Intelligence

Scientists at the University of St Andrews (Scotland) have shown that dolphins use specific acoustic signals to each other that allow them to make and respond to individual calls. The research sheds new light on the amazing intelligence of these cetaceans, a subject already discussed in previous reports.

Iodine deficiency during pregnancy lowers children's IQ. This is how resounding are the conclusions reached by the researchers belonging to the Nutrimenthe project, which highlights, once again, the importance of nutrition during pregnancy.

Lemurs that spend time in large tribes are more likely to steal food behind a human's back rather than in front of their noses. This behavior suggests that primates living in larger social groups tend to have "social intelligence", according to a study published by 'Plos One'.

The fact that a teenager has certain genes in his DNA can make his academic results suffer, especially in four subjects: language, mathematics, science and history. This is the conclusion reached by scientists from Florida State University (USA) after comparing the average grades of a series of students and relating it to the variants of various genes (DAT1, DRD2 and DRD4) that are related to the synthesis of the dopamine, a neurotransmitter responsible for pleasant sensations and involved in the coordination of muscle movements, decision-making, learning and memory.

A controversial field of study and not always well accepted has been dedicated to establishing the intelligence level of a country and its differences with other states. The starting hypothesis for this type of study is that it is possible to extrapolate individual differences in IQ between members of different countries to the general population of those nations in question. Thus, although not without criticism, the concept of 'national intelligence quotient' developed by Lynn & Vanhanen has been used to study the relationships between variables such as educational level, religiosity or certain aspects related to health with the intelligence of individuals. people who make up a nation.

The smartest ones are slower to determine in which direction large objects are moving. This is the conclusion reached by scientists at the University of Rochester when applying a simple visual test to people with different intelligence quotient (IQ). Of course, they are much better when it comes to small objects.

This is clear from a European study of Belgian, Dutch, Swedish and Irish researchers who claim that our ancestors of the Victorian era were more intelligent than us. Specifically, his work, published in the magazine Intelligence, shows that the reaction time of human beings has been lowered from 1889 until now in the West, and that this would be related to a lower IQ, which has decreased by 14 points, that is that is, 1.23 points per decade.

A study by the School of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania reveals that children who do not eat breakfast regularly obtain lower scores on tests that measure intelligence quotient (IQ) than those who start the day with a balanced breakfast. Specifically, for six-year-olds, skipping the first meal of the day reduces verbal ability by 5.58 points, performance by 2.50 points, and total score by 4.6 points. According to Jianghong-Liu, a co-author of the work, the worrying thing is that cognitive skills at that age develop rapidly. And after a whole night without eating, breakfast is essential as "fuel" for normal brain development and function.