I’ve been prepping and looking at fluwiki extensively for 8 months. I’ve read the many posts expressing frustration with those who view fluwikians as unreasonably alarmist. I know alot of people, but none who take BF seriosly. So I have learned to keep quiet for fear of ridicule and peril of others knowing you prepped.
The only people I can relate to on regarding BF are fluwikians. I very am familiar with many posters “personality”, even though I’ve never met a fluwikian in person. It gets to be surreal.
I can’t help but wonder what makes fluwikians “get it” while the vast majority of people don’t “get it”. I wonder if fluwikians have some superior intelligence or are just more intuitive or what. I never talk about my IQ (anywhere fom 137 - 156 depending on test) because that’s a little tacky/braggish.
But if you wouldn’t mind sharing your thoughts, it would be interesting to speculate why we “get it” and most don’t.
I like to blame my disappointing 122 to 128 (depending on test) on years of partying when I was young and crazy.
182 was my top score at 12yrs. now i usually hover around 150–170 depending on the tests. i blame my slip on past use of medicinal herbs. ;)
i’d rather keep under the radar though and remain underestimated, as i plot and plan for our survival. that stance may prove to keep me and mine alive.
Tested at 160 at 15; topped out the test. Estimated to be about 180. I don’t know by which test. Let me say y’all’d probably be surprised who is posting this. ;-)
I haven’t a clue as to my IQ- I’m intelligent, but I don’t think overly so. I have a great deal of common sense -better then booksmarts in my opinion- and very good intuition. Mostly I think it’s just that feeling that “something” really bad is going to happen. I’ve had it for a long time now and stumbled on Fluwikie while looking at survival subjects. I think it’s a survivalist mindset (not really the hardcore hermit type though)that lends itself to anticipating and preparing for the worst while hoping for the best. I do think we will see pan flu in the fairly near future. I hope it’s not H5N1, but of course it could also be something even worse-.
for what its worth, mine was 139 - 159 depending on test - although apparently its not IQ thats so relevant as EQ these days - an ability to use intelligence in relation to others.
Personally, I would expect its an ability of fluwikians to see the ‘big picture’ and an interrelationship of events, causes and effects. Many people only see the isolated fact, and an isolated effect without being able to envision the knock on results in other areas of life. Some of us (I think) have also had some life experience that has made us aware of our own mortality, the fragility of life and our lifestyle, and also have others that we wish to protect.
There are two camps of individuals here - those who are determined to look out for themselves in self interest (not meant to imply that is a bad thing) and those who are driven to protect the interests of others, whether it is family or the world at large. Most of all, the wiki appears to be populated by individuals who are not willing to just let life ‘happen’ to and around them but feel a need to have some control over events, and are willing to take time and effort to get informed in order to achieve that goal.
138 consistently
Last tested way back in the last century. Was 146, if I remember correctly.
This is proving interesting. I hope lots of posters, anonymously or otherwise add to this. Semms we are perhaps quite a bright bunch - a fact that could be used well to illustrate we are not all nuts and crackpots - and maybe we could get just a little more attention from the media and those who need to be convinced.
133–144 depending on test. On the bell curve, above 130 is in the top 2% of the population. Above, I think 145, is in the 1% range.
There’s a thread about having a “pandemic dream.”
That’s what happened to me: Two years ago I dreamt my family was sitting around a radio, and the announcer was saying, “The scale of this epidemic is unprecedented. Tens of thousands are dying every day. More than 30,000 are reported dead in Chicago alone…”
Before that, pandemic flu was just a distant abstraction, like an earthquake in another country. On the other hand, I took precautions pre-Y2K, so you could say I’m inclined to cautiously prepare.
I like the idea behind this thread and will be interested to see it develop. I suspect you won’t get too many folks who say their IQ is 75.
;-)
I’m feeling inadequate at 135.
The caveat: Intelligence doesn’t mean a whole lot if you have your head in the sand and prefer to ignore the whole thing, as my family members (many of whom are Mensa members) are wont to do.
I’d say we have more than a few triple-nines here.
I scored 165 on the Stanford-Binet IQ test but that was as far as that one went at the time. Most of the others “top out” at around 135 or so. I didn’t get perfect scores on the ACT (just mid 30′s) or the SAT’s (mid 1700’s) but did get “perfect” scores on 4 GRE science/math area tests. I do “test well”. I don’t believe in Mensa and other snobbish brain game clubs. And yes, I have several grad degrees (including a PhD) but that doesn’t mean I don’t “mispell things and type wrnog”. A PhD does not vaccinate you against mistakes and I have made my share.
I don’t think that Wikians “get it” more because of their intelligence (no offense). Instead, I think it is because of more awareness to their surroundings and the concern for others. FW is just a fun diversion. It doesn’t take an Einstein to know if there is something that is killing 60% of those it infects and there are twice as many deaths this year than last year (round numbers), that it is a threat.
I belong to Mensa (159 on the two most commonly used tests) and I can assure you that Mensa has its fair share of both nuts and crackpots. It also has lunatics, paranoid delusionals and obsessives. It also has a disturbing number of Star Trek fans.
IQ is no guarantee of anything except the ability to take IQ tests and the spare time required to indulge your curiosity and/or vanity. I would take an average person with insight over an unprepared genius anyday.
Did I type 1700′s on the SAT- that is crazy it only went to 1600…? I should have typed mid 1500′s. See I told you I am not perfect. Words, letters, typing, foreign languages are my weakness.
I once worked for a guy who said “most people have a view of the world that is no more than if they were looking through the bore of a 1ml pipet.”
I would suspect that most people on FW have a slightly larger view of things.
Also anon for this – at 12:54
What’s wronmg with Star Trek fans?
I don`t think that it`s a matter of IQ #s. To me, it the imagination quotient we should be measuring.Seems to me that many folks have no ability to “think out of the box”. Whether that is a result of too much time spent watching mindless Tv, as opposed to reading something that makes you actualy think, or a result of poor dietary choices,i.e. sugsr overload, I don`t have a clue. I have noted that many of us seem to frequently quote assorted sci-fi authors. Maybe growing up reading that genre has heightened our outlook on all things possible ?
I remember being told in 9th grade I tested at 120 (makes me the dumb one so far). I also did a little prepping for Y2K, but decided that the biggest alarms were about embedded chips and decided that cars, hairdryers and remote controls don’t really care about the date, and therefore told most of my friends that there might be a glitch or two, but for the most part it should be no big deal.
I also wonder how many people here are left handed? UFO nuts? Conspiracy Theorists? Georgia Guidestone believers? See the Illuminati everywhere? Worry about the New World Order? Third Secret of Fatima? Three days of darkness? Area 51? Council on Foreign Relations? Skull and Bones? --- Hey, do any of you watch Vanished on Fox????
Not Anon but- nothing wrong with Star Trek fans as long as they know it is not real and they like Captain James Tiberius Kirk better. :) (just kidding about Kirk)
beeing in bag “creative industry/education “ I dont expect my scores to be high in a regular iq test.. just not the mathematical type :-D
145 at 12 y/o (late 70′s)… pretty certain i killed off some grey matter in college, tho.. folks here might argue it was a good bit more than some.. :-)
To me it’s not our IQ but your ability to use both sides of your brain. Most people think with either the left or right side. A few think with both sides. If you think with both sides you view things from all angles, Not only do you see the forest, but you see the ground, sky, colors, textures and patterns. Most people will pick up on one or two things but never see it all. We see things and put it together like a puzzle. We might not have all the pieces but we can fill in the blanks with the knowledge we do have. ( I hope this makes sense!)
I’ve tested at 155, but I don’t buy into the validity of IQ tests at all. I’ve known too many “geniuses” who couldn’t think their way out of a cardboard box. I think a better measure of my intelligence is that my husband with a PhD in Quantum Physics, who topped out the IQ test when he grudgingly took it because everyone kept asking him what his IQ was, says I’m the smartest woman he’s ever met, and he’s dated Rocket Scientists (though he also says Rocket Science is easy ;)
That said, he still thinks I’m slightly nuts “in a cute way” about this “bird flu thing” ;) But that’s because I’m the one with the minor in Biology and the obsession with genetics and viruses, and I haven’t really tried to convince him yet. I haven’t had to. He likes the idea of being prepared for any disasters that might spring up and so lets me do as I like.
All of my mental exercises on this “bird flu thing” might turn out to be for nothing. Sometimes people really are too smart for their own good. They see dangers that have a very low chance of happening and start warning that the sky is falling. Y2K is a great example of that. But the risks….
Everyone has their own probability versus risk for a given danger. I didn’t worry about Y2K and I’m not terribly concerned about a comet hitting the earth, but bird flu scares the crap out of me.
Dennis C- I really tried to hold out and remain only a classic trek fan- but my daughter got watching TNG and I fell for it. Kirk was the “bad Boy” all we females love to think we want. Patrick Stewart as a man is just plain HOT, but as Cpt Picard- he’s like a wiseman. Like a favored uncle. It was just too easy to be fascinated by his character- Is it OK if I like them both? :)
IQ? Don’t know - don’t care :)
I started prepping about 8 mos. ago after hearing Dubya talk about panflu and hearing something to the effect of - YOYO. That sent me to the government’s website and from there to Flu Wiki. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Prior to that I had not given “bird flu” a thought.
An IQ of 140 is like a bra size of 34B. It is not so much what you have but how you use it.
OK, so we have a lot of “brain power”- For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required
Nobody ever invited me to take the test. That probably says it all!! ha! Just have to rely on good organizing skills, efficiency and common sense. Oh, the boredom! Shoot me now. It’s a wonder I have any friends.
OK- SusanA just made me feel better. I HAVE been tested for which side of the brain I use. I come out smack-dab in the middle. And I’m great with puzzles! There IS hope for me!
I can honestly say I am shocked that not only do fluwikians feel superior but blatantly boast about it..This is egotism, not self-sufficency too the extreme. I also don’t know which IQ tests you have done..I work with EDPsych’s almost everyday and some of yours are ridicuously high and higher than I have seen scored..Actually higher than most genuises.. They are either tests for the American market or internet tests.. I am sorry but this thread has put me and will put others off using fluwiki. I recommended this site others who were concerned as another flu’ season approaches, they alerted me to this thread..Said, No way!! It is reminiscent of the playground..”my daddy, is bigger than your daddy, I get more pocket money than you get.” A mutant virus isn’t frightened of your high IQ and the neighbour across the road that may save your life mighn’t have finished High school. IQ won’t save your life but common sense might.
