TranslationSeminar at Michigan State University Cognitive Science Forum, 2/15/13. Literature:
Blog Archives
Uncommon features of Einstein’s brain might explain his cognitive abilities
Posted on 16. November 2012
Translation Portions of Albert Einstein’s brain have been found to be unlike those of most people and could be related to his extraordinary cognitive abilities, according to a new study led by Florida State University evolutionary anthropologist Dean Falk. Falk, along with colleagues Frederick E. Lepore of the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Adrianne Noe, director of the National Museum of Health and Medicine, describe for the first time the entire cerebral cortex of Einstein’s brain from an examination of 14 recently discovered photographs. The researchers compared Einstein’s brain to 85 “normal” human brains and, in light of current …
Steve Hsu: Investigating the genetic basis for intelligence
Posted on 2. November 2012
TranslationFrom Google TechTalks: Steve Hsu, 18. August 2011. Der Vortrag wurde gehalten an der University of Oregon Find more works here: http://duende.uoregon.edu/~hsu/talks/
Arthur R. Jensen, Who Set Off Debate on I.Q., Dies
Posted on 2. November 2012
TranslationArthur R. Jensen, an educational psychologist who ignited an international firestorm with a 1969 article suggesting that the gap in intelligence-test scores between black and white students might be rooted in genetic differences between the races, died on Oct. 22 at his home in Kelseyville, Calif. He was 89. His death was confirmed by the University of California, Berkeley, where he was an emeritus professor in the Graduate School of Education. Professor Jensen was deeply interested in differential psychology, a field whose central question — What makes people behave and think differently from one another? — strikes at the heart …
Genetic Deterioration in Modern Populations
Posted on 2. November 2012
TranslationProf. Lynn’s Book Dysgenics can be ordered here: http://www.washsummit.com/dysgenics Genetic Deterioration in Modern Populations
The power of home environment
Posted on 8. Oktober 2012
TranslationThings are very different elsewhere on the class spectrum. Earlier in the year when I met Steven F. Wilson, founder of a network of charter schools that serve poor and largely black communities in Brooklyn, I asked him what he considered the greatest challenge on the first day of kindergarten each year. He answered, without a second’s hesitation: “Word deficit.” As it happens, in the ’80s, the psychologists Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley spent years cataloging the number of words spoken to young children in dozens of families from different socioeconomic groups, and what they found was not only …
Intelligence challenged people and free speech
Posted on 17. September 2012
TranslationIn the post below I took the time out to link to the GSS, as well as posting my exact queries. As payment for this consideration the first comment was absolute drivel. I understand people have political opinions, but I’m not too interested in your opinions. You may be interested in your opinions, but I’d rather have more data. Most people don’t know enough for me to have interest in their opinions (most != all, many readers do have opinions in their specialties which I seek out). I was trying to make a point that anger and even violence in …
Cousin marriage can reduce I.Q. a lot
Posted on 20. Juli 2012
TranslationIn light of the previous post I was curious about the literature on inbreeding depression of IQ. A literature search led me to conclude two things: – This is not a sexy field. A lot of the results are old. – The range in depression for first cousin marriages seems to be on the order of 2.5 to 10 IQ points. In other words ~0.15 to ~0.65 standard deviation units of decline in intelligence. The most extreme case was this paper from 1993, Inbreeding depression and intelligence quotient among north Indian children. The authors compared the children of first cousin …
Personality and Individual Differences
Posted on 11. Juni 2012
TranslationThe current issue of Personality and Individual Differences is a tribute to Richard Lynn at age 80. Here is a portion of his conversation with Helmuth Nyborg that reviews his career: HN: So then you needed a job. RL: Yes, and I obtained a lectureship at the University of Exeter. I was now to enter the wilderness years and did not succeed in doing anything that I considered significant for the next twelve years. In 1959 I published a paper Environmental Conditions Affecting intelligence, in which I said that it was now established that genetic factors are the major determinant …
Why Are People Different? – A lesson from Yale University
Posted on 11. Juni 2012
TranslationIntroduction to Psychology (PSYC 110) Why are people different from one another? This lecture addresses this question by reviewing the latest theories and research in psychology on two traits in particular: personality and intelligence. Students will hear about how these traits are measured, why they may differ across individuals and groups, and whether they are influenced at all by one’s genes, parents or environment. 00:00 – Chapter 1. Personality, Intelligence and Determining Difference 13:53 – Chapter 2. Measuring Personality with “The Big Five” 19:47 – Chapter 3. Defining and Measuring Intelligence 30:29 – Chapter 4. Question and Answer on Personality …
Genetics and Intelligence – Google Tech Talk
Posted on 24. April 2012
TranslationGoogle Tech Talk (more info below) August 18, 2011 Presented by Steve Hsu. How do genes affect cognitive ability? I begin with a brief review of psychometric measurements of intelligence, introducing the idea of a “general factor” or IQ score. The main results concern the stability, validity (predictive power), and heritability of adult IQ. Next, I discuss ongoing Genome Wide Association Studies which investigate the genetic basis of intelligence. Due mainly to the rapidly decreasing cost of sequencing, it is likely that within the next 5-10 years we will identify genes which account for a significant fraction of total IQ …
JP Rushton and David Suzuki debate at the University of Western Ontario, February 8th, 1989
Posted on 13. April 2012
TranslationDavid Suzuki and professor Philipe Rushton sit on stage before a politically charged crowd. This one-on-one debate is about race and genetics. Rushton, a psychology professor at the University of Western Ontario, has released his controversial study that places Orientals, Caucasians and Blacks in an evolutionary hierarchy. The crux of Rushton’s argument is that Orientals have higher IQ, are more law-abiding and are more sexually restrained than the other races. Suzuki debunks Rushton’s work as pseudo-science. “I do not believe that we should dignify this man and his ideas in public debate,” Suzuki says to a cheering audience. Quelle: CBC …
