Subscription Center
Aug 21, 2009 05:53 PM | 13
Humans have long enjoyed crowing about their intellectual superiority in the animal kingdom. But just as some studies—of tool-wielding birds and language-discerning rodents—have begun to chip away at our cognitive place in the sun, others have set their sights on two human groups whose intelligence might have been underestimated—the very young and the very old.
Babies first: "Generations of psychologists and philosophers have believed that babies and young children were basically defective adults—irrational, egocentric and unable to think logically," Alison Gopnik, author of The Philosophical Baby (Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2009), wrote in a New York Times editorial last week. But her research—and that of others—has gone on to show that rather than being one crayon short of a full box, "In some ways, they are smarter than adults," she says.
Gopnik's research at the University of California, Berkeley, has shown young children (of the five-and-under set) to be fully capable of reasoning and assessing probability. But babies' tendency to be interested in just about everything has led many adults to assume their lack of focus is indicative of unintelligence, Gopnik noted. "Babies explore; adults audit," she says.
On the other end of the spectrum, even older adults without an impairing disease such as Alzheimer's are often assumed to have experienced some cognitive slippage. Whereas that may be true in some respects, new research is proving that seniors are perfectly competent in learning new concepts—and remembering them.
A study, published online this month in the Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, tested the reasoning, perceptual-motor speed and visual attention of 47 adults aged 70 to 90 and then retested them eight months later. Indeed, they did just fine and even remembered much of what they had learned. "This study suggests that seniors' minds are still sharp," Lixia Yang, of Ryerson University in Canada and a co-author of the study, said in a prepared statement.
Perhaps the saying that old age is the second childhood should really be seen as a mutual compliment.
Image courtesy of Qole Pejorian via Flickr
Tags:
intelligence
More News Blog:
Next: Early-morning shuttle launch brings a viewing opportunity for U.S. east coasters
Previous: Breaking free from the Web: New rehab caters to Internet addicts
See what we're tweeting about
FlyingTrilobite This Wired post starts sideways. If @Oatmeal could be sued 4 defending violated copyright, he's not the aggressor. http://t.co/IKrcQhEwWf
mkonnikova Should we seek out what writers never wanted published? "Once you are dead ...others will decide how you are seen." http://t.co/yeRBC4IEIE
johnrplatt Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright, Just One Gene To Make It White http://t.co/nOaMZJRiOR via @ngphenomena & @edyong209
Deadline: Jun 29 2013
Reward: $7,000 USD
The Seeker for this Challenge desires proposals for chemical methods that could rapidly degrade a dilute aqueous solution
Deadline: Jul 30 2013
Reward: $100,000 USD
The Seeker desires a method for producing pseudoephedrine products in such a way that it will be extremely difficult for clandestine che
Powered By: 
YES! Send me a free issue of Scientific American with no obligation to continue the subscription. If I like it, I will be billed for the one-year subscription.
13 Comments
Add CommentHow about someone does a study of "studies," to find out IF they are accurate or not?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI still don't like 80-yr olds behind the wheel.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this...or 2-yr olds for that matter.
How about Scientific American publish a report on "Candide" and determine if this unknown individual is full of s**t.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisDear GroverSaga,
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHas this study made you nervous about your status in the intelligence area.
At 73, retired for 4 years, I decided to take courses at M.I.T. via their Open Course Ware program, an online access to ALL of their cataloged course curricula offered to fee paying students. No degree granted of course, but the learning is there!!! Astounding program. I was a Chemical Engineer with a B.S. in 1960. I am now doing the Chem Eng program at MIT and finding the learning experience SO beneficial to my mental health, agility and memory skills. I recommend it highly to any senior who still wishes to learn and keep the cognitive brain pumping away! <SEM, Dover, NH>
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisFor all you doubters out there, I have been working with a 60 year old woman who was brain damaged in a MVC. She wanted to study nutrition and her doctor hubby thought she was too damaged. I have been working with her like I would a child who has Wernicke's Aphasia, and she just passed her midterm with a 92%! For the first time in years she can read and write more quickly and clearly, pronounce words, and has learned a tremendous amount. The classes that she has completed are extremely therapeutic for her and have improved her cognition incredibly. Besides that she can remember and apply the stuff she is sucking up.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI can report with confidence that "elderlybloke" need a nap!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI find it amazing that anatomy 101 can get far enough beyond his youthful ego to even write a bigoted response. Good for you, junior.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThis article is discussing cognitive abilities, not physical abilities. It is clear that physical abilities slow as people age, so while I agree that many older people should not be driving, we see from this article that they should not be "written off" as of lesser importance to society.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisUh Oh!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHere comes an "Elderly Person" wanting to put in his two cents worth. I did business in the fast paced real estate investment field for 30 years before I retired 5 years ago. It kept me hopping both physically and mentally.
When I retired I decided to write. Now I write, edit, and publish Seniors Alive! Newsletter. It goes out to 2363 people every month.
I can honestly state that my mind works as well or better now than it did during my 30 - 65 years. Many of the "trying-to-get-ahead" worries are no longer with me and my stress levels are way down.
This allows me to focus with fewer distractions. The incredible learning experience of buying and learning to use my first computer has tested my abilities to the limit. This does not say that I never experience frustrations or other inhibitors to good thinking, just that once one learns not to get so angry at the computer that one is tempted to test its aerodynamic properties, one finds ways to overcome other difficulties a well.
I am enjoying my life now far more than I have ever done. Those who think me unfit to think or to do such mundane things as drive a car will find themselves challenged to prove their claims. I wonder especially about those who obviously think that they will never get old. If they manage to reach that age, I'd be very interested to hear their opinions of their own ability to drive at that age.
I'm still more concerned about the freaks talking on their cell phones- or worse, texting!- putting on make-up, brushing their teeth, etc., while driving. When their speed is going up and down within a 10 or 20 mph range, swerving across the lines, etc., it shows that being a selfish idiot is more of a problem than age!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe very young know enough to keep their opinions to themselves with foresight. Seniors relearn the lesson through hindsight.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWait for it.
Perhaps it is just a matter of perception but I find that, at age 75, I have more depth in cognitive factors.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this