Entertaining Your Brain? 222
Spencer Wilson asks: "I'm constantly told that I have an extremely high intelligence. I always feel like I should know so much more, though. Do you, the Slashdot readers, know of any ways to improve ones brain power? Perhaps books, Web sites, etc., that provide questions that involve ways to increase memory, creativity, mental agility, logic reasoning, intelligence, etc. Are there any diets/exercises that really help?"
Just about anything except television. (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Just about anything except television. (Score:5, Insightful)
The smartest people will have the fullest and richest of the human experience. Go out and try a little of everything... and, while you're at it, if you find one or two fields that really strike your fancy, indulge yourself in as much knowledge as possible. Try to be slightly controversial, while you're at it... if you pull it off right, you'll be noticed and remembered
Learn Mandarin Chinese (Score:3, Insightful)
dont lose it - use it (Score:4, Insightful)
Whoever told you that (Score:5, Insightful)
was obviously wrong. If you had extremely high intelligence, you wouldn't post a story on Slashdot - under what seems to be your real name, for gods' sake - starting "I'm constantly told I have extremely high intelligence . . . "
Seriously, speaking as someone with an IQ in the high genius range: the first thing you have to learn is how NOT to walk around telling everyone how frelling smart you are. They'll figure it out quickly enough on their own, believe me: most geniuses are obvious within a few minutes of meeting them, just from the way they interact with other people.
Other things not to do: DON'T join Mensa. Mensa is a club for losers who have a high IQ and nothing to show for it. Not for no reason is a former Mensa national president an advice columnist for Parade. DON'T talk about chess all the time. It's all right if you're good at it (or Go), but talking about it to everyone you meet will make you look like an A-1 geek, and your chances of spreading those high-intelligence genes around some will drop precipitously.
Grow up. Study. Find something you love and put your whole heart into it. If you really have the brains, you'll exercise them on your own without having to trick things out.
If you were smart. (Score:5, Insightful)
If youre wondering how to improve brain power or kill time, somethings wrong. Find a cause, like making so much GPL software, Microsoft gets broke, or start some world domination plans.
Thats all you have to do.
Intelligence and Knowledge are Not the Same Thing (Score:5, Insightful)
I always feel like I should know so much more, though. Do you, the Slashdot readers, know of any ways to improve ones brain power?
You're confusing intelligence and knowledge. Intelligence is pure processing power. Knowledge is how much data you've got stored on your hard drive. If you need to know more, read a book.
Learn! (Score:5, Insightful)
Sign up for classes. Any classes. Cooking, SCUBA, basket weaving, learn a language, learn a new subject, join a choir.
Now is the time. Carpe Diem.
Just like the body: exercise! (Score:4, Insightful)
intelligence vs. the less-tangibles (Score:3, Insightful)
I think that my most important gifts are faith, honesty and transparency, and not ever giving up. I can quit or walk away from an attempt, but I don't give up on the principle. The intelligence backs those things up in terms of analyzing the structure, patterns, and deep relationships. Of broadening and supporting the interconnecting and overlaying latticeworks. Of eventually finding the big-picture paybacks of faith, reinvesting in it.
I use my intelligence at increasingly abstract levels, not always to solve things but to improve my methodologies and to find problem-solving resources. That's really really hard and can be truly lonely, but see Exhibit A, "not ever giving up". Start at age 3 or 4! Also see the practice of neurolinguistic programming, aka NLP, aka "the study of the structure of human experience". Become the change you want to see. It gets way easier from there, and it'll eventually pay off!
Someday. Maybe it already has, just not the way I expected.
The side effect of this principled and deliberate self architecture/rearchitecture is to live in a state of wonder and potentially of joy. To know that no matter what you think you know, the unknown is still a wonderfully deafening roar like the peak of a waterfall. To know, even on principle, that you're not alone. To have respect for self and for all life. To know that if you can imagine a question, someone else, somewhere, sometime, has found an answer.
Yes. (Score:5, Insightful)
Yes Spencer, I do know of ways to improve "brain power". (You did ask a yes or no question didn't you?)
Thank you for your question, which I assume was actually just a vehicle to let us all know how extremely high you feel your intelligence is (based on what people tell you).
Mod this as flamebait. Thank you.