I’m also going anon for this one. I mostly just lurk anyway. I topped out the test so I don’t really know but it’s over 150. I also qualified for MENSA.
I’ve been wondering if I’m the only crazy person. I make a decision to just quit prepping and not read any more on the net, but alas, I always go back. It’s a long standing habit of mine to keep emergency supplies because I live in a hurricane zone but for the last 6–8 months, I’ve been seriously getting ready for whatever is coming. I found fluwikie about 3 months ago.
anonymous – at 13:32 - I can honestly say I am shocked that not only do fluwikians feel superior but blatantly boast about it..
I’m not getting that impression. I don’t feel superior at all, and a higher IQ wouldn’t help either. What *would* help me feel superior? SOLAR PANELS, a SunDanzer refrigerator, and a Staber washing machine!! (Too bad I wasn’t smart enough to have them installed a year ago. Anyone who did this already is a genius in my opinion.)
And Star Trek rocks. (As do the old Twilight Zone episodes.)
My IQ is 139 but my awareness has been influenced by much more than that.
I am quite hyper-vigilant for one thing. I believe that many who grow up in dysfunctional homes are hyper-vigilant because we had to be - so a blessing from a “bad” situation.
I also have an eyesight problem that makes me have to be very vigilant. And, it has caused me to over-compensate by developing excellent peripheral vision to the point that people think I have eyes in the back of my head sometimes! Sight affects thinking to some degree, so the “larger” picture becomes of value generally.
In reading survival books, one finds that hyper-vigilance and seeing the big picture (Tom Brown,a great survival trainer calls it “wide vision”) is a trait to be cultivated for survival.
I also have a special needs child and that has added to my vigilance and keeping informed on health issues.
I wonder if some or even many of us have a family member with some sort of special needs.
I am also a voracious reader and I would bet many of us are!
I also have been a little OCD since childhood about germs - not to the point of constant hand-washing (until recently!) - but just wanting to be clean and have clean surroundings. Again, I’d bet many of us have at least an awareness of the unseen world of “bugs,” if not an outright aversion!
zeta – at 13:09 I’ve known too many “geniuses” who couldn’t think their way out of a cardboard box.”
I whole heartedly agree with this as I sure have known some really smart people who were Really Really Dumb. You either have sense or you don’t. Personally I’d rather be book-dumber and sense-smarter.
The people who “get it” are considerably more open to seeing the big picture. And it ain’t pretty- in more ways than pan flu, but they look at the whole thing and decide to react. They probably have a much easier time adapting to change, or may welcome or even seek change, in any form. They are not afraid to face uncertainty as long as they have a plan for dealing with what they can be certain of - good or bad. There definately are 2 kinds- the self and immediate family preservation kind (which would be me) and the ones with the ability to think beyond themselves for the greater good of all humanity. Neither is wrong, neither is right. They just are who they are. We need them both.
I imagine that’s to do with upbringing. In my early years my Dad told stories of how hard it was in rural Nebraska in the 20s. They were very isolated, and I was brought up hearing all the ways they had to “make do”. Having been raised poor and often hungry- as an adult he always kept a full pantry and extra everything he could think of. Because of that I am the same. Husband still thinks it’s amazing that we never run out of anything. I believe it’s all about that certain mindset. I can easilly imagine a severe blizzard or hurricane keeping us all home for a while (1978 kept many home for almost a month and was a lesson I’ll never forget but thats for another thread) and I know many of my neighbors who have lived here all their lives too won’t be prepared if we have either one. You’d think they would because they also know or can remember but they just don’t think that way. Has little to do with “IQ” and everything to do with having good sense and being able to see through the blinds.
Hmmmmm….I don’t think I’ve taken an Eye-Que test. Suffice it to say that I aced all 4 of my ASVAB tests before entering the US Air Force. So I suppose my Eye Que is somewhere between 25 and 400. ?!?
Anyway, I feel that FluWikians are simply more aware of the possibility of a pandemic based on their research, open-ness, the hive-mind collaboration, and the ability to focus on the situation at hand and make a learned decision.
Geez, anonymous @ 13:32, take a chill pill. I don’t see anyone boasting or saying they are superior; in fact I see many humbly anonymous about their scores. I don’t think even my husband knows mine (but I think he’s figured it out. ;-)). And if I was tested at 15 (and I see someone else tested at 12) you can safely assume it was neither our own vanity — or curiosity — as to why we were tested. Other people’s curiosity more like… and it wasn’t my parents, either. They were stunned, too. It was a three-day battery of tests. I still don’t know what it was all about, but my folks told me the school suggested it. (shrug) They were none too happy about the results, either — a lot of recommendations were made that they couldn’t afford to follow up on.
But neither am I an apologist for it. I yam what I yam. Height, weight, IQ. It is not a bad thing. I appreciate how it helps me. I am sorry it has made me a lonely person.
And no, I don’t think you have to be a real bright person to see the danger in pan flu. But it helps.
135 when tested (only one I ever took) in 1959.
anonymous – at 13:32
I was last tested by my cousin who is a special ed teacher with a phd. This is what she does.
I’m glad this thread was started because I’ve been wondering if I’m just a little crazy thinking about what could happen. As I said in my original post, I’ve stopped prepping a couple of times, but then something brings me back to get ready.
I don’t, nor does anyone here on this site, know if we will have a flu pandemic. But, if anyone watches the news, we live in a very dangerous time. Anything can happen….whether it’s flu, terrorist attack or even an all out war. Only time will tell.
I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have felt the need to defend my motives to an anon poster. This is why I just lurk.
uh…what’s an IQ? And where do I go to get one?
;-)
I don’t see anyone “bragging” - if we were bragging, we wouldn’t all be posting as some version of anyonymous, which I’ve never done before.
I tested out at 161 on an individually administered Stanford Binet before I was old enough to start killing off brain cells.
I think that may be part of what makes us who we are, but also the voracious reading contributed in my case and many others - and also, I’ve always been able to see many different outcomes to any situation - like being able to see the bigger picture. I worry that the human race will become extinct if we cannot figure out how to get some of the population off the planet. I worry about a lot of other things that will never impact me directly, but which are species oriented. I don’t think most people do that. I do, however, think that a lot of us here will understand what I mean.
When officals say, a pandemic has to either turn out to be nothing, or, very mild, because those are the only scenarios they can only come up with business-as-normal responses for, as if believing it will be like swine flu or 1968 will make it so, or,
they try to tell you crap like “there’s nothing the public could do anyway,” (have they “done nothing” at home?) and,
“the public has heard the news” and “but don’t tell them to look at pandemicflu.gov or they will panic” in the same breath, or,
try and get you to believe something contagious before symptoms in an age of air travel has any sort of evolutionary pressure to drop to .04% cfr, when my common sense, and, scientists in the related fields, say there is no such pressure,
as much as I’d like to be crazy and the world not at risk of pandemic, don’t think so…
Not sure IQ numbers have anything to do with it, but, being willing to admit there’s a big picture (and unknown unknowns) that people and plans are imperfect, and caring what happens to other beings in the big future picture and trying to learn from history seem to be factors.
“Si hoc legere scis nimium eruditonis habes.”
Okieman, IQ is just a stupid number, sort of like shoe size, that people use to judge other things about a person that really have no correlation with each other at all ;)
lol… or can use google :)
(Ok, the voracious reader thing in there too; been doing that since before school age… I find it more rewarding to read what you Flu Wiki people have to say than what the townsfolk seem to like watching on tv. Hyper-vigilant; guess I can’t get out of that label at this point. Family told about living through hard times; yup. Seeing some similarities with other posters.)
Sorry .. that was directed at DennisC at 14:08
DennisC - LOL! I had to have my husband translate, but in his defense, he learned Latin because they were still doing mass in Latin in the country where he grew up. ;)
zeta – at 14:12
I know what IQ is. That was a joke.
;-)
Okieman, LOL! Yes, I may not be as smart as most of those posting here, but I could tell you were joking by the little winky at the end ….which looks sort of like the one at the end of mine ;)
I “get it” because as a young first time mom in my early 20s I watched my husband nearly die from the flu; a flu which had made me more ill than I had ever been before and which also made our infant son very ill as well. My husband’s maternal grandmother died in the 1918 pandemic. So our family’s experience with influenza is such that nobody needs to beat me over the head to get me to pay attention. I wish more people simply realized where flu comes from and just how dangerous ANY flu can be. If they did then a new highly pathogenic strain like H5N1 would scare the heck out of them like it does me.
I do not think it is our intelligence as much as our personality type. My mother was a control freak and therefore I resent being controlled by anyone or any circumstance. I quess that probably makes me a control freak too. I have to be organized or I cannot function. I have mental lists on what to do in most situations. I too have had parents, grandparents and in-laws that have told me stories of not having enough food, clothing, ect.. I have prepared my lfe with backups and backups on backups. When the bird hits the fan or we have war or famine I plan to be ready for any situation for our family and if I do not make it, it will be there for them. I too am a science fiction lover (but not horror), even though I could never ever believe there could be life on other planets. I love mystery novels and survival books. I to think common sense is one of lifes most important gifts. I also feel the second most benefit is not listening to the those that do not have common sense. Just because a hundred people do something does not make it right but a lot of people go along so they can be accepted by the group for personal gain or power. I too dance to the beat of a different drummer. Truth, reason, honesty and justice.
I have told you some of my neurosis, what about yours?
Okieman – at 13:55 getting an IQ
There have been times when I wished I didn’t have one and I could live in ignorant bliss. Not to mention the times that I “threw a test” just to have friends. And the times I could not walk a girl home from school because of my glasses- but I have gotten to hike with some Nobel prize winners and it is nice to get those calls from the national labs when they have a problem and you feel like you did something to help or remodel some of my old programs. Now I am a little “nobody” that is content to lead a simple quite life and am quite happy. Right now I wished I never saw a bio-warfare map and know what is possible. Luckily, they don’t know my background here and I can go “bowling with the guys”.
Anyone else here faked being dumb just to “fit in”?
I tested at 145 when 12 years old. I feel different from most people and usually rely on their opinions rather than my own. Sometimes I have just no sense at all. Wish I were smarter that way.
I think our common denominator is our high AQ.
Awareness Quotient.
;-) whew JWB -thought you were going to move on to Asperger’s quotient for a second there.
anonymous – at 13:32 I can honestly say I am shocked that not only do fluwikians feel superior but blatantly boast about it..
I thought about starting this thread for several weeks but hesitated for concern of receiving reactions such as yours.
