# Signs you use to assess a person's intelligence **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 8, 2011, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255 "2011-07-08T01:17:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2011, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/101 "2011-07-14T21:46:54Z")
I’m piss-poor at assessing other people’s intelligence. I’m not sure what this says about **my** intelligence. ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2011, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/102 "2011-07-17T06:29:18Z")
I keep a licensed psychologist with me at all times, and just administer a standardized IQ test to everyone I meet under controlled conditions. Makes life much easier. ---
**Author:** ![Jamicat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c67d28/32.png) [@Jamicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamicat)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2011, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/103 "2011-07-17T19:00:30Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > “Dumb people talk about other people. Average people talk about events. Intelligent people talk about ideas.” It’s not 100% accurate, of course, but it’s not a terrible rule of thumb. +5 on a 3 sided die 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![deanc2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/53a042/32.png) [@deanc2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deanc2000)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2011, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/104 "2011-07-17T20:04:27Z")
Well, intelligence is only one part of what makes a person tick. It’s just a tool really, and what matters is how one uses it. There are plenty of smart people who are in jail, or on the umemployment line, or who are unhappy. In the long run, it’s really more common sense and making the right decisions that gets us closer to our goals, and most of the time you really don’t need intellect to make the right deicisions. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2011, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/105 "2011-07-17T21:08:19Z")
I would have said inquisitiveness was a sign of intelligence when I was younger and more naive. But recent experiences have taught me that arrogance can easily make a smart person accept that they know all that they need to know, when in actuality they know shit. This conceit leads them to not ask questions or conduct adequate research before they draw conclusions. Decisions then get made that are dumb. Just as dumb as if a dumb person had made them. It’s for this reason that I’d rather have a stupid, humble person in charge than a bright, arrogant one. The former will at least lean on other (hopefully smarter) people to guide decision-making. The latter won’t. And when they do seek input from others, they’ll do the bare minimum just to say they did it. ---
**Author:** ![horsetech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dec6dc/32.png) [@horsetech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/horsetech)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2011, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/106 "2011-07-19T04:07:08Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > If someone is reading ANYTHING\* on public transportation, I tend to think they are smarter than someone who is just zoning out with the earphones. > > OTOH I am never reading anything. My book is just a clever ruse so I can appear intelligent while surreptitiously people-watching; I couldn’t make out a word with sunglasses this dark. > > Probably the really smart people are stuck in traffic in their BMW convertibles. > > \*Excluding comic book and/or The Denver Post. Eh, trying to read while sitting in a vehicle that makes frequent, lurching stops is a great way to induce motion sickness in someone who is at all sensitive. I am probably worse off than most, but even without reading I sometimes find myself on the subway praying to the Vomit God (I think his name is Ralph) to let me hold it down until I get off and the feeling goes away. Besides, you don’t know whether the person with the headphones is listening to Eminem or Kai Ryssdal. Most of what I use has been covered - humor, wit, eyes, dogmatic views, belief in pseudoscience - but I would put at least rudimentary knowledge of and concern about current events as one marker of an intellectually curious mind that is not stuck within the boundaries of its own field. ---
**Author:** ![QuarkChild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c5a1d2/32.png) [@QuarkChild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuarkChild)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2011, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/107 "2011-07-19T16:29:48Z")
> [@ducati](#): > > Seatbelt: > No seatbelt = low intelligence. In graduate school I was roommates for a while with another graduate student who died in an auto accident. She wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. The accident occurred shortly before she finished her PhD in theoretical particle physics. I would amend your equation to read: No seatbelt = poor judgment. Anecdotally, here’s something I’ve noticed: This might have nothing to do with intelligence, but if you’re on a college or university campus, you can often distinguish female faculty from female staff based on hairstyle. Short, styled, dyed hair is more common in staff; Long, unstyled, undyed/salt-and-pepper hair is more common in faculty. Although I doubt the relationship is causative, there could be a correlation with intelligence due to entangling factors like social class, eccentricity or academic culture. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/108 "2011-07-20T06:50:59Z")