Michael. [michael-forman.com]
Re:hmmm... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:If you were smart. (Score:4, Insightful)
But on second thoughts, scratch that. I'm not that stupid, and Spencer Wilson sounds like he's just a self-agrandising twat with no perspective on life. If he's that bloody clever, why does he have to Ask Slashdot?
Hasn't he heard of Google?
Or perhaps he has a highly intelligent ulterior motive that is escaping us...
Re:Hmmmm (Score:5, Insightful)
Reminds me of the famous quote by Margaret Thatcher:
Amen! (Score:1, Insightful)
Learn Stuff (Score:5, Insightful)
Here are some examples from my life.
Example 1: I heard the words fast fourier transform many times. I realized, hey I don't know what the fuck that is, and I probably should. I searched on google and researched it. Now I know it as well as if I would have taken a college course on it. You know you know something when you can write a program that does it.
Example 2: Hey, this python programming language seems to fit my style. Buy Nutshell book, learn python in a couple weeks.
Example 3: hey, I have a project to do for class. I think I'll use the GTK+ library. Proceed to teach self everything about GTK from the GTK website.
Example 4: Argument about gas prices. I thought the markup was a lot, my roomate correctly knew it was only a few cents markup at the gas station. We went out on the net and not only determined who was right, but learned all about fuel prices.
Example 5: Hey, this Initial D anime is pretty cool, but no way is that drift driving realistic. Proceed to use internet to learn all about cars, drifting, etc. I now also am very fond of F1 racing. Just last week I read the entire rules at formula1.com and simultaneously learned a great deal about how they make the best cars in the world.
Pretty much, if you want to learn just try to. The information is free. Just go out and read what you want to know, and if you're serious about it you'll learn it. Things that you are genuinely interested in knowing are easy to learn because you will pay attention and actually try. If you are having a hard time learning something its probably because you don't actually want to know it, but instead are being forced to learn it. Or you could have a "learning disability".
Read.
Re:Just about anything except television. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Learn Mandarin Chinese (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Just about anything except television. (Score:5, Insightful)
wrong, wrong, wrong...
Just because you study it doesn't mean you have to become a believer in it. You've just demonstrated a case of closed-mindedness, the number one blockage to intelligence. Now don't get me wrong I'm not saying you're stupid, I'm just pointing it out to you... I've studied it because I think it can be very interesting, not because I necessarily agree with it. It's all a matter of getting fresh perspectives...even if you don't agree with them at all.
Re:If you were smart. (Score:3, Insightful)
Another kind is what I like to call "creative intelligence", meaning one's ability to think out of the box and come up with interesting tasks to perform without need for stimulation.
I'd say mr. Wilson's intelligence probably consists mostly of the first, persons like RMS and Linus lean more towards the second. Being a "genius" probably involves having a pretty good dose of both (think Albert Einstein).
Re:Just about anything except television. (Score:3, Insightful)
Besides, if you watch the right channels, and (actively) critique and consider what you're watching, it can be very intellectual indeed. Not as good as reading a book or something like that.... but certainly better than drunken violence.
Re:Don't believe everything you're told (Score:4, Insightful)
A dumb persons opinion .... (Score:3, Insightful)
I think there are some studies somewhere that link balance to improving thinking abilities. Take some Tai Chi or something.
Meditation seems like it could be a good thing to do. You just have to try to figure out which kind of meditation you should do. I like zazen.
If you haven't done drugs maybe you could try that. Don't get addicted or anything, but try 'em out. I would include alcohol, caffeine, and nicotine along with all the others in this experiment. I think this can bring a certain sense of perspective. I don't recommend doing ANY drugs (including alcohol, nicotine or caffeine) to someone who has pre-existing mental instability. In that case the brain is producing it's own novelty, it would be a shame to mess with it.
Readd books that you don't agree with and try to make yourself agree with them. Or you can do the same thing with political talk shows. I do this with Rush Limbaugh, but if you are conservative you could maybe read Al Franken or something. Good for developing flexibility.
Try fasting for a couple of days. It can bring about a change of viewpoint on your normal daily state.
Doing things you don't ordinarily do can impact your brain. Like driving a different way home from work. Or going for a walk. Once I went around trying to do everything backwards as accurately as possible. It amazed me how difficult this was. A complete reverse order is wasn't my first intuition of doing something backwards. Doing something as simple as opening a door in reverse has some hidden steps that you don't really think about.
