# how do you know yourIQ

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-youriq/20856>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 30, 2000, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-youriq/20856 "2000-05-30T04:38:25Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![JoeyBlades](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a87d85/32.png) [@JoeyBlades](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoeyBlades)\
**Post date:** [May 31, 2000, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-youriq/20856/21 "2000-05-31T22:05:57Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> This has been a very long-winded way of answering the original question by saying that if someone tells you their IQ, ask them which test they took. If they don’t know, take it with a grain of salt.

Better yet, if someone offers you their IQ score, smile politely and say, “Wow! That’s quite good.” Then remind yourself that high IQ scores don’t necessarily translate into anything useful. I read about a guy a while back who has an IQ that is supposedly the same or better than Marilyn Vos Savant, yet instead of chosing a career in the fast paced field of rocket science, he is happy just being a janitor (nothing wrong with that). Likewise, some of the greatest and most influential minds in human history have had only mediocre (estimated) IQs.

For the most part, IQs are just another way for people with low self esteem to feel better about themselves. It’s also gives people something to lie about in case they don’t like to fish.

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**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\
**Post date:** [June 1, 2000, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-know-youriq/20856/22 "2000-06-01T02:16:02Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*\*  
> Whew! I sure am glad I held back on my thoughts about Mensa and it’s membership… I might have offended someone.
> 
> > [@](#):
> >
> > “Lesbian terrorists of the world unite!”
> 
> This is funny on so many levels, yet I sense that I still don’t really get it…
> 
> \*\*

[HIJACK]  
Pray to whatever God you believe in that you never do. 🙂

Actually, it’s an inside joke of mine that refers to a strange and wonderful misunderstanding that several people online had about me…

Of course, my prior .sig, until 100 posts, was “The lesbian that knows the most about coal power plants.”

And it’s true!  
[/HIJACK]

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