> [@QuarkChild](#): > > No seatbelt = poor judgment. I think the underlying principle here also accounts for highly intelligent people who use tobacco. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/109 "2011-07-20T17:09:41Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > I can’t go quite as far as this. Sometimes reading or otherwise learning about a discredited belief system is interesting just for the sake of knowing how they imagined it was supposed to have worked. Similarly, you don’t have to believe the book of Genesis verbatim to wonder what, if any, actual events in remote prehistory might have been the inspiration for the Noah story, or the “Land of Nod”, and so on. Which isn’t to say that I necessarily consider Judaism or Christianity to be discredited, but I do assert that most believers consider the Genesis story to be of symbolic rather than historical importance. > > And some of the alien chariot books are fun to read for the sheer ridiculousness. If I ever find a copy of _Lost Worlds_ by Robert Charroux, I’m buying it. I rated at an above average intelligence in an IQ test I took as a child, and to tell the truth, I am fascinated by esoteric history and archaeology, such as alleged Pyramid prophecies and ancient technology. I think that there are a number of intelligent people who were fascinated by religion and the occult - Isaac Newton (this guy was obsessed with Alchemy in a day when it was already considered discredited), Jack Parsons (rocket scientist, ritual magician and follower of Aleister Crowley) , L. Ron. Hubbard (regardless of what you have to say about him, he was pretty smart), and others were, to some degree, obsessed with occultic practices and/or lore. ---
**Author:** ![RoeCocoa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7feea3/32.png) [@RoeCocoa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RoeCocoa)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/110 "2011-07-20T22:23:39Z")
I make sure they’re looking at me, put a biscuit under a towel, and see how long it takes them to find it. Seriously though, I talk to them and find out what they like to do in their spare time. Intelligent people like to _do_ things-- make things, play skill-based games, explore and learn. Unintelligent people like to sit back and watch things passively, uncritically-- this applies equally to television, books, movies, games, and social interactions. I’m wary of people who quickly agree with everything I say. > [@GIGObuster](#): > > Really, there is no quicker way to diminish a person’s intelligence in my eyes than if they follow pseudoscience. I “follow” pseudoscience in the sense that I like to know what the latest scams are, and I want to be able to explain why they don’t work. But yes, people do seem much less intelligent when they believe pseudo-scientific claims, again because it betrays a lack of critical thinking. It’s also worth noting that “unintelligent” does not mean “unlikable.” I have a friend who believes the moon landing was fake, and another who is trying to treat her malignant ocular tumor with homeopathy and an Amega Nano-Wand. (I like her enough to try to get her to see a real doctor.) ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/111 "2011-07-20T22:57:59Z")
> [@](#): > > I’m wary of people who quickly agree with everything I say. QFT. Oh come on, it’s right there. ---
**Author:** ![Kelby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a587f6/32.png) [@Kelby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kelby)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2011, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/112 "2011-07-20T23:56:55Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > “Dumb people talk about other people. Average people talk about events. Intelligent people talk about ideas.” It’s not 100% accurate, of course, but it’s not a terrible rule of thumb. Are you remembering Ann Landers, who wrote it (perhaps more kindly) this way? "People with great minds talk about ideas. People with average minds talk about events. People with small minds talk about other people." ---
**Author:** ![FE3O4ENAIL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ba9def/32.png) [@FE3O4ENAIL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FE3O4ENAIL)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2011, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/113 "2011-07-21T00:46:12Z")
> [@Kelby](#): > > Are you remembering Ann Landers, who wrote it (perhaps more kindly) this way? > > "People with great minds talk about ideas. > > People with average minds talk about events. > > People with small minds talk about other people." Yeah, I recogonized the source also, but I didn’t want to talk about it because it wasn’t an idea.😉 ---