Kind of cliche, but you could try "Undoing Yourself with Energized Meditation" by Christopher Hyatt (I think) It has some interesting exercises you can do to limber your brain up. I wouldn't buy it unless you are actually going to do the exercises though. It's kind of long-winded and new-agey at points, though
Whether or not you take my advice, I wouldn't let the Slashdotters who are giving you a hard time get you down. A good number of the people who hang out on here are cynical asshats.
My sig: I spend my life entertaining my brain. (Score:4, Insightful)
I'm constantly told that I have an extremely high intelligence.
This gets annoying before finishing elementary school. Learn to change the subject. Discover what is interesting to the other person. Find subjects where there is a good chance the other person will give information you did not know.
[This does not always work. A new girlfriend introduced me to one of her friends, who had just bought a house. I was ASKING questions about how he was remodelling the kitchen when he blurted, "You are a genius, aren't you?"]
You will still get comments like "We have never talked about X, but you seem to know everything, so what do I do about X?" If you can lie [I cannot], tell them you have never heard of X, and then ask questions. Otherwise, quickly give them the solution, and move the conversation so you have a dialogue instead of a lesson.
I always feel like I should know so much more, though.
As long as you are always learning, do not worry about what you do not know. When something enters your interest, learn the basics quickly to know if it is worth researching. I prefer to work on creating new things rather than trying to keep up with the combined progress of all humanity.
Do you, the Slashdot readers, know of any ways to improve ones brain power?
[Learn to use apostrophes. It should be "one's".]
The only exercise to help you think better is thinking.
Perhaps books, Web sites, etc., that provide questions that involve ways to increase memory, creativity, mental agility, logic reasoning, intelligence, etc.
[Learn to construct sentences. Every sentence should have a subject and a verb.]
[Avoid the word "that". You used it 3 times. The first was unnecessary; the other two could have been avoided by changing the tense of the verbs.]
Most geniuses read constantly. The material does not matter. Think about any new ideas. Think about what prompted it to be written. For fiction, think of alternate plots. Keep thinking. If you want to be more creative, you need to create. If you want to be better at logical reasoning, devise proofs. If you want to be more mentally agile, question every assumption, both your own and other people's: why is it an assumption, and what are the alternatives?
Are there any diets/exercises that really help?
I eat steak. It does not seem to make me any smarter, but it tastes good. I avoid anything that seems popular with the masses: potatoes, bread, rice, broccoli. (I would include pasta, but my Italian blood refuses to recommend against it.)
Any exercise will help the blood to flow better. Do what you like, or do the same exercise as your friends. I bowl because a variety of interesting people practice with the bowlers I know. I kick around a soccer ball with several techies. I run just to enjoy the sun. I swim because I love swimming. Exercise helps, but do it because you enjoy it, and see if you can combine it with your desire for knowledge.
Tutoring (Score:5, Insightful)
Depends on who you are (Score:2, Insightful)
So, what are you interested in? And remember, there are so many kinds of intelligence that its hard to say that one is better than the others. There is "generic/old fashioned" problem solving intelligence. If you think you've got that, then see how you like inventing - as for what, well, see the thing above on what you're interested in.
But also don't be afraid to try new things - see how you like the arts, from theatre to literature to photography to drawing. As for me, I have no drawing ability, but have found that with a good book on photography and some money for equipment, that I can be decent at it - and the sheer possibilities for capturing light around me, and coming up with interesting subjects, can provide hours of amusement... and don't tell me it doesn't work my brain.
I guess that's the trick to using your intelligence - you can't be afraid of dipping your feet into something new. You don't need to start off an expert - in fact, some humility and a few honest, dumb questions can help build friendships and advice to people that will make your life more vibrant.
And, seeing as this is slashdot... yes, the Internet is your friend. the trick is to not go to the same sites over and over again... to think of something random, like I did with photography, or maybe think of say, some form of art or some weird aspect of science that you don't understand, and searching.
