The Genius in All of Us by David Shenk - Essay Example

Readings and Journal Assignment for Essay 2: Summary/Definition I. Summary The article of David Shenk, d “The Genius in All of Us” speaks of the discovery of New Zealand-based psychologist James Flynn that the Intelligence Quotient or IQ of children improves over time. In the study, it was found that IQ improves by three points in a period of ten years. The article also hypothesized that the main reason why succeeding generation bettered than their predecessors was because abstract concepts were unfamiliar in the earlier the period.

The scientific methods were not yet introduced then which over time, been discovered and permeated to the mass consciousness leading to a higher IQ of the succeeding generation. This led to improvement in social discourses which finally resulted in a higher measurable intelligence of almost everyone. II. Main points The main point of this article is that we and the children get smarter over time because the environment demands it. Unlike before where life was simpler, our predecessors were more preoccupied with their day to day reality and as such, their intelligence quotient was lower.

Life in modern times however demands sophistication, planning and foresight for us to survive and adapt with the changing and demanding environment which is why we need to be smart to adapt. The need to think before was not really that imperative because life was just simple compared today where skills are a necessity in order to be relevant in today’s Information Age. The introduction of the scientific methods facilitated this improvement in intelligence in the succeeding generation compared to our forebears in the 1900’s.

As science and its methodology permeated in the academes and universities, it was able to create a cadre of intellectuals that led the way for the improvement of our civilization. Little by little, it spread into the mindset of people as more of us became conscious of the importance of education. As a result, discourses improved and the measurable intelligence of almost everybody was raised. There is a similarity however in some area of intelligence between the succeeding generation and the preceding generation.

This is the area of general knowledge and mathematics. Children of the present generation’s mathematical ability and general knowledge aptitude did not differ much compared to the children of the earlier generation. The stark difference however is in the problem solving capability because the children today are more capable of abstraction, logic and hypothesis. III. Conclusion David Shenk’s article, which was based on the study of James Flynn may have an obvious finding that the succeeding generation will really be better than those that it precedes.

It lends to the generalization of the human race’s eventual improvement only that the study was able to quantify the progression in IQ as three points in every ten years. Society does not stagnate nor does man. It always seek to understand and to discover, and in the process, improves itself. In its quest to discover and understand his world, man has to use both his cognitive and emotional intelligence, which will increased its ability to rationalize, think and conceptualize over time. The article however was able to articulate the circumstances on how mankind was able to improve its intelligence.