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/114 "2011-07-21T16:57:40Z")
Anyone wearing so much perfume/cologne you can smell it across the room has to be pretty dim-witted (or a heavy smoker who’s destroyed her sense of smell). ---
**Author:** ![Becky\_mac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/67e7ee/32.png) [@Becky\_mac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky_mac)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2012, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/115 "2012-05-01T23:22:48Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > It would be dumb to say this. It would Stupid to say something is “Dumb”, without giving logical reasons for such an argument. ---
**Author:** ![MichaelEmouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/michaelemouse/32/101_2.png) [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2012, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/116 "2012-05-01T23:24:36Z")
> [@Becky\_mac](#): > > It would Stupid to say something is “Dumb”, without giving logical reasons for such an argument. Why? ---
**Author:** ![living\_in\_hell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@living\_in\_hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/living_in_hell)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2012, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/117 "2012-05-01T23:34:44Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > And also, I’ve heard that intelligence is positively correlated with anxiety disorders. > > In a way, ignorance (due to low inquisitiveness) is bliss. > > [Connection between intelligence and anxiety](http://anxietyforum.net/forum/showthread.php?1166-Connection-between-intelligence-and-anxiety) > > Does anyone have a link to an actual study? That’s an interesting concept given that anxiety, at its most extreme, is associated the amygdala which really has no thought…but then again I did not read this link. ---
**Author:** ![Becky\_mac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/67e7ee/32.png) [@Becky\_mac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky_mac)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2012, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/118 "2012-05-01T23:41:06Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > It’s in the eyes- smart people’s eyes flit about, and you can tell that they’re taking things in, processing thoughts, etc. Dumb people’s eyes just stare blankly at you or at shiny things. How do you separate that blank look of “I don’t understand,” from “I don’t care”? I apparently have that blank look all the time, more so when a female friend is telling me about how great ‘Twilight’ books/movies are. I like science. Having someone tell me about Vampires which sparkle in the light isn’t engaging enough to have any kind of spark in my eyes. If you want to see my eyes light up, talk about something worth talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2012, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/119 "2012-05-02T00:00:19Z")
Several times in my life I have found myself interviewing potential members of a creative writers’ mutual critique group over the phone. I usually could tell whether someone was going to be intelligent enough to be invited to join the group within one or two sentences. I don’t know how I could tell. It was not the content of what they said, but just the quality of their tone of voice. I had no visual clues of course. Figuring I am not amazing this way, I would guess that everyone can hear this, and then they look for corroboration of their initial impression. One clue for me is how quickly and completely someone seems to understand what I am saying. Do they get the nuance, the tiny hidden joke, the allusion? Can they match me with their own nuanced contribution? Dimmer people talk on a shallower simpler level, generally. I must add, that it has taken me a few years to truly understand that intelligence is not a virtue, it’s just a quality. A quality I enjoy, but I don’t confuse it with actual virtues any more. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2012, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255/120 "2012-05-02T00:17:13Z")
> [@ducati](#): > > Seatbelt: > No seatbelt = low intelligence. > > Motorcycle helmet: > No helmet = low intelligence. > corollary: t-shirt & shorts on a bike? Ijit. > > Smoker? > How smart could you be? > > Pants hanging off your ass? > Please. > > Religious? > You really think there’s a kind being in the sky who watches/knows/controls/created everything? > There might be, but I’ve not seen any evidence to support this. > > Granted we’re all painting with broad brushes here, but I think my hypotheses are provable! 😃 I generally don’t wear a seatbelt for two reasons: 1. I don’t like nanny-state, unconstitutional laws. 2. I’m smart enough to know that a seatbelt doesn’t do nearly as much good as most people think, and in some cases may actually make people LESS safe. Somewhere around 80-90% of all accidents are avoidable. Therefore, driving in a truly safe manner is FAR more effective at protecting you than wearing a seatbelt. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/signs-you-use-to-assess-a-persons-intelligence/588255.md?page=7)