I didn’t start it to inflate my ego. In fact I don’t see any posts that reflect biggy sized egos. I started the thread because I’ve grown increasingly concerned that I’m the only person I know taking the threat seriously. The only like minded people I’ve found are on the flu boards. This REALLY makes me wonder if I incorrectly think I’m the only one in the band that’s in step while everyone else is out of step. I was actually thinking of seeing a shrink.
I thought a starting place to determine if I’m some sort of nut case would be an IQ survey. I did mention in initial post concern of sounding boastful. This thread is not to boast. This thread exists to help determine sanity and what makes wikians think the way they do. Based on what I’ve read above, it appears wikians tend to be above average intelligence and/and or have some sort of uncommon ability to comprehend the peril we face.
Thanks to all who set my mind at ease that maybe I’m not nuts. Sorry to anyone who was offended.
I think I’ll stop by for some Makers Mark with what I saved on the shrink…
Couldn’t age, life experiences, and lifes expectations be a marker for a fluwikian rather than an IQ?
Anon on this, I don’t know if it’s wise to use our intelligence as an indicator of our sanity ;)
After all, unlike shoesize and er..other attributes, Genius and Insanity DO correlate ;)
On a good day I’d estimate my IQ to be about 15.
Intelligence and common sense can live in 2 seperate galaxies.
Why do some people ‘get it’ and others not? Not sure its upbringing as I am only 1 of 7 siblings who prep seriously. De we wikians cut to the chase on most issues- possibly.
Do we plan to be survivors or make our loved one survive-100%+.
On a good day I’d estimate my IQ to be about 15.
Intelligence and common sense can live in 2 seperate galaxies.
Why do some people ‘get it’ and others not? Not sure its upbringing as I am only 1 of 7 siblings who prep seriously. De we wikians cut to the chase on most issues- possibly.
Do we plan to be survivors or make our loved one survive-100%+.
I know plenty of people who are very intellignet, but have no common sense. I happen to think I’m quite “smart” as well - advanced degrees, yada yada. But IQ by itself is no predictor of outcome. As ConnectRN said:
Couldn’t age, life experiences, and lifes expectations be a marker for a fluwikian rather than an IQ?
Yes, I’ve “dumbed down” a lot in my life around others … using common sense and empathy has gotten me much further. I know several Ph.D.’s who can’t hold a job and have no people skills. Not saying it’s always like that ….
also anon for this – at 13:43
I too am a vocious reader, admit to a little OCD about germs as a kid, and I have an autistic 31 year old son. I think those three things will make you prep, even with an average IQ. I always keep in the back of my mind, that in The Good Earth, their neighbors came and took all the food they had so carefully put away.
He thinks I’m crazy too – at 14:36
We are kindred spirits. Though I tend to skip to a different drummer!!!! Plans A. B & C all have back up plans A, B & C. Then theres plan A subcatagory 1, and the contingency plans … and so on.
Lists?? I have list of my lists. Ever be working on a project- like house work, and do something thats not on the list so you have to go write it and cross it off or you can’t think straight? The only problem is I have to rewrite the whole list because if I don’t, it won’t be in alphabetical order in order of priority with the proper spacing and I’ll keep looking at it and feeling shakey because it’s not in order and it’s messy. Or is that OCD?
I’m trying to be ready for anything that I can think of short of being at ground zero in a Nuke strike- why plan for that one? I’m set for blizzards and hurricanes. I’m even set for short term supply chain disruption. It’s the long term things like Panflu or ecom=nomic collapse that I am trying to get a grip on.
Neither of my parents was a controller. In fact they were both out of control- so that’s why I need to be always in control of my situation. Not necessarily the people around me, but my personal space and what affects it. Planning is the only way I know to do that. “If this - then that” Do you do everything exactly the same way every morning? and everynight when you come home from work? And if you don’t- should you just skip that day and go back to bed because the whole day will be “off”? And if you don’t put your purse and lunch bag on the washer in the right spot (or heaven forbid- there’s something else there that doesn’t belong there) and hang up your coat and if there are dishes in the sink - is the night going to be basically kaput?
I test between 145 and 155 — I’ve always been taught intellect (no matter what the test scores might be) is not a gift rather it is a responsibility. Learning to not only absorb information but to solve problems was drilled in to me from the beginning.
As long as I have been alive, the potential end of the world has been preached in one form or another, i.e., the cuban missile crisis, the Kennedy and King assinations, the cold war, the apocolypse etc. etc. I grew up thinking I better make today count because there might not be a tomorrow. I avoid conspiracy theories for a variety of reasons.
My best friends grandmother died in the 1918 pandemic. His father was two years old. Grandpa is my greatest mentor. Our lives have been shaped by the loss of my best friends grandmother. I also believe totally in the reality of the H5N1 virus based simply on research, a substantial portion of that research conducted by fluwikians.
I pray I am wrong in my belief of an avian flu pandemic. Long ago a great man said to me, “What is the prize for being right?” I thought for a minute then he anwsered the question for me, “There is no prize.”
Thank you one and all.
IQ above 160. Advanced degrees etc.
still not saying my name here – at 14:43
It is hard to be cool when you wear glasses and have to carry your sliderule to class. I saved money just to get one of those flat circular slide rules so I could hid it in my notebook.
For a pandemic, what will be important is not our IQ but as JWB said: awareness and our preperation, will to survive, ability to adapt that will be important. I have seen lots of very smart students they just could not function in the real world. I have seen 4.0 GPA people crumble when something they did was not perfect. And I have seen some “dummies” that knew how to smile and make friends that others would help without question. IQ is put a small part of what we will need.
If you ever watch jeapordy, you know that 3 people with average IQ’s of 100 or so can still answer more question than one person with an IQ of 200 (if such a thing exists). That is the strength of Fluwiki. The sum of knowledge is greater than any one person. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
157 post brain cell destroying phases. I could not tell you what test is was, but I still disagree with one of the answers they said I missed…something about the similarities between a duck and a goose (ironic, huh).
Raw IQ, IMHO, has little to do with being drawn to FW. My guess is that most here are Type A individuals who stumbled across a threat… Being Type As, Wikians start dissecting it into sub-parts (i.e. the various threads) and working on components that are you can control(prepping, both physically and emotionally) for what may come.
Wikians share what they know, feel and believe out of a sense of community and purpose, not a demonstration intellect. We hope we will never see the day when hunker down and use what we have learned. If that day comes, we will meet it head-on prepared to start picking up the pieces on the other side of the nightmare.
Bless you all.
Hmmm, I do have some things in common with characteristics mentioned above:
Hard childhood, tendency to be hyper-vigilant
Special needs child (food related)
Voracious reader, esp. history, science & science fiction
Don’t feel especially smart, have just a garden-variety degree. No fancy job or anything.
Dumb down if I want to fit in. Embarassed by lapses such as disparaging “Desperate Housewives” in a ballet studio waiting room. Nobody talked to me after that. Oops.
Not into conspiracies, guv’mint bashing, secret society machinations, UFO’s or anything like that. Never prepped before.
Anon on this, all joking aside, I’ve wondered the same thing about my own sanity. Why am I doing this? Why am I the only one worried about something that everyone around me says is not going to happen? Am I delusional? Is my fluwikie reading causing me to have some kind of paranoid psychosis? Am I looking for some kind of real meaing in my life since everything in this country seems so vapid, shallow and meaningless?
I’ve asked my husband, and he says, only half-joking, that yes, I am crazy, but not about this particular thing. Even though I’ve not really tried to convince him that Bird Flu is as dangerous as I sense it is, he knows enough to trust my instincts on it, and that’s why he’s not asked too many questions when I buy an insane number of canned peas when they’re on sale. Maybe it’s because I kept telling him that New Orleans was going to be wiped out by a hurricane 9 months before Katrina hit. When Bush said on the news that “Nobody could have forseen” it, I knew the president was full of sh17. Plenty of very smart people had been warning about it for years. And it will be the same with Bird Flu. If Bush dares to say “Nobody could have forseen this pandemic” he should be dragged out of DC and tarred and feathered…. with chicken feathers.
I recently had a “Tickle Test” IQ test pop up on my PC so took the IQ test for fun and topped out on it - also had my kids make me do a local televised IQ test a couple of years ago so they could prove how ‘clever’ their Mum is/was. I don’t put much weight by it - it is definitely how you use it that is more important - the EQ skills and plain common sense, as mentioned above.
Perhaps what is important is the part of the IQ test that looks at ‘visual-spatial intelligence’ - taking the patterns and re-arranging them - I think that is where we all have our strength in seeing what is happening here.
On the “innate skills” tests that are also the fashion from time-to-time, I am fact-finder/follow-through - guess that accounts for searching out information then doing something with it.
The biggest test for most Wikians is being able to navigate our way through hyper-space and get here - something the younger generations take for granted as a skill ;-)
Ah, the imagined bliss of being less intelligent, less aware, less worried.
165 Advanced degrees in the sciences
Have personally always found that being intelligent is often a handicap when dealing with the public at large. AND it’s difficult in this part of the country to find a man that doesn’t mind a smart woman.
DC – at 15:25
Don’t know wherer you live but it’s difficult anywhere to find a man that doesn’t mind a smart woman.
And even harder to find one the not only doesn’t mind- but actually wants it. I think I found the only one in New England
I have not noticed a correlation between apparent intelligence and the urge to prep. On the contrary, most of the people I talk to about the pandemic are college educated business professionals, many of whom have advanced degrees, and many of whom are keenly interested in world events. However, for the most part these folks are not prepping at all. So much for college and brains. No, the only thing my prepping acquaintences seem to have in common is enough humility to acknowledge their own vulnerability and enough common sense to respond to a perceived threat.
As for myself, if I don’t make a few stupid mistakes every day of the week, I’m probably on vacation.
Cinda In Oklahoma they are far and few between- the only ones I know are married and I like their wives! While in college I actually had a date ask if I’d really read all of the chemistry and physiology books on my shelves. I replied- do you think I just bought these dozens of books to impress people? Gave up years ago on a husband! Have learned to be content with my precious cats and a few close friends.
Cinda, I found one, but he was an import ;)
DC- I think you should move!!! I have family there- I KNOW my aunts and female cousins aren’t stupid, but they act it around their husbands. If they don’t they’d get all kinds of crap. My Nebraskan father seemed to be threatened by intelligent women. It was OK for me, his daughter to be smart while I was young, that was a reflection on him but, once I got older he had trouble with it. And none of his wives could show they were smart. The last one he married is brilliant and she never would bow to him- drove him to distraction. And of course the we would “gang up” on him. he’d get so mad when we’d prove him wrong. I sure do love her!!! I think he was one of those men who are fascinated by smart women till they actually have them then they try to change them so they don’t have to compete.