At the same time, especially with more difficult (and i believe, more rewarding) topics which can't be described in a few lines of hypertext, like (advanced/interesting?) science/engineering topics, or things like photography, its important to use your library. And your librarians, as well, as they do have a tremendous breath of knowledge, even if they lack depth - they can show you how to get a toehold on almost any topic, and once you've got that, the possibilities are limited almost only by your determination. So don't be afraid, and remember that the world is out there to experience, but you may need to drive yourself to experience it fully. Tim
Bust your ass (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Just about anything except television. (Score:1, Insightful)
Another Question (Score:4, Insightful)
Then evaluate other things you might be doing in terms of how this will get you closer to the things that matter to you. Mine might be working on my business or listening to some audio tapes/spoken word, but what is right for me is not necessarily right for you.
If you start weighting activities like they've got a price sticker attached to them -- which they do, really -- then you can start "comparison shopping." And then you can use your head to it's best potential. I think the "what" will flow naturally at that point. If learning Chemistry is important to you, then make the time and learn it.
I know this isn't quite what you're asking. I hate it when people answer my "How do you do A?" with "Why don't you do B?" just as much as the next guy, trust me. I just think you might be approaching it from "what?" when it might behove you to simply free up the "when?" and "how?" and then "what?" will become obvious to you. Because you're the only person who can answer that.
Re: Intelligence is predictability (Score:5, Insightful)
Intelligence is predictability
"Not many people understand how rare it is to really, really know something."
-Richard Feynman
If I could ACCURATELY predict the stock market, weather patterns, or the lottery -- would you call that intelligence? If I could quickly tell you the final result of any given set of initial conditions -- would you call that intelligence?
Intelligence is predicatability. People may be impressed by philosophers and musicians, however when it comes to raw brainpower, never look past mathematics and the hard sciences. Predicitability is key. Anyone can collect stamps. Anyone can observe. Most people can describe. However ask for an uncanny and accurate prediction and the room becomes silent.
I've found that studying mathematics and science has improved my ability to understand history, the humanities, and art. You learn to quantify things in science. When you study physics you learn what really knowing something means. You learn about the limits of knowing what you can know. You can only quantify so much. The question is how much can we actually quantify?
"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler."
-Albert Einstein
Reasoning is basic symbolic manipulation
Mathematics takes us into the region of absolute necessity, to which not only the actual word, but every possible word, must conform.
-Bertrand Russell
Reasoning is basic symbolic manipulation. Even Aristotle believed this. Look at the syllogistic form. A tautology is a valid line of reasoning. Admittedly, any attempt to formalize inductive reasoning is as weak as formalizing probability itself.
Intelligence is about encoding mechanisms. When you make a mapping from the real world to a rigourous set of rules or you merely compare sets of rules, you are finding a way to encode one system in terms of another. Thus the application of analytical geometry to our (observed) real space, is an encoding of real world geometry into algebraic equations. Any description in one has a signifigant result in the other.
Teach yourself
You've got to teach yourself. Frankly, even Havard won't make the dumb smart, it will only make them educated. Just having the ability to break down information and understand it on your own is a skill. You've get to be able to solve problems on you're own. Don't just stare at the problem. Play with it. Do something. Even if it's tedious. You'd be suprised at how just hacking away at a piece of it can help you solve a problem. Heck, I'm probably preaching to the choir here.
"Don't let school get in the way of your education."
-Mark Twain (or Ben Franklin or somebody else...)
Give me a man who is mathematically mature and physcially intuitive and I will give you a genius. Genius is merely a social measurement of intelligence. Whose to say if Einstein was smarter than Hilbert. Was Godel smarter than Russell? Frankly, most of these parlor discussions are nothing more than pure bovine fecal matter. Don't obsess about how intelligent other people think you are. Frankly, if you're really smart, you will get two responses, comraderie or fear. Intelligent people will seek your company. Insecure people will tell you that you are foolish or ignorant only because they fear you actually know more. Intelligence is part performance and part stubborn confidence that you can figure something out by shear intellectual will. Of course, proving that you are a genius or even a genius in a world of geniuses is tough. However, I will leave that exercise to the reader.
Re:Whoever told you that (Score:5, Insightful)
Rule One of the Smart Club: You DO NOT Talk About The Smart Club.
Sorry, buddy. You just eliminated yourself from it.
Re:If you were smart. (Score:3, Insightful)
He became an accomplished artist, a great player (of both women and drums), and went into high levels in scientific fields other than physics.
Re:Just about anything except television. (Score:4, Insightful)
And the above would be one of the bad ones.
You need to be open to any ideas... and exercise your mind by figuring out which ones are bad and which are good. That's what the scientific method is all about.