Researchers say Western IQs dropped 14 points over last century

[flamingdem]

duh

A new study from researchers in Europe claims that the average IQ in Western nations dropped by a staggering 14.1 points over the past century.

"We tested the hypothesis that the Victorians were cleverer than modern populations using high-quality instruments, namely measures of simple visual reaction time in a meta-analytic study," the researchers wrote in the study, which was published online in the journal Intelligence on Thursday. "Simple reaction time measures correlate substantially with measures of general intelligence and are considered elementary measures of cognition."

The results might surprise some. Especially if the researchers were simply measuring visual response times. After all, in a digital world constantly competing for our attention, it would seem people generally respond more quickly to visual stimuli. However, the results appear to indicate something different.
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So why has there been such a steady drop? As UPI notes, previous research studies have found that women of higher intelligence tend to have fewer children on average, meaning that population growth may be driven by those with a lower IQ. And over time, the abundance of less intelligent offspring would affect the overall IQ average.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/researchers-western-iqs-dropped-14-points-over-last-180634194.html

[Posteritatis]

1. Good lord people are latching on to that joke of a study, aren't they? (nt)

[flamingdem]

2. It might be true! Look at Republicans

for proof.

[dsc]

3. a good friend of mine used to jokingly posit

that the total number of IQ points on the earth never changed but were just redistributed as population grew. Thus society would continue to get dumber and dumber as it grew larger and larger.

[russspeakeasy]

4. 14 ? I had a friend in Minnesota that lost 100 !!

He only had 105 to begin with. ! He ended up doing some promo work for Bachman !!!

[alcibiades_mystery]

5. Poppycock, to use a Victorian term

[Skip Intro]

6. I'm thinking if you're over forty you can see it.

It's out there.

Some might say we're all being purposely dumbed-down as to be more easily led, but this isn't that kinda thread so I'll stop there.

I will say that I come into contact with more and more people who seem to be in some fog. Distracted. Not really here. Not paying attention to their surroundings or even what they're doing. Almost mindless.

I work in a cell phone store (time for that to be over very soon) and I deal with people daily that just are out of it.

It is common for me to ask the customer's address, and frequently I'll get as a reply, "um...uh..."

[flamingdem]

8. Expectations for knowledge seem to be lower

As an oldster I've had to get used to people not knowing basic geography for example. Forget about history..

So much is done for people and the endless drone of digital beeps. People mistake quick response for intelligence. Many teachers have dumbed down their lessons from what I've heard. There's also a lot of second language struggle going on. On the other hand in some areas younguns seem very quick and smart about seeing through BS, hard to say.

[Zoeisright]

7. Not surprising at all.

Read Laura Ingalls Wilder's book series. I know, I know, her daughter was a libertarian. But she was really well taught in mathematics, diagramming sentences, and history. The stark contrast between her education and today's education is amazing. Teaching to the test and the dumbing down of America by cutting education (starting with that prick Reagan) has made us stupider.

How many high school kids do you know who could do complex math problems in their heads in front of a crowd and recite the history of the United States? She did - in a community competition.

[flamingdem]

9. I'll check that out, thanks

I hope that younguns have to suffer as much as I did with math though. I wouldn't want them to get out of that!

[JCMach1]

10. Idiocracy

[Junkdrawer]

11. Next on the History Channel: Nazi UFO Conspiracy

Questions?

[flamingdem]

12. I heard Adolf was seen at Area 54!

!! with Kim Kardashian ..