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	white_tean 2010-08-18 02:37 pm UTC (link)
	To be a member one must test in the top 2% of a standard IQ test, pretty much the definition of genius. Fuck, no. Genius is several lofty regions above that - IIRC doesn't mensa intake (top 2%, yes) start around 130-140 IQ? That's nowehere near genius level. It's bright, sure, but it's nowhere near the rarity of atom-splitting brilliance. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	rachelmap 2010-08-18 03:10 pm UTC (link)
	Mensa is... (points to icon) (Reply to this)(Parent)

	mad_teacup 2010-08-18 03:57 pm UTC (link)
	atom-splitting brilliance I approve of this phrase. I am also intrigued by its implications. If one has atom-splitting brilliance, what happens? I might use such ultimate genius to undo the fabric of reality around boring MENSA meetings, for example. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	lindentreeisle 2010-08-18 04:39 pm UTC (link)
	I like that the phrase "atom-splitting brilliance" implies that you can split atoms with your mind alone. I wish I could do that. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	librarianmouse 2010-08-19 02:17 am UTC (link)
	Does that make Rose Tyler eligible for Mensa? (Reply to this)(Parent)

risha
2010-08-18 05:37 pm UTC (link)

Yeah, the requirements are pretty laughable, which was pretty obvious when I read them a few years back and realized that I qualify two ways (by IQ and by 1993 SAT score). I'm reasonably bright but nothing close to a towering intellect - I just standardized test well and have a head for random trivia.

Heck, a 130 IQ was the minimum requirement for my high school's AP classes.

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	ladyvorkosigan 2010-08-18 06:40 pm UTC (link)
	Man, that's a depressing way of rationing AP classes. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	risha 2010-08-18 07:20 pm UTC (link)
	Yeah, and a pretty much indefensible one, which we all knew even at the time. I can only hope they've changed it by now. (Reply to this)(Parent)

beccastareyes
2010-08-18 09:24 pm UTC (link)

IIRC, the standard deviation of the IQ test is scaled to 15, so an IQ of 130 means you have a higher IQ than 97.7% of the population. It was what my school district used as the definition of 'gifted', IIRC*. 'Highly gifted' was 145, or higher than 99.9% of the population. 'Genius' was 160 and meant you were in the top 0.003%.

Of course, that ignored musical geniuses, artistic geniuses or the habit to call anyone bright and hard-working a genius. (Seriously, I remember explaining that I knew my IQ wasn't genius level, it was 145 which was highly gifted, because I was a textbook definition of a kid with Aspegers', and words had meanings darn it.)

* Well, except that as you got older, you could just sign up for the courses anyway. And it couldn't be the only way to get into the 'smart' classes, since I seem to recall there was usually one in five or so of those classes, rather than the one in 50 indicated by the percentages.

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ecchaniz0r
2010-08-18 10:28 pm UTC (link)

... ... ...I think your childhood and mind had some kind of weird synergistic wavelength thingiee. Because I did the same dang thing with the definitions and the - yes.

Ah, mandatory elementary school enrichment classes. How boring you were. How you massacreed what little social life I had. :B The joys of a dinky little Catholic school. My cousin's school was bigger and had SUCH a cool enrichment program - I mean they BUILT THESE NIFTY LITTLE MINI ROBOTS, AND THEN HAD JOUSTING/SUMO MATCHES WITH 'EM. I was so jealous. omgz.

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librarianmouse
2010-08-19 02:44 am UTC (link)

an IQ of 130 means you have a higher IQ than 97.7% of the population. It was what my school district used as the definition of 'gifted'

My school district had the same requirement. I still don't know my exact IQ, but they let me into the program so it had to be at least that high.

Strangely, the only thing I remember about my IQ test is that the school psychologist looked like Inspector Gadget.

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	risha 2010-08-19 05:43 am UTC (link)
	The only thing I remember from mine was being pissed off immediately after that I had failed to identify that country as Greece, which I totally knew. (I honestly thought that my school district was the only one that had that fucked up requirement. You guys aren't both from Pennsylvania, are you?) (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	librarianmouse 2010-08-19 03:00 pm UTC (link)
	Nope. It seems to have been widespread. (Reply to this)(Parent)

white_tean
2010-08-19 01:43 pm UTC (link)

Of course, that ignored musical geniuses, artistic geniuses or the habit to call anyone bright and hard-working a genius.

I'm supposedly top two percent of intelligence and being that I've chosen to work as a designer, I fucking wish I was top 2% of creativity instead. But creativity as often is a function of being willing to sit down and generate a hundred ideas to get one with the right frisson, so where luck of the draw fails, hard work will prosper.

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	bubosquared 2010-08-19 01:36 pm UTC (link)
	IIRC doesn't mensa intake (top 2%, yes) start around 130-140 IQ? Might differ from country to country, but in belgium the lower limit was 150, which is also the official lower limit of "genius," with 130-150 being "gifted". (My baby brother tested at 152 when he was 14 and got invited, which is how I know this.) (Reply to this)(Parent)

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