Zeta- Good for you- they are a treasure- worth more than gold.
Have absolutely no idea and don’t care what my IQ is. I’ve never taken a test. I was an average student until I made up my mind to go to college at 20-something. Graduated with doctorate degree magna cum laude.
I think awareness of pandemic risk has less to do with intelligence and more to do with survival instinct.
Where did my post go? Anyone want to guess my IQ now?
I have no idea what my IQ is. What I can say is that I read voraciously, and have eclectic tastes in reading material. :) I agree with the idea that those of us who choose to prepare are more observant in general, and tend to have an increased ability to look at the big picture and get it. This is a strange twist on the “can’t see the forest for the trees” statement. We see the sick tree that could damage the entire forest and are just trying to call attention to it before it is too late. And the rest of the world thinks we are obsessives,and can’t see the tree for the forest. Anyway, that is my take on this whole subject, for whatever my view is worth. ^_^
Cinda
Moved here from Seattle- not much differnce except for the climate and after 20 years away I missed my family. Sometimes - such as at large family gatherings- I’m just careful to keep quiet. Discussing any serious topic in depth just raises a lot of eyebrows. People seem to prefer to discuss laundry or fishing. Have gotten my mother to prep a little but no-one else.
Tested at 16 in the middle of brain destroying activity (quite a bit afterwards). One was 140 something, the other 160.
No HS diploma. No math ability whatsoever.
Interests: natural health, spiritual/philosophical, artistic.
Been convinced for a while that civilizations come and go, including this one. Only read spiritual/philosophical or practical non-fiction. Am very intrested in natural health and have studied (on my own) several methods. Read FW and a few other informative/news websites. For ultra light reading I have a set of Dickens if I need escape literature. Never watch movies or TV. Never listen to popular music, I play instruments and sing when I want music.
I don’t know why more people don’t get the potential danger of H5N1. I have acquaintances who scoff at the possibility, or ones who think there may indeed be a danger but still refuse to prioritize and set aside anything. I just don’t get it. More or less a hermit due to disposition and life (and health) circumstances.
I believe the state of the world we live in now is also a factor. There are so many things going on, over which we have no control. There’s not much we can do about terrorism or earthquakes or tsunamis or …. even though we have no control over a pandemic, at least by prepping we can make an effort to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe.
I was a kid in rural Appalachia during the blizzard of 1978- I know we missed something like 6 weeks of school and power was out close to a month. Folks there took it pretty much in stride because they had laid in their coal for the winter plus had months of home canned garden produce and bought their beans in 25 lb bags-don’t remember rice so much, but remember vats of soup beans and corn bread cooked on a woodstove. I grew up learning to be as self sufficent as possible.
As an adult I had the experience of being snowed in for two weeks (no power) with two toddlers. So I like to have plans and back up plans. But I’m so not a control freak. My lists are on the backs of envelopes and are pretty messy. I allways have dishes in the sink, I don’t carry a purse-too small, need a totebag instead for all the stuff I lug around “just in case” and the top of my washer holds a lizard habitat and a pair of hand knit socks that are being blocked into shape.
I don’t think Ive ever taken a IQ test, if I have I don’t know the results.
I don’t know why I zeroed in on bird flu- I don’t stay up at night worring about cholera, malaria, small pox, AIDS and other infectious disease. (I do worry a lot about global warming)
Flu Wikians are independent thinkers and self-starters. They look at big pictures and discern how pieces fit together. They navigate adjustment reactions to face horrific possibilities squarely rather than retreating into denial. They act on what they know rather than throwing their hands up in despair. They exercise multiple intelligences, solve problems, and recognize the value of thinking together. They inquire, they delve, they discern, they think ramifications through. They don’t give up, and they recognize bunk when they see it. There is surely a convergence here between a modicum of intelligence and a certain personality type. (There was another thread on the latter.) Certainly high IQs are well represented in this community, but many people with high IQs and advanced degrees don’t get it. IQ is obviously a contributing but less than determinative factor in deciding who ends up here.
A personal note - my brother and I haven’t lived in the same house for some 28 years, not since I went off to college when I was 17 and he was 13. We’ve seen each other only about twice a year since and came to follow the avian flu threat through different avenues. We didn’t write a lot of letters or make a lot of phone calls over the years, though family ties remained strong. We each came independently to the flu discussion boards, and now, months after we began posting (and corresponding about flu), we actually know each other’s handles. (He figured me out when I worked on flu flyers last month.) You wouldn’t have recognized us as having much in common - the programmer and the English teacher - but I’ll be darned if we haven’t turned out to be more alike than we once thought, right down to IQs our parents never compared :→.
I think you’ve nailed it, InKy… and very eloquently. Oddly, I have had much the same experience as you — the only other person I know who is prepping (without me instigating it) is the brother in another state I rarely speak with. I was so glad when I found out! (He is btw, a very very smart man with a very humble job, an independent thinker and lives an unconventional lifestyle.)
Dennis C: don’t make me post my list of 100 reasons Kirk is better than Picard! (Starting with: 1) Two words: Shoulder roll.) Of course, neither one ever held a candle to Spock!
AnnieB: I couldn’t be more different re: visual/spatial. I recently congratulated myself for finding my way on an alternate path in my neighborhood… that I’ve lived in 17 years. I am so right-brained that I’m surprised my head isn’t lopsided.
No idea about my IQ …and I don’t remember my GRE’s (but they were good enough to get a free ride for grad school in the sciences and a reasearch assistantship - making the decision about where to go real easy as my parents still had 2 kids in college :) Also a voracious eclectic reader.
As for why a flu junkie, two sciences degrees…first real job was for an epidemiologist…this is interesting…oh yeah, I have two teenagers, and I have a husband (the most observant person I’ve ever met) who gets it!
As for prepping, we live on a somewhat working farm in rural NE…get kicked off the grid regularly for >12 hours, and several times for more that 3 days… the generator came after hauling water for cows during the 1998 ice storm (seriously not fun). Too far to go to the grocery store when you run out…After 15 years, prepping on certain levels just gets to be second nature.
Ever do Myers Briggs? I’m a big N (big picture)
Suzi,
There must be a certain sort of perception that we share. It’s not that we necessarily “see” more than anyone else, but that we interpret it differently and we act upon it. For example, my home has a basement and a sump pump. The sump pump has a battery-operated back-up pump. For most folks, that would be adequate protection against a flooded basement. But, I still had to get a generator, just in case. Then it occurred to me that the generator might fail to start for some reason, so I got a second generator. Then I started worrying about running out of fuel during an exended SIP, so I got a solar panel, regulator, inverter, and an extra pair of deep cycle batteries. Call me paranoid or call me proactive, take your pick. Regardless, I now have the comfort level that I need.
You know, when TSHTF a whole lot of really smart people are going to look pretty darned stupid, and anyone who made adequade preparations will look like a sage.
Mine was 125 about a century ago. I too have always read voraciously about everything,including sci-fi. I firmly believe that an innate couriousity leads to intelligence more than the brains you were born with. My Dad went thru 3rd grade and then to work. My Mother went all the way thru 5th grade but she was one smart cookie all her life. She too was one who read everything in print that she could get her hands on.
I read a lot, but it is mostly all non-fiction science/math stuff. Although I do spend a hour or so a day reading through the Harvard Classics, Great Books, and the Encyclopedia just to excercise my “other side”.
Perhaps the real question we should be asking fluwikians is what our OCD scores are ;)
Some time back, someone (Eccles maybe?) did a survey of the ages of Fluwikians. There was a curve peaking at or near my age (53) and then a smaller curve peaking at a somewhat younger age.
As I recall, it was suggested that those were groups of people who came of age during rough economic times. It was also suggested that coming of age during those times left at least some of us with an inclination to stock up for bad times, since we had already experienced them.
Maybe someone with more energy than I can dig up that old thread.
I might also suggest that my age group was also at the forefront of the “back to nature” “off the grid” Mother Earth News type generation.
What would be interesting is to see what Meyers-Briggs type we are-
I’m a ENTJ. Anyone else?
further comment to the anon who objected to various people answering the question about intelligence-
I don’t make a point of trumpeting my intelligence, but if someone asks, I’ll tell them. (135) I’m not ashamed of being smart, and I’m not about to let some anti-intellectual bigot intimidate me, either. If you don’t like knowing there are people both smarter and more polite than you are, go elsewhere!
As regards liking smart women, I do. I always looked for smart women when I dated and I married one of the most brilliant people I have ever met.
OnandAnon – at 17:59 ISTJ
Oddly enough, I think one thing preppers have in common is optimism. I scored in the top two percentile on the Stanford-Binet about 100 years ago. My best friend, who scored higher than I did, refuses to prep in any way. I believe that once I know what the problem is, I can solve it; my friend believes that everything’s going to hell, anyway, so why bother?
After reading through these threads, it strikes me that no matter what the IQ level, FluWikians share a love of reading. My parents always used to stress that reading was critically important. If you are a reader, you can be an expert in any area that truly interests you - regardless of IQ or education level.
Weighing in on the Kirk vs Picard debate: tough one, but Kirk wins. It is what it is.
On and On: I’m INTP on Briggs-Meyers.
I don’t see how IQ has any influence on the ‘pragmatic’ need to worry about H5N1. In fact, most people I know who are so careful about things in life tend to have unremarkable IQs (as well as I can estimate). But then my IQ is only 55, so how can I estimate??? :~)
I actually think a Briggs-Meyers profile might be more interesting to explore when surveying people who are so interested in possible pandemic flu. But so could an MMPI (paranoia scale anyone?)
I’m an INFP. Heavily N and P!
I think that survival is “primal” and not really a part of an IQ measure. I will say it again: it doesn’t take an Einstein to know if the something is killing half of all who it infects and there is more and more cases each year, you need to take heed.
More to do with Mr.Darwin than IQ
JWB – at 14:44 --- I think our common denominator is our high AQ. Awareness Quotient.
BINGO!!
You know me – at 15:13 --- IQ above 160. Advanced degrees etc.
You would be…..Anonymous?!?
you may know me…157.
Bronco Bill at 19:46
Nope. Never ever used that tag.
