In the News - Any Comments?

"...The gain in IQ scores averages about 3 points per decade. And the increases are beyond debate. Wherever IQ test trends have been studied - in the United States and 23 other industrialized countries, plus Kenya - average scores rise over time.

Experts in intelligence measurement are still debating what's behind the surge. ..."

Excerpt From:

Rise in average IQ scores makes kids today exceptional by earlier standards

Feb 2, 2006
BY FRANK GREVE
Knight Ridder Newspapers

http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/news/politics/13777110.htm

A Q&A on IQ tests

Feb 2, 2006
BY FRANK GREVE
Knight Ridder Newspapers

http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/ledgerenquirer/news/politics/13777111.htm

Any comments on this one?
http://www.loni.ucla.edu
/~thompson/MEDIA/NN/
genetics_article_NN.pdf

Hi Trinity,

I checked out the LONI website. In particular, I read the information regarding UCLA's current projects with Alzheimer's disease and ADD. My grandmother has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and I've been trying to read as much about the disease as possible. I want to be prepared for what may happen to her as the disease progresses.

I clicked on the link to browse the image database. It must be malfunctioning at this time. The images never appeared. I'll try again later. I previously saw the images of "Your Brain on Meth" in another publication. I purposely showed the images of the healthy brain and the image of the heavily damaged Meth brain to my children. It's my hope these images of real brains will be powerful enough to influence children to stay off drugs. (Along with all the other drug resistance programs, of course.)

I'm curious if any brain scans of people who regularly take prescription drugs are available to the public. We have seen the physical damage illegal drugs do to the brain and subsequently we've learned about the mental deficiencies caused by the physical damage. I've read in scientific journals about the dangers of drugs like Ritalin and other drugs such as anti-depressants and statin drugs. The authors claim these drugs are effective at meeting the needs for which they are designed, but the side effects are very damaging to the brain. I wonder if the damage they are claiming is remotely equivalent to the damage Meth causes?

I gather you are also interested in the newest technologies and breakthrough discoveries on exactly how the brain works and what it needs to stay in peak performance. The last book I read on the subject is "Making a Good Brain Great" by Dr. Daniel G. Amen. I highly recommend this book.

The next book I will be reading is "Education of the Gifted and Talented", by Gary Davis. This is the textbook for several of the courses offered at Denver University for grad students specializing in Gifted Education. I thought it might be useful to read the same books the teachers of GT programs are reading. It seems the teachers and I are often in different camps, and maybe we could come together if I better understood the road they traveled.

What books have you enjoyed reading in regards to the brain and especially the gifted brain? "Genius Denied" was the first book on giftedness I read and it kicked off my drive to learn more about the science of the brain.


Thanks for the interesting link to LONI.

Sincerely,

Jonette

I am sure the scores can vary greatly. As I
analysised Serena's scores I think I could
see the involvement between her characteristics
and the test giver. I was not there, but I
can see Serena's reactions to some situations.
It's quite long and complex, you have to
know Serena well. But I am of the opinion
that her score could have varied on just that
test some 12 points in IQ. I think that is alot.
And I think that might be very common.
If you are interested I will be glad to further
explain.

Also I will debate the 3 points per decade. Not
that it didn't happen , but why. My theory is
that you most only measure children before Pre-K.
The enviroment has change so much that after that
they are learning to many facts that help the IQ
test. One might also look at countries that have
not improved their general education. Should there
be a difference in these groups, one can get a
measurement how much the general enviroment has
changed the IQ. Then, I would think that more of
the upper IQ groups are being tested; with a
larger population. And I also beleive that there
are many populations that are decreasing in IQ.
I do not beleive that natural selection is
increasing the IQ ; but right now going down in
a total picture. Hope this is something to think
about in the other direction, sorry I have
very few facts.

Interestingly, there was a recent article in American Scientist recently discussing how the so-called "Flynn Effect" (described above as the gain of 3 IQ points per year) seems to be slowing and even ending in some places. Here is a link to the article:

http://www.americanscientist.org/template/AssetDetail/assetid/51985

The original research on Flynn Effect used mostly (but not entirely) scores from nonverbal tests (especially the Ravens). Data from many countries were examined.

First: thank you for answering. Wish I could add
more. That was a very interesting artical.

Is the offspring of two gifted kids more apt to
be gifted than other wise ? And if so ; by how
much in general ?

Richard,
Perhaps this will answer some of your questions:
Dr. Sanjay Gupta Special
entitled
Genius:
Quest for Extreme Brain Power

This Sunday, September 17, 2006
10 p.m. (ET) / 9 p.m. (CT)
with replay three hours later
Please check your local CNN channel for the exact time in your area.


Program summary:

CNN’s senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, examines the mysteries behind genius and attempts to answer the classic nature/nurture question of whether high intelligence is inborn or the product of environment.


Related Links:

CNN Program Press Kit

CNN "Genius" Program Page