The Thinking Quiz
Mon., February 2, 02:57 PM
I found this quiz in flyinby’s journal. You can find it at The Thinker Quiz. I shy away from most IQ tests because I know I can score high; I also know that high IQ is no guarantee that the subject can do anything well except pass tests. This one looked a little different.
What kind of thinker are you?
For many years, people used IQ tests to try and determine someone’s intelligence. However, some researchers believe that IQ tests do not take into account the fact that different people might think in different ways, and have different strengths and weaknesses. (That’s true.)
Most people would agree that Mozart was a genius – but Mozart would probably have struggled with Einstein’s theories just like the rest of us. This doesn’t mean that one man was more clever than the other – they just thought in very different ways.
Many psychologists now believe that what we call intelligence can be subdivided into different categories, all of which can all be measured independently. Different kinds of thinking are needed to solve different problems. (Funny thing – I figured that out in Psychology 101).
Thinker quiz: what your results say about you:
Some people have a strong preference for one style of thinking, and find some skills come more naturally than others. Other people tend to adopt different thinking styles in different situations.
This test gives you an idea of what your current thinking style or styles are. But remember – the brain is a very adaptive organ. You should be able to improve your performance in any one of these categories with practice.
The Renaissance ideal: The leading thinkers of the Renaissance were not just experts in their own field. The renaissance scholar was expected to master all branches of knowledge. (Once upon a time, the same expectations applied to doctors and lawyers.)
With his insatiable desire to know everything, Leonardo da Vinci is often held up as the ideal Renaissance man.
After taking the test, I was given the following information:
Logical-Mathematical thinkers:
- Like to understand patterns and relationships between objects or actions
- Try to understand the world in terms of causes and effects
- Are good at thinking critically, and solving problems creatively
Other Logical-Mathematical Thinkers include Isaac Newton, Archimedes, Albert Einstein
Careers which suit Logical-Mathematical thinkers include Physicist, Chemist, Biologist, Lawyer, Computer programmer, Engineer, Inventor
Compare that to what I do. I majored in biology, minored in chemistry. I’ve mentioned before that I would like to be a programmer. All that matches. But, curiously enough, there is no mention here of the thing I do best, which is multi-tasking in a mixed environment. I call it being a “generalist.” Does that approach the Renaissance Ideal?