I am a high school science teacher and the Gifted and Talented coordinator for a relatively large rural school. In my position, I test children’s IQs on a regular basis. When you look at all the information out there you will notice that the general concensus among researchers is that IQ is about 40–50% genetic and the rest is due to experience. Having tested about 200 students, I agree. I’ve seen kids with amazing raw talent score low because they weren’t exposed to much information, usually due to socioeconomic shortfalls. I’ve seen kids with slightly above average intelligence score high because they were exposed to all kinds of enriching information. One very good indicator of intelligence is a love of reading. Those students with high reading levels almost always score high on my test. So you are on the right track - readers usually have a broader view of life and have the neural network primed to make use of any information given them. By the way, we have sixteen bookshelves in our house (most over 5′) full of all kinds of books - histories, how-tos, math, science, fiction, science fiction, writing, languages, etc. We don’t like the library - you have to give the books back.
I read this quote somewhere on the “wiki” recently and I love it;
Great minds discuss ideas, mediocre minds discuss events, small minds discuss people.
And one of my very own. . .
A “know-it-all” is somebody who has been educated beyond their intelligence.
wife of Okieman - totally agree - reading is such a great developer. Also agree with the library books problem - I also feel too pressured to read them in the 3 week window!
wife of Okieman - about books,
“I have always imagined Paradise as a kind of library.” Jorge Luis Borges
I am running at around 4000 volumes right now, mostly non-fiction, mostly English - about 1/4 in the house, 1/4 in my lab, and 1/2 in my old trailer that is converted to a library/study with a blackboard -of course to work on my equations. OK so I am warped. I just cannot pass up a library book sale. I also collect books autographed by Nobel prize winners.
The nice thing about library books is interlibrary loans I can get almost any book I want/need.
The Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) service is good too if you have access to it.
A ‘know it all’ isn’t necessarily someone educated beyond their intelligence. Often it is someone who thinks a piece of knowledge is so neat they just want to share it, and they make the mistake of thinking that others are both interested in and intelligent enough to understand the knowledge shared.
I have no idea what my IQ is. I think the primary purpose of the number is ‘pissing contests’--“I’m smarter!” “No, no, I’m smarter.”
I think there are three unifying factors in flu wiki people. First, because of the volumes of things that need to be read to keep on top of the flu situation, we are all adept (and likely fast) readers. Secondly, something somewhere in our backgrounds has convinced us that everything does NOT always turn out right, that bad things DO happen to good people, and that life CAN be unfair.
I think that we have a pessimistic streak that tells us that the unthinkable isn’t unthinkable, and isn’t impossible.
I also think we have a fundamental distrust of authority. If we trusted them, we’d leave all this to them and just wait to be told what we need to know when we need to know it. As it is, we feel it is our job to become and stay informed because we do not trust them (either via suspecting their competence or their intent) to let us know how and when to act.
Lisa-I think you’ve hit the nail on the head.
A ‘know it all’ isn’t necessarily someone educated beyond their intelligence. Often it is someone who thinks a piece of knowledge is so neat they just want to share it, and they make the mistake of thinking that others are both interested in and intelligent enough to understand the knowledge shared.
I have no idea what my IQ is. I think the primary purpose of the number is ‘pissing contests’--“I’m smarter!” “No, no, I’m smarter.”
I think there are three unifying factors in flu wiki people. First, because of the volumes of things that need to be read to keep on top of the flu situation, we are all adept (and likely fast) readers. Secondly, something somewhere in our backgrounds has convinced us that everything does NOT always turn out right, that bad things DO happen to good people, and that life CAN be unfair.
I think that we have a pessimistic streak that tells us that the unthinkable isn’t unthinkable, and isn’t impossible.
I also think we have a fundamental distrust of authority. If we trusted them, we’d leave all this to them and just wait to be told what we need to know when we need to know it. As it is, we feel it is our job to become and stay informed because we do not trust them (either via suspecting their competence or their intent) to let us know how and when to act.
dang, I hate it when the interface hangs and I post a duplicate. Mods, keep the second one, it makes me look like I can count to three.
I hated high school because I was so different. All I really wanted to do was read. I wanted out, so in my junior year of high school, when I discovered that the university I wanted to attend had a pilot program for early enrollment, I applied. I was accepted for the program after I was individually tested with the Stanford-Binet by the head of the university’s psychology department. He told me my IQ was 137. I now have some fairly severe neurological problems, and I’m quite sure that my IQ is nowhere near that high now. I still feel like the same person inside, though.
Meserole in FL hit the nail on the head, those who can read well hold the world in their hands. I struggled to put my child in a great private school for kindergarden and 1st grade, because I knew they would teach her to read well (unlike the public schools here, who routinely graduate functional illiterates). I figured that even if she learned nothing else (pretty darn true!) once the money ran out and she had to go to public school, at least she could teach herself anything at all if she could only read well. As a kid, I spent lots of time reading the dictionary and encyclopedias, so did my daughter. My grandson is headed down the same road of being an excellent and voracious reader.
Repeatedly tested S-B and M-B/MMP from age 9 to age 20.
chalkboards. A few years ago we move from a trailer (this was a mountain retreat) to a house. The trailer is now my library and study. I decked one room out in blackboards. There is something about the feel of the chalk in my hand and I have some of those “pull down” kinds to save some master equations, work on something and go back to the equations. My degree is in biophysics but my love is in general relativity. I also have a physics/chemistry lab and machine shop to build wild crazy inventions. It took me a while to admit what kind of things I really enjoy. Now I am living my dream. Not a lot of money but enough for a sizable budget line for books, chemicals, and equipment. I hate to admit it, but I almost look forward to SIP so I will have an excuse to stay at home, read and work at my blackboard without interruption.
PS I love your insight into sequences. What do you think about the replikin work with shrimp?
Dennis, can I SIP with you?
I just want to hike on Cra’s nature trails.
wife of Okieman ¨C at 20:32
we have sixteen bookshelves in our house (most over 5¡ä) full of all kinds of books - histories, how-tos, math, science, fiction, science fiction, writing, languages, etc.
And it shows.
We don¡¯t like the library - you have to give the books back.
Same here.
btw, I read a surveyy once that tried to discover what kinds of upbringing etc are correlated with future academic success. They discovered that neither taking the kids to libraries nor reading to them made one hoot of difference.
The single most striking correlation is…drum rolls please…. having lots of books in the house.
Cos what kind of people would have 16 bookshelves anyway, yeah?
Dennis,
What are the guys at FluForecast doing now?
I stopped watching a few months ago. If they develop enough content for their heuristics, they may be able to make some inflection predictions.
Actually, Okieman and Mrs Okieman, can I SIP with you?
<says she, ogling their books…>
Every couple of years my DW and I donate books to either a school or local elder home. It is normal 20 to 25 box’s. We have our favorites that we keep only 2 book cases full and working on a third one so we do not keep a big collection. Our kids have some how learned from us and read all the time and they donate books like we do. Sometimes it is good to share knowledge as well as soak up all that you can.
As far as my IQ, who cares it is what you do with your life that counts.
NS1 – at 23:36
the latest Replikins new release is here:
“The replikin concentration in H5N1 has been found to rise steadily, by a factor of 2.5 over the period covered, from 1997 to 2006, from a mean count of 1.9 to the current count of 4.8 units per 100 amino acids …
Over the period covered by the study, the mortality rate in human H5N1 cases has in fact also increased by a multiple (2.3 times), from 26 percent in 1997 to 60 percent in 2006, a rise comparable to the increase in the concentration of the replikin sub sequences. ..
the CDC has epidemiological data available going back nearly 100 years. We discovered that a consistent sub-sequence of peptides increased in concentration in all influenza virus outbreaks” ……..
I should caution those that haven’t followed this, that Replikins is a commerical business and thus is not totally “impartial”. Basically, they say that a pandemic is likely because all these little short pieces (specific proteins) are showing up in the ocean (shrimp).
It all boils down to survival, we are the group that cimbs over the seat and doesn’t stand in the line getting off the crashing plane…
Hmmm.
I can fix your bicycle.
I am the best shot I know with a .45 1911 pistol.
I make an awesome gin martini.
I wrote a really bad master’s thesis on comedy as a political force in the Middle English fabliaux.
I work in physical rehabilitation with an emphasis on neuro rehab.
I have found my intellect and memory seriously challenged (in a good way LOL!) by all the information I have found in my travels through the wiki.
I have met lotsa folks here who are waaaaaaay smarter than me.
IQ: 139
You bring the shaker and ice, I’ll bring the Sapphire and lemon peel, and let’s take that damn test again.
136 - just barely qualified for Mensa but a member.
Anon for this since I rarely talk about IQ.
I don’t think in IQ numbers. I think in dog breeds. I’d have to say I’m part border collie. When something “ain’t right” I just can’t leave it be — I nudge and nip and worry and howl and carry on until “it” shapes up. High intelligence or high neurosis? I make my kids nuts — but, by gum, they are turning out to be pretty amazing people. So, is this an intelligent crowd or an intense crowd? (or both?). I miss Tom DVM. There’s a great hearted Labrador if there ever was one.
Back to the initial question, why we “get it” and why others don’t. Because we choose to be aware of what is going on around us. What would be a high self preservation IQ.
Dennis,
I like what they are doing, but I believe that it’s a post-hoc correlative and not necessarily predictive in the manner that they are stating. Experiment design and construction.
To be honest, I don’t even know my IQ, or my husband’s. But both of us were in the “gifted and talented” programs at our respective schools. The G&T programs tend to focus less on high IQ (though that is a big factor) than creative thinking. On the other hand, another girl in my (very small) G&T class with me told me the other day:
“The thing is, I’m just not going to worry about anything until it happens.”
But, for the most part, I agree that, in general, those with higher IQs find it easier to connect the dots so to speak. But that’s only generally speaking… like someone else said, some “geniuses” can’t think their way out of a box, and some of the most homely country folk I know are full of wisdom.
IQ only shows the possibility.
I test in the high average to superior range, whatever that means. Did above average on SAT and GRE.
On other kinds of tests tho, and my own experience, I am extremely intuitive, in that way someone mentioned above, able to derive conclussions by syntheising a variety of data. I am good at extrapolating. The more i know about a field or topic, the better I get at applying my intuition to a particular situation/example within those parameters. (example, went to nursing school didn’t complete…but to this day am spot on about what is going on with loved ones and aquaintences health issues…especially, I KNOW, but often can’t say precisely why, when something is WRONG…the alarm bells go off. Even in several cases when the MD’s were inssisting nothing was wrong)
so my intelligence isn’t shocking or rare. My intuition level is rarer.
