Intelligence can be a fear-provoking word. It can strike fear into the minds of psychologists, and loathing into the minds of hooligans. The words intelligence and genius are often inter-related, but what exactly is intelligence, and, or, genius? Are we born with a pre-defined amount of it, or can we grow beyond our confines? Does it improve or diminish with age? Am I more intelligent than him? Is she more of a genius than me? I can remember every number one hit single since 1952: surely that makes me a genius? Are asking these questions a sign of intellect, genius or ignorance?
At this point, having lulled you into a false sense of security, I could launch a diatribe against the Big Brother 8 twins; slating them with comments about ignorance and bliss. But fear not. Let us ask ourselves the first question on the above list: what is intelligence? And, therefore, what is genius?
Let us consider the historical minds we generally call 'geniuses' and 'intellectuals'. The archetype of genius is, of course, Albert Einstein. Just in case you don’t know, he is the man who gifted us the theories of special relativity and mass energy equivalence (E=mc2). Without them, the world of modern physics wouldn’t exist. Also, Sir Issac Newton: without him, the three laws of motion might still be undiscovered.
Fair enough, those were scientists: and science can be baffling unless you have a knack for it. How about Sir Winston Churchill? Was he not a genius when it came to statesmanship and leadership? Could he have won the second World War without having a superior intellect? How about Pele: a finer genius of the football I have never seen.
If that is not impressive, how about Creighton Carvello: he once memorised Pi to 20,103 decimal places. Dominic O'Brien is the eight times World Memory Champion: he once memorised, and recalled, fifty decks of shuffled playing cards without any errors.
Are you confused yet? You're not the only one. Let us go back a step and consider the definitions of the words. After all, what's in a word, right?
The etymology of the word genius is thought to emanate from the ancient roman language: where the 'genius' was considered to be the spirit of a person or an entire family. A term closely related to genius is genius loci: the spirit is a specific location, giving it supernatural powers. This has, historically, taken the form of demonic possession. Research by recent linguists suggests the word genius may also refer to the status of such a person within a tribe. Hence, the word genius, attains an almost mystical sense.
Intelligence is often defined as the ability to solve problems. If intelligence is linked to genius, the above description may not seem so bold. After all: would the ability to think through a problem you cannot solve make someone more powerful thank you? 'Let's make them a shamen. Genius!' And so it begins…
Now, let's go back and look at Einstein and
Churchill then? Well, he did 'poorly' in school and had a 'lack of attention to unimportant detail'. And as for Pele: he punched his school classmate who gave him his trademark name!
Now, the memory men. Does being able to recall Pi to 20,000 decimal places, or remembering fifty decks of playing cards in order, make you more able to solve lifes little problems? I think not. Surely, all that space taken up by remembering numbers or cards must leave out room for other things? Birthdays and anniversaries, perhaps?
Intelligence and genius are terms which we should pay more attention to using, and should never be used likely. So, how about true examples of genius and intellect? Consider the small business person: they must have many skills. Not only their stock-in-trade, but also bookkeeping, personnel management, I.T. skills, training abilities, business acumen and prediction of market trends.
Is Richard Branson the model of intellect and genius? Can our NHS nurses solve problems better than Einstein? Would our home carers for dementia patients remember sequences and events better than memory champion Creighton Carvello?
