's friends or relatives portends illness or danger, while seeing one's own doppelgänger is an omen of death. In Norse mythology, a vardøger is a ghostly double who precedes a living person and is seen performing their actions in advance.
-Wikipedia
-Wikipedia
The Germans have a label for everything that makes the human mind tick, and this is one of their scarier theories. People are supposed to have an identical double somewhere in the world. Now a doppelganger isn't identical, as a monozygotic twin would be, but rather is identical in personality and general appearance (like an Elvis impersonator would be).
Genetically and socially it actually makes sense. There are only so many combinations of genes that are possible before you start repeating yourself, and producing near-clones.
Bandura's Social Observation theory states that an individual is socialized, learns behaviour and personality, through the observation of people in his environment. In Western societies children are often brought up in front of the T.V. and learn their behaviours from characters in media. So it makes sense that people have identical personalities.
This is definitely the case for me. I have an American accent, and spell words the American way (unless spellcheckers are set British English, in which case the squiggly red lines underneath the American spelt words piss me off and I change them), and behave very ...Americanly? I explain this by accepting the fact that I grew up in front of the T.V. I'm not complaining, my accent allows me to make up stories at night clubs and parties about how I am an exchange student from NYU (American exchange students get lucky, trust me).
Even though genetically and socially it makes sense, glimpsing one's own doppelganger can be a frightening experience. I assumed mine would be somewhere else in the world, perhaps living in New York and with a New Zealander accent to compliment my American accent - but mine is in NZ; in Auckland in fact. Attending the University of Auckland....just like me!
I saw him last Friday in the Information Commons. He had my hair (completely), my height (give or take an inch), and even my face (ishly). But what scared me most was that he had my signature Mr. Happy shirt on.
Even his mannerisms were very similar to my own, going as far as to lean on his chair in the same haphazard way I do. He was in every way, Me. I wanted to pull my scimitar out and take care of this threat, but I just couldn't kill such a beautiful specimen like that.
But I just cannot hold back the ultimate question, who is the evil twin, him or I?
I haven't seen him this week, but I'll keep an eye out for him. Perhaps I will befriend my doppelganger, and find more of us, then band together to form an army of doppelgangers. It would be easier than me finishing the cloning machine I've been building for the last 2 years in my garage.
Have you ever had the feeling that you glimpsed your own twin? Anyone else ever seen their own doppelganger? Leave me a comment, and maybe I'll help you hunt him/her down!
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