I think the qualities that define fluwikians are
probably above average intelligence (regardless of IQ), the willingness to question authority or the status quo (which is a temperment issue) intellectual curiosity, the desire to Think, apply ones intelligence to an issue relative lack of denial as a defence mechanism relative ability to be planful (my friend with ADD cannot wrap her otherwise well-endowed brain around time and planning ahead for anything…she believes the risk of pandemic is real, and has above qualities…well actually she uses denial alot…but can’t accomplish prepping because it isn’t pressing at her in a tangible way today…she would not be a fluwikian0
Sorry that didnt’ come out as a nice list of five items. There should be a period then after “…defence mechanism”. Intelligence. Authority questioning by temperment. Intellectual curiosity. Lack of Denial. Planfulness. I have often thought of my friends I am trying to get to prep…”why is this so obvious to me and not to them?”, as it has been difficult for me to get thru to them. I figured out the barriers they have in common, which dovetails nicely with what qualities I have observed that fluwikians Do have.
I am a relatively frequent poster who is only anonymous here, FYI. You would recognise my ‘real” name
I am 144, no degrees, no children. Its interesting to read these summaries. Some ma notice that for my own discipline I never use spell check. I have made a living: janitor, repairing pianos, playing violin, journeyman boilermaker doing high rigging on power plants, and am for 2 decades now self employed real-time computer controls designer. (BTW, Y2K was real! The way,way,way more than 200 billion spent on replacing control computers and networks and payroll systems meant there was no disaster, that’s the problem when prepping works! No disaster!)I read every science fiction book (along with lots of other types)in my local library by 6th grade, and was astounded once when a temporary librarian wouldn’t let me check out a Heinlein book (Stranger…) with my Young Adult card! (No other librarian there ever said a word -but they should have - Heinlein and the other non-conformists ruined me for normal society- thank god!) It also showed me that “authorities” are rarely chosen for ability in their fields of authority, they chose themselves by their ability to gain power, and are NEVER worthy of trust other than their commitment to their own self interest (althought it is remotely possible they, as most humans are, can also be noble for a short time). I had 245 feet of bookshelves filled until 2 years ago, and got rid of almost all for a change in focus (do, not read). I will regret that, I think, in the long dark nights ahead.
If you think and research for yourself, the obvious is sometimes obvious. Everyone I tell about BF being the REAL Mccoy says “Well, why haven’t I heard it on the news? from the authorities?”. I do love it here because I don’t have to explain the problem with the world view of that comment.
and, intuition. sorry for three posts, am tired. Goodnite
fiddlerdave how’d you make it to such an advanced age? <wink>
oooo la laa, all this talk about readers gives me shivers up and down my spine!
High IQ does not mean high intelligence, it’s what you are capable of understanding and the speed that you comprehend. You must have input of knowledge to be intelligent. That’s what education means. Anyone who has a harder time understanding and slower comprehension can also be highly intelligent if they have persistence. An educated person is someone who has input that knowledge regardless of how easy or hard it was or how fast or slow they did it.
Common sense is an emotion. It is the ability to keep your wits about you and use your reasoning judgement.
IQ’s and emotions are two totally different things. There are mixed amounts in each of us. Kirk was way more passionate than Picard; Picard was more of a sage. Both were highly intelligent. Kirk probably has a higher IQ than Picard; Picard probably has more common sense. My favorite was Janeway. She was more of a leader, a problem solver, and a seeker and gatherer of knowledge. I think she had a high IQ and common sense equally. Of course, we can’t leave out Sisco. His enthusiasm was always tempered by his knowledge. Probably a pinch more IQ than common sense. His grounding came from fatherhood and tragedy. But it really doesn’t matter about the mixture for all of them, they were all highly educated. What makes Star Trek appealing to me is the theme of a thirst for knowledge and the urge to learn and become educated.
My number - 135. My reading interests - ancient history (as in Graham Hancock), civics and (some) science fiction. My reason to prep - it seems the logical thing to do, Captain. :>) I like the pointy nose.
Boy am I sorry that I ever mentioned Star Trek fans! :)
I think the common denominator between us all is that we like storing stuff. <g>
I won’t read all the posts in this long thread…
but what puzzles me is, why fluwikians claim that “they get it”
but then feel comfortable with not assigning a probability to it
and with the particular situation that politicians,journalists,
experts leave us in the dark in that they use unprecise words
to describe the threat but refuse to assign probability numbers
to it.
And that ‘’‘fluwikians and other people don’t mind this. Don’t discuss
about this lack of estimates. Don’t ask for these numbers.’‘’
Still they claim, that they do “get it.”
Gather and solve… ;-) To some that means numbers, to others, people. (Reading about other people’s experiences is more interesting to some than to others.)
Guessing (seemingly) only one person we see around here needs a risk-probability number paramount (ok- maybe, the risk is getting probable enough the person now perhaps wants to be allowed by tptb go buy a pandemic vaccine for themselves, but,) not everyone, even voracious readers, with or without chalkboards, needs to know in numerical black and white (from outside authorities, who, right or wrong, will not be there to help you), something bad is going to happen before they start preparation against it, just in case, when the impact would be so personally (and in pandemic instance, globally) catastrophic.
What Lisa the GP said about most flu wiki people; I agree: …”readers. Secondly, something somewhere in our backgrounds has convinced us that everything does NOT always turn out right, that bad things DO happen to good people, and that life CAN be unfair.
I think that we have a pessimistic streak that tells us that the unthinkable isn’t unthinkable, and isn’t impossible.
I also think we have a fundamental distrust of authority”…
(I’d say especially authorities who don’t acknowledge “everything does NOT always turn out right, that bad things DO happen to good people, and that life CAN be unfair” …”the unthinkable isn’t unthinkable, and isn’t impossible”)
Guessing some exceptions to every good sort of generally-sweeping, unifying, theory for group psychoanalysis.
Interesting thread. I agree with crfullmoon at 6:14 that many of us have had experiences that taught us that bad things happen rregardless of our wishes. My wife and I are both life long readers and grew up surrounded by books. My IQ is 140, hers tested at 167.
We are the only ones in our families who are prepping. My brothers and sisters are as intelligent as I am and were raised in the same environment. Must have a higher Prep Q or Awareness Q :)
Never had an IQ test done. I always thought they gave too skewed a picture of the true intelligence of a person.
What really shines through in an intelligent person is a finely-tuned sense of humour- fluwikians got that down pat!!!
My time in high school was spent reading my father’s books stored along 3 walls in my big bedroom. HS was really boring until I discovered biology lab and Advance Placement classes. High level teaching and a fast pace woke me up out of my puberal hormonal dreaming. Unfortunately I exploded in college and never got a degree, but I got something just as valuable- on a very practical level I started to find out fast who I was and what I was capable of doing to earn my way and grow in wisdom. Saved more than a few brain cells by watching very little tv- except Star Trek. (Kirk was a hunk)
I’ve never stopped reading. Science, Sci-Fi, atlases, languages and American Indian lore and wisdom, novels and fine literature, craftwork and cookbooks! Lately, I read only Fluwiki and related links and the BBC- the news media here(I live in the Netherlands)is too juvenile. One of the biggest discussions my DH and I had during early prepping days in our small flat was where we were going to put the books so we could store the preps!
Another major influence was hearing in 1982 of a new virus that could ultimately kill 2/3′s of the world’s population- AIDS. I learned as much as I could through the years, practicing safe sex, maintaining a ‘clean’ awarenes and gradually becoming very sceptical of the handling of this disease by the TPTB. There are very many parallels between AIDS and Pan Flu, right down to the denial factor- “It won’t happen to me/here”. I don´t remember rightly but maybe looking for recent info on AIDS I came across Fluwikie for the first time, and I am glad I did! You folks are te gek!!
Mr.White42 at 2001, nice to `see you again. Why don´t you post more often your sly humour is missed!
Also Anon for this. LOL!! Right on! I´ve always gotten a special thrill in any type of warehouse.
May you all be well.
Not much to add to all those comments which I have not read in detail.
I consider common sense and intuition a factor of intelligence. Only the less gifted or gifted but envious try to seperate this to make themselves feel better about what they think they lack (in intelligence or education which definitely are not the same).
Prepping and being smart - little correlation. If one looks at flu boards, they are not full of smart people but full of people who share one interest.
Myself? IQ above 180 when sick and in a foreign language. Prooven in real life as well. But: being smarter than most people you meet is only helpful in special situations, many times its a handicap and a serious communication problem.
anony – at 03:13
(my friend with ADD cannot wrap her otherwise well-endowed brain around time and planning ahead for anything…she believes the risk of pandemic is real, and has above qualities…well actually she uses denial alot…but can’t accomplish prepping because it isn’t pressing at her in a tangible way today…she would not be a fluwikian)
Anony, I found this comment of yours totally intriguing. There are so many traits of ADD that are commonly shared that you can easily draw some conclusions about people with ADD — I’m an ADD adult so I know from experience! :-)
You’re right to note that your friend has an otherwise well-endowed brain — ADDer’s ARE actually more intelligent than the average person, it’s part of the reason they aren’t focused-they’re bored with the ‘normal’ challenges.
But where we might not be able to stay focused on things we’re NOT interested in, we can be overly focused on things we love — to the detriment of other things. Many of us would make good assembly workers, if we were assembling something we truly loved! We would be caught up in them like our scientists here are caught up in their chalk and chalkboards to the exclusion of needing to eat or socialize with our family, etc. But only with things we LOVE! Things we have no interest in can’t hold our attention sometimes even if earning a living depends on it.
I would have said your friend would be a great “prepper” because of some of the commonalities she and I would most likely share.
For instance, ADD people quite often have a LOT of lights around them — not bright lights because we hate them, but lots of vignettes lit by light. In my living room, I have 2 tall lamps on my mantle to light that area and a picture light above the mantle picture. I have a floor lamp behind 2 of the 3 reading chairs, I have lamps or spotlights here and there throughout the room plus lights in my ceiling fan. I can focus better in a smaller ‘area of light’ where I can concentrate just on what’s surrounded by that light, than in a brightly lit room where I see everything and it becomes distracting — there used to be over 20 bulbs of some sort in my 14×22 living room-I’m proudly down to 15. I’d think that your friend would naturally, tho not necessarily knowingly, be drawn to numerous lights and in keeping them powered no matter what!
I also have an ADD-common tendency to collect things — I have had a collections of husbands-at different times, now have only one of those — the best one— but that may be the only thing I have just one of! I have a collection of cat figurines, a collection of books, a collection of antique tobacco or cookie tins, a collection of live cats, a collection of Bethlehem figurines (28′ of Bethlehem town to put them in), a collection of antique hankerchiefs, a collection of bug-out bags, a collection of almost everything. I would have thought that your friend would be able to get ‘into’ having a collection of cans of soup, tuna, cheese and butter, and a collection of fuels, a collection of documents printed out from the fluwikie, etc.
