People have this common misconception about a person’s IQ. Most people think the higher it is, the more stuff you know. It’s not completely wrong, but that’s not how IQ works, and it doesn’t make you smarter. IQ is a rating on how fast you can learn and how well you can grasp new things you just learned about. And while it isn’t always the determining factor to success in life, knowing your IQ can play a vital role.
Source: MIT
Testing for it is quite hard though, you’ll have to pay about a hundred dollars for an expert to measure it. But even then, there’s still a margin of error. There are a few signs, however, that’ll tell you if you’re smarter than average without having to pay at all. It can also be useful to know if you are in the field of engineering.
Here are four signs you’re smarter than the average engineer:
You’re constantly anxious
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Anxiety isn’t exactly a good thing, and can be a burden those who have it. But studies have found that patients with stronger symptoms of anxiety had higher scores than those with milder symptoms. Another study had found that people with higher verbal IQ scores have higher levels of anxiety.
There was also a complex experiment conducted in Israel where researchers asked participants to evaluate artwork presented by a program. They then triggered a fake computer virus and made it look like it was caused by the participant. The participant was then sent to get tech support only to take part in other obstacles. Those who were more anxious in the experiment were the most focused and effective at executing the tasks.
You were an early reader
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This is one of the signs that need little explanation. A British study conducted of 2,000 pairs of twins found that even with identical genes, the sibling who started to read earlier had a higher verbal and nonverbal IQ than the one who learned to read later. The researchers thought the first siblings read earlier because they were smarter. What they found out, however, was that learning to read earlier had a developmental impact, and had made them smarter.
You were good with music as a child
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Studies have shown that musical training can enhance verbal intelligence and executive function. A study to prove this done by psychologist Sylvain Moreno, who had 48 four to six year old students grouped into two, one taking a musical program, and the other a visual arts program. By the end of the program, 90% of the children who took musical training showed an improvement in their verbal IQ.
You have a good sense of humor
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A good sense of humor requires much more thought than we, well, thought. Research shows a strong connection between high verbal intelligence and abstract reasoning scores with how funny someone is. And when you think about it, it makes sense. Being witty needs you to have a sharp and quick mind yet able to correlate jokes with more abstract things that people don’t expect.
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