I’m drawn to color — the more and the brighter the merrier. My pantry is a riot of color & I just love that.
I simply adore list-making — I have a collection of them too! :-)
I remember reading in one of my books on ADD about an architect who would go off his/her medication long enough to use the creative aspects of ADD to design an imaginative building, then go back on the medication in order to actually concentrate enough to develop the structural backbone & working drawings for the buildings. I would bet that if your friend is taking medication for ADD, and she did like a lot of adult ADD’ers do and stopped it on the weekends when she wasn’t required to be ‘focused’ that she might be more receptive to prepping and once started, she’d be hooked, medication or not!
I’d bet, if you ever managed to introduce the idea of prepping to your friend at a time when the meds had worn off for the evening, she could be drawn to it & see the value & actually participate — as long as someone gave her a ‘non-negative’ time frame within to work — we all feel the pressure of deadlines and have to have things broken up into veeeerrryy small chunks in order to see that it’s possible to be successful at completing something and get our gold star at the end of the day. And we love teamwork in SOME things but not in ALL things.
For instance, if you gave her a list of 3 things to buy at WalMart or Target’s sporting goods like a Coleman lantern, a can of fuel, and a water container, she’d be able to pull that off, but don’t tell her to be finished shopping in 1 hour — she’d want to shop alone, take her time, look at other things too, etc. But don’t expect her to get home with her stuff and be excited about it — this is where the teamwork would have to come in — she’d bring it home and your part might be to make certain the lantern instructions are laminated and attached to the box, and the lantern is checked off a master list as being purchased and a notation made about which closet it’s been stored in. Ultimately that’s sometimes as close to ‘teamwork’ as an ADD’er can get, but the task gets done, and that’s the ultimate goal.
I’d love to hear whether I’m right about some of your friend’s habits and whether you think a different approach with her might help. Small chunks of prep ideas with a little supervision and a lot of praise when something gets done, should work better than “overall prepping”. And once she gets started in a way that can actually interest her, I’d be surprised if she didn’t complete the task. She might have things started and not finished in several areas, but don’t we all, but that’s better than not having started at all! It’s just a matter of making the cross-over from a non-rewarding chore with no ‘happy’ built in, to making it a fun, colorful, simple, quick-reward, type thing!
Yes, I realize I just described prepping in those terms. sigh.
anon_22 – at 23:42
You’d be welcome to come SIP with us. Seeing as you are a doc, you’re skills might come in handy. We’ll let you read our books if you’ll patch us up when we hurt ourselves. That sounds like a fair trade ;-) Your new mastiff puppy would fit right in, we have seven dogs. I call them my mongrel horde. They’re mostly just useless loveable mutts, but they make a fine “intruder alert” system.
I think it has little to do with IQ and lots to do with intolerance of risk.
Intolerance of risk when one knows on a “good, normal, modern” day, one can fall through the cracks, let alone when federal and state and local officials have carefully covered themselves, at least on paper, that most haven’t been shown, that it is up to individuals and neighbors to get through the obvious risk of a pandemic year on their own, and tptb are set on keeping the public so calm that the word can’t get out and believed so individuals and neighborhoods start preparing better contingency plans… (intolerance of tptb and the way they act… intolerance of public’s trust in tptb -who said, behind their backs, that the unnotified members of the public are acceptable losses…while thinking that strategy is going to have any sort of long-term recovery benefit…not sure they’re thinking that- not sure they’re thinking…)
ENTP
Jefiner- If you have Sapphire and lemon twist, I’m there with shaker and frosted glassees. Discussing Middle English Tableux sounds way cool-I love the Mystery plays! I was a theatre major in college. Wrote a lot of papers on Hamlet.
Olymom-a good friend of mine once told me that if I were a dog Id be a collie. Since Ive spent a fair amount of time herding children from place to place this rings true.
I’m Working on it- We KNOW you like lists! Most of us are still trying to get through the “Rose’s List” thats got to be like the Mother of All Lists!
Jefiner-you got Sapphire and lemon twist-I’m there with shaker and frosted glasses. I was a Theatre major in College-I’d love to discuss Middle English Tableaux!
Olymom-a good friend of mine once said that if I were a dog, I’d be a collie- a friendly happy dog tht takes care of everybody. (Alas, I think he mentioned “floppy and hairy” also…) I have spent a great deal of time herding children-and some adults around so this rings true.
Anonymous @ 4:58-(you know who you are) Probability numbers? We don’t need no stinkin’ Probability numbers. Its coming and its going to be bad-how do you pt a number on that?
Readers Rule! Ive done a LOT of volunteer/community service work. The best work Ive ever done was sitting on a sticky elementary school floor helping children learn to read.
IQ 158, over +3 SD, ENTP, Bra size 75C, What do you think? :D
Green Mom – at 10:33 just be aware that *I* haven’t even made it through that list yet — but…….I’m Workin’ On It!
tested 135
I comfortable here. And am relieved be be a dummy in the group.
I cheated on the test and completly blew off the math portion. So I tested out at 114. I’d rather be the smartest dumb person in the room than be the dumbest smart person.
Thanks for all the responses. I thought I would get flamed by more than just one for starting this thread. The thoughts conveyed are very interesting.
I guess we can conclude that that an IQ considerably above average is a common trait among our ilk. Average seems to be about 145. I think I read that is in the top 1 or 2 % of population.
But higher IQ is only part of the make up, and is not a requirement. Seems the other and more defining characteristic is fluwikians tend to have had some sort of undesirable experience(s) at some point in their life that they want to avoid in the future. Or at least have the observation ability to realize bad things can happen.
I think a combination of several rare personal traits is needed to make for a fluwikian mind set. Let’s say there might be 10 traits common to fluwikians. Each of these traits is only found in 1% of the population. Not all traits are needed. We’ll assume possessing a minimum of any 5 of the 10 traits will make a fluwikian. Those with more than 5 traits tend to have a higher PPF. So the likliehood of any given person having the tendency to deal with BF is .01 x .01 x .01 x .01 x.01. My calculator wigs out when I try that. This explains, in my mind, why very very few people “get it”. I doubt I would have figured that out without this thread, and would have continued wondering if I was loony.
I’m not a statician or psychologist, but that’s my assessment of why we are such a small minority.
Another very interesting aspect on this thread was trying to figure out which anon was which regular. I mean I’m somewhat used to and familiar with the different writing styles of regular posters.
Thank you for your posts. I liked Inky’s best.
jjf
death wish = non preppers
thay are not dumb, they just don’t care
(anon for this – at 16:23 - that’s me)
I taught myself how to read at age 4. Spent my entire childhood at the library. Read the World Book Encyclopedia as recreation. Rarely watch TV as a kid (different in the 50s).
Lived with much hardship and deprivation as an adult - without electricity for years altogether, on rainwater catchment, cooking on campstoves, etc. Used to “survivalist” type living already, it’s not a new thing.
Have absolutely no need (or desire) for entertainment, mass culture, etc.
I think FWians are an independent lot in many ways. Not sheeple.
I also maxed out a test as a small child. I haven’t really ever been interested in finding my true IQ. I figured when your bored in the “gifted” program classes growing up, the number must be up there. (That or it doesn’t take much to be a genius in public school) Anyway, one of my favorite saying is that “HALF the people you know are below average.” Think about that for a second. I agree with the idea of we are more aware of the news, our surroundings, and the ramifications of what we know.
Why am I here? 3 reasons, I’ll leave out being an evil genius as one :) Biology is my profession so I had a long head start on BF. Second was freaking out/surviving 9–11. Lastly , and this is my favorite reason. After I graduated college my buddy and I took a rather long breather at his cabin way out in “no mans land” Adirondacks NY. He had this huge cabin him and his father (both lumberjacks) had built. Towards the end of the vacation I was sitting by the fire and looking at the bookshelf. I see his mothers cooking books and knickknacks when suddenly like a neon light to any college male, I spot an ancient playboy bunny peeking out. Seeing my surprise at the very out of place magazine my buddy goes “Read the fiction section and you will understand why that’s here.” I read a story about a guy in my same situation totally cut off from the world for a month camping in the woods. When he comes back to the world a virus has killed off everyone…. After I put down the story and probably had very large glassy eyes he goes “really, what would you do?” That is why I am here.
there are 2 kinds of people: those who put people into categories and those who dont.
Whatever intelligence I have I owe to genetics. What I am is a contrarian. I never care what anyone else thinks but make up my own mind based on intuition, observation and a deep respect for my own inner spirit, which guides me in all matters. Disliked school, but did learn to read, write and basic mathematics. Otherwise felt it a total waste of time. Test high, my children even higher. They too are mavericks, and do whatever they fancy..Don’t know why I’m here. Am prepping on a “just in case” scenario. After all, what’s the harm in it, and I’ve turned it into one of lifes little challenges. I am one of lifes observers. While I participate, I also enjoy all the side dramas and issues that arise in life. There is a lot of drama here, deeper thinking than whats for supper, or what will I watch on T.V. tonight. A few of the women here seem to have had problems. with the relationships in their lives. It makes for a self reliant way of approaching life. A little like a cartoon I saw in todays paper. The sign outside says something like “Male bashing tonite” And a man outside the lounge, says “They get more trade than if they call it “Ladies Nite.” I also read somewhere that more women in their middle years do a lot of worrying. They are in a time of life where they have themselves to take care of, a few children, ageing parents. If they are fortunate as far as relationships they still have other issues. We lead complex lives. My male relations took politics very seriously, the women took their families problems as a primary concern. I seem more detatched. I consider most politicians corrupt, but I vote. My parents are gone, and I give my children credit and the space to live without interferance on my part. So common sense says, Take care of yourself. If we have an SIP listen to the warnings and stock up on Water and Food.It doesn’t take a high I.Q. to figure that out.
diana – at 14:31
What I am is a contrarian.
I guess I’m a contrarian when someone else says No.
Including fate, or nature. Or government.Or viruses…
I’m an optimist, I think.
I think it’s got to be reading. Fiction/non-fiction doesn’t matter, but our ability to imagine or understand that other people may have equally valid realities permits us to objectively consider things like avian flu without feeling threatened.
anonymous – at 14:20, There are actually three kinds of people. People who are good at math, and people who are not good at math.
Oh, and Cinda? Got a brilliant wife, and wouldn’t trade her for a case of vaccine!
I think it’s got to be reading. Fiction/non-fiction doesn’t matter, but our ability to imagine or understand that other people may have equally valid realities permits us to objectively consider things like avian flu without feeling threatened.
anonymous – at 14:20, There are actually three kinds of people. People who are good at math, and people who are not good at math.
Oh, and Cinda? Got a brilliant wife, and wouldn’t trade her for a case of vaccine!
Another Mensan here who likes Star Trek . . . and Star Wars.
INTP.
I have degrees in philosophy, law, and anthropology but ended up as a librarian which suits me best of all.
Be careful, I hear Scientologists would like to meet many of you…
I wonder if physical ‘endowment’ might be significant. Can we take a survey guys?
Have we all gotten it out of our system yet?
Nope, I want to tell I’m-workin’-on-it that we must be twins.
Guess who :) – at 10:54 “IQ 158, over +3 SD, ENTP, Bra size 75C, “
Just noticed a little mistake. I actually tested ENFP. Also I know from experience that disasters can happen, and that preparing can make a difference.
Why to take pandemic risk seriously? Many reasons, e.g. it’s a perfect excuse to be promiscuous ;D Well, just a joke…
Minnesota_Scientist – at 20:27 There are actually three kinds of people. People who are good at math, and people who are not good at math.
mojo – at 03:14 Nope, I want to tell I’m-workin’-on-it that we must be twins.
In keeping with MS’s comment about being able to count, I’d have to say, mojo, that if we dug deeper, we’d find we have a BUNCH of twins here-all identical! :-)
Olymom – at 00:05
LOL! Makes me a yappy chihuahua!!
RIDICULOUS THREAD ALERT – at 02:36
Yup.
Olymom – at 00:05 that make me a turkish van cat. I don’t like dogs.
John D Macdonald wrote a short pamphlet once; I think it was entitled “reading for survival” and it was a very well done discourse between Travis McGee and his friend Meyer. I have a copy but it’s showing wear. I’d like to get copies and give them all to my teenage relatives but it was out of print the last time I looked.
OMG, I love John D Macdonald. I’m going to have to re-read all those great books. Always wanted to live on a houseboat.
Agatha Christie, Ed Mcbain are some of my faves too.
A common thread on this thread is our love of reading. We read the words, visualize the story line, ponder where the story may go, devise/visualize possible outcomes, read on and find out “what really happened”.
We can read the threads here, scientific and not so scientific, and visualize immediately how the information will impact us, our families, our communities, our world in a very detailed way. That motivates us to act to create a different ending than the one foretold by the story up to this point.
Others see the same information and cannot or will not extrapolate/visualize the outcome in a meaningful way.
Thoughts? If this is valid, it may help us motivate the heretofore unmotivated.
This is a few years out of date, so don’t know… “John MacDonald’s Reading for Survival Reprinted. One of the last pieces of writing by the best-selling writer John D. MacDonald, &3Reading for Survival, has been reprinted by the Library of Congress under the sponsorship of the Center for the Book and the Florida Center for the Book.
This powerful affirmation of the importance of reading by one of America’s favorite authors was commissioned by the Center for the Book in 1985 and finished only a few months before MacDonald’s death. Since it appeared in 1987, it has become the most popular publication ever produced by the Center for the Book. After the first printing had been exhausted, the Book-of- the-Month Club produced a special edition for its members. The continuing demand has led to this edition, which is published with support from the Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund as part of the Center for the Book’s “Literary Heritage of the States” project.
Reading for Survival, a 26-page booklet designed by Adrianne Onderdonk Dudden, is available for a contribution of $15 to either the Center for the Book, Library of Congress, Washington, DC 20540, or the Broward Public Library Foundation, Florida Center for the Book, Broward County Library, 100 S. Andrews, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301. “
“contact the Center for the Book by e-mail at: cfbook@loc.gov, or write: The Center for the Book, Library of Congress, 101 Independence Ave.,SE, Washington, DC 20540–4920″
The intelligent can find many more things to worry about. The thing you need to watch is to not let the “possibilities” become your current reality. Keep one foot in the present while you are trying to grok the future. Never been tested for IQ. My choleserol is around 180 tho.
NW – at 13:07,
The thing you need to watch is to not let the “possibilities” become your current reality.
Hear! Hear!
I guess I’m a golden retreiver. Amiable and easy going, but reasonably intelligent.
I think I would be a saluki.
NW – at 13:07
Keep in mind that our projections and then our opposing actions to the potential realities is what blocks terrible possibilities from becoming reality.
NS1 – at 20:05
Keep in mind that our projections and then our opposing actions to the potential realities is what blocks terrible possibilities from becoming reality.
That is exactly the reason I choose my screen name “Possible Impact”. (back in 1998)
anon for this – at 13:42
you sound like my twin, except 10 years older. (and I had 10 amps of 120V)
OnandAnon – at 17:59 What would be interesting is to see what Meyers-Briggs type we are-
I’m a ENTJ. Anyone else?
What does that mean?
I think that’s the test I took where I wrote in all my own answers because I didn’t like any of the multiple choice ones. They said I would have to take the test over. I asked over what? I guess I have no personality cause the results came back with blanks.
Anyways, I have tons of insurance and that’s why I prep. It’s just another form of insurance.
NS1 at 20:05
Yes!
The preppers are processing the information in a way that motivates them to get prepared. The skill sets and intelligences around voracious reading is involved. Another common factor is very harsh experiences in the past which has stripped us of the illusion security.
How can we use this to reach more people!
Homesteader,
Harsh experiences? You bet. Plenty of them. I have 5 degrees and always tested in the top 1%, buy my motivation to prep has nothing to do with brains or education. It is all about surviving financial hardship, both during and after the pandemic.
My wife and I have been on welfare more than once. We have lived off food stamps. We have worked at menial minimum wage jobs when suitable employment in our fields could not be found. Back in the late 1980s, we went bankrupt and lost our home. We have both been janitors and we have both held multiple part-tine jobs. For many years, we struggled to obtain a decent lifestyle for our children and we certainly never want to go back to the way things were. This is what motivates us.
On a household-by-household basis, we do not know what what will happen in the next pandemic. Some families will emerge from the pandemic relatively unscathed, but others will have lost their income, or they might even have lost their primary bread winner. Therefore, we recognize that it is not enough to plan for an extended shelter in place exercise. We also need a post-pandemic plan.
A post-pandemic plan does not take great intelligence, either. All it takes is the desire to live as comfortably as possible for as long as possible. So, what does that entail? Nothing more than the methodical accumulation of everything you could possibly need to be completely self-sufficient within your own home for whatever period of time you deem to be adequate.
This ain’t no “rocket surgery”, folks. It’s just home economics. Go buy the stuff now so you won’t run out later.
So, for all you brainy folks out there, do you have a post-pandemic plan?
Hmmm…IQ. I don’t remember being tested in grade school. Maybe I wasn’t told out of a sense of charity.
I don’t think IQ has much to do with a concern for BF. Remember that many animals had a sense of impending doom prior to the tsunami and headed inland for the hills and I doubt many of them are much brighter than many of us.
I suspect BF awareness is due to a well developed sense of responsibility. In my case I really do believe that I have an advantage by not having TV in my home. (We have a TV box but no service, it’s for videos only).
Some very smart people whom I’ve mentioned BF to believe I’m a boob, but their response was so quick that BF may have only provided an opportunity to say so.
I am humbled. I guess it is just me and the flat worms.
Oh, ssol, don’t say so of yourself..! :)
Dr Dave, I agree with you saying this: “It is all about surviving financial hardship, both during and after the pandemic.”
EI Emotional Intelligence is a more accurate predictor to how a child or young adult will succeed in life than a high IQ. There is a saying around Boston among lawyers that I have heard many times which goes like this: The “A” students are all working for the “C” students.
I’ve been tested three times, 139, 153, and 183. It certainly makes me question the validity of the tests.
Back in college, I once enrolled in an advanced computer programming class. Mind you, this was back in the 1970s, when the mainframe was an IBM 360, about as powerful as my first Palm Pilot. The first day of the first class, the teacher said this was an exhausting and difficult class, and many people don’t complete it, or fail. To help us decide whether or not to even waste our time, we were given a test. The teacher explained it was essentially a standard IQ test. He said IQ was kind of a myth, and changes depending on what kinds of problems one has been working on recently, but the kind of questions it uses would pretty exactly predict how each person would do in this class this quarter. I scored ok, not great, and decided to stick the class out a bit. Two weeks later I dropped the class, realizing I wasn’t nearly prepared enough. I took it later, after more prep work and practice, and did fine. I’ve fooled around with the online IQ tests, and find I do best on them after a steady month of programming in a language I’m not very familiar with. Near as I can tell, IQ tests measure your current level of programming skill.
They told me I was “gifted.” Showed me scores, and “talked” to me about my “potential.” When “they” finally shut-up, and I could “tell” they “wanted” a response I simply said, “God help the morons, if I am the smart guy.” What I know is when the drum beats --- I am never marching, stepping or dancing the same way as everybody else.
What seacoast – at 11:37 said about EI, is absolutely true. IMHO, it is what makes a “leader.” It will be the “surviving” crux in a pandemic as we are foreseeing, or in some similar catastrophe.
What makes us what we are today. Saw two films. One an oldie. The Scarlet Empress with Marlene Deitrich as the future Catherine the Great, unforgettable in its way. Then yesterday “Casino Royale”. James Bond evolving into 007. The actor is quite remarkable. Before seeing the film, I couldn’t understand why he was chosen, even though I am not a 007 fan, and haven’t seem most of the films. The actor makes you feel you are seeing the him evolving. What makes any real human being behave in certain ways..I spoke of a figure half human, half lion that I once saw, this 007 is that figure trimmed down into human leonine form.Now these films were more than an hour.I doubt that anyone could understand any of you in these little snippets we reveal, even if you yourselves knew why you are what you are. Do we really know ourselves? We are all far more complex than any one here can imagine. Intelligence and I.Q.. I never did my own homework, far too lazy. I day dreamed my way through school, as the only way I could tolerate the sheer boredom. What I know ,I learnt from experience and seeking out what interested me, certainly nothing from schooling itself. I slid through easily. I think what this group has is imagination. A wider scope, a larger view beyond the average. I like blending in, being part of the herd, but only when it suits me. It’s merely being pleasant and agreeable. Another way to slide through life. I’ve been fortunate to stumble on interesting people in all the phases of my life. I think we have such a group here.
The only reason I don’t move. My library. One wing of the house.
IQ - Far too high for my own good.
Many in this group also have creativity which I think is the real difference.
disgruntled – at 12:38
You probably would have done just fine in the class if you hadn’t dropped out.
seacoast – at 16:20
Yes, I agree, creativity is another marvelous attribute.