I read what I like for learning, fun, entertainment, and so on. I just read some neat novels, comic books, and a book on sniping.
Sometimes I want smarty pants stuff for intellecual stimulation, but normally I read to be entertained. But one thing for sure, I do read what I say I do, not what makes me look smart to people who don’t know me.
So where would D-Cup magazine rank on this guy’s list, hahaha!
[quote]Ghost22 wrote:
But I feel like a bad motherfucker right now because I’m in the middle of reading Catch-22 for fun :)[/quote]
Could it be read any other way?!
[quote]Uncle Gabby wrote:
Interesting. I scored a 1250, but most of the books listed that I’ve read fell in the 1100-1150 range.
[/quote]
Because that is an average score for the whole school that has that book as a top ten.
Very few schools have an extraordinarily high SAT average.
I really doubt this correlation is useful. What about the people who have read multiple of the books listed? Is intelligence related to ones SAT scores?
I think you would find a much stronger correlation between intellect and the variety of books that people read- also how much they read. You aren’t going to get that off somebody’s facebook though. I know plenty of people who list a very “smart” book as their favorite book on facebook who probably read 2 or 3 books per year.
I scored a 1560 (and 800s on all my SAT 2’s) and I enjoy lots of the books that are on the low end of the scale; I love the pulp fiction sort of writers like Grisham or Clancy, but I also enjoy a lot of the “smart” stuff like Freakanomics and anything but Malcolm Gladwell or the smarmy lit books. I scored 760 on the verbal section of the SAT without really doing much studying but for as long as I can remember reading has been one of my favorite pass times. One of my friends is very much the same way- very eclectic reading tastes and he also scored well on the SAT verbal without much studying.
Stuff like vocab and reading comprehension has always been pretty easy for me and I think it’s just because somehow my parents got me to enjoy reading a lot more than watching TV as a little kid.
You really have to question the accuracy of the reporting of results though. I wonder how many people who are scoring 900 on their SAT are actually really reading the Bible as opposed to just listing it for the sake of people reading their facebook page. I’m not a religiouss person at all but I have read the Bible and I think anybody who has read it extensively would tell you that it is a great work of literature.
[quote]FightinIrish26 wrote:
LOL.
I fucking love it.
Although I refuse to believe that reading “Atlas Shrugged” makes you any smarter. It’s far more likely to turn you into an angry, ugly, cunty old hag. Kind of like Ann Coulter…[/quote]
and other members of the bourgeois white trash.
[quote]LIFTICVSMAXIMVS wrote:
I really doubt this correlation is useful. What about the people who have read multiple of the books listed? Is intelligence related to ones SAT scores?[/quote]
I think you have to keep in mind what’s being correlated - an aggregated set of the top listed preferences for certain books for schools with average SAT ranges for those schools. The previous iteration of the SAT was actually a fairly decent approximation for IQ (the old version with antonyms and before calculators were allowed was better), and the current version is still OK if you don’t count the writing section.
I think the info is pretty interesting. For instance, the lower SAT scores are correlated to a couple instances of not following directions and listing an author instead of a book. Or the difference between listing “the Holy Bible” vs. “the Bible.”
[quote]Kailash wrote:
Ghost22 wrote:
But I feel like a bad motherfucker right now because I’m in the middle of reading Catch-22 for fun 
Could it be read any other way?! [/quote]
There are folks I know that got it as assigned reading.
I’m just gonna take a stab and say that people who get into better colleges are exposed to more ‘high brow’ reading material. Also, SAT scores and GPA are both taken into account in college apps, so some kids at top schools are of the ‘dumb as a rock but get good grades’ types, and vice versa. The SAT, much like every other test can only predict ‘intellect’ (whatever that is) so well. Not to mention the whole thing is based on Facebook.
…and this guy is a graduate student at CalTech?
Some of you really are missing the point. One of the most interesting things you’re getting from the data is an insight into the cultures of various IQ groups - at least one function of listing one’s “favorite books” on the internet is to get a public reaction.
So assume most people are listing books that they are at least not embarrassed to list - some people probably list books to make themselves look intelligent, moral, or whatever. It’s quite fascinating.
Intelligence is such an abstract component of the human condition that it seems silly to think you could quantify it in any accurate way. SAT scores are an especially worthless measure of intellect, as intelligence is an innate quality. College admissions tests are really merit-based for most students, as extensive studying correlates to higher scores(especially when it is retaken), and intelligence(supposedly) cannot be increased through individual effort.
Ultimately, people deemed “smart” do seem more likely to be elitist and condescending. They take such pride in a quality that they have little to no control over and look down on those who lack in that area. While racism, homophobia, and sexism are all taboo in our culture, discrimination against those on the other half of the bell curve is alive and accepted.
[quote]hunterthompson wrote:
undeadlift wrote:
I’m not surprised that the Holy Bible makes you dumb. I mean it has third grade grammar and circular logic in it.
anyone who has looked at that site and read this far into the thread, yet still believes that the creator is saying that these books “make you dumb” should not be passing judgements on anyone else.[/quote]
Well, it does make me feel dumb. I’m not judging anybody.
[quote]undeadlift wrote:
hunterthompson wrote:
undeadlift wrote:
I’m not surprised that the Holy Bible makes you dumb. I mean it has third grade grammar and circular logic in it.
anyone who has looked at that site and read this far into the thread, yet still believes that the creator is saying that these books “make you dumb” should not be passing judgements on anyone else.
Well, it does make me feel dumb. I’m not judging anybody.[/quote]
Maybe it’s not the book that makes you feel dumb. Just like, “It isn’t the dress that makes you look fat, Baby, it’s your big ass that makes you look fat.”
Personally, I pretty much only get to read books for pleasure when I’m on vacation and I’m sure as hell not going to devote the necessary time to read some of the books on the high-brow list during a trip. My job requires a lot of reading, both transaction-specific and current events. If I were to regularly read novels that require a lot of mental capacity, I would have to sacrifice time with my kids, with my wife, with my weights and professionally. I guess I have to make peace with having a lower IQ. But, I did get a 1230 on my SAT in 1986, which is like a 2100 on today’s SAT, and I didn’t study for it.
DB
[quote]BostonBarrister wrote:
Some of you really are missing the point. One of the most interesting things you’re getting from the data is an insight into the cultures of various IQ groups - at least one function of listing one’s “favorite books” on the internet is to get a public reaction.
So assume most people are listing books that they are at least not embarrassed to list - some people probably list books to make themselves look intelligent, moral, or whatever. It’s quite fascinating.[/quote]
Well said, and interesting observation. As Mark Twain said about the classics:
“A classic is something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read.”
[quote]thunderbolt23 wrote:
BostonBarrister wrote:
Some of you really are missing the point. One of the most interesting things you’re getting from the data is an insight into the cultures of various IQ groups - at least one function of listing one’s “favorite books” on the internet is to get a public reaction.
So assume most people are listing books that they are at least not embarrassed to list - some people probably list books to make themselves look intelligent, moral, or whatever. It’s quite fascinating.
Well said, and interesting observation. As Mark Twain said about the classics:
“A classic is something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read.”[/quote]
Like Beloved and Atlas Shrugged.
[quote]dollarbill44 wrote:
undeadlift wrote:
hunterthompson wrote:
undeadlift wrote:
I’m not surprised that the Holy Bible makes you dumb. I mean it has third grade grammar and circular logic in it.
anyone who has looked at that site and read this far into the thread, yet still believes that the creator is saying that these books “make you dumb” should not be passing judgements on anyone else.
Well, it does make me feel dumb. I’m not judging anybody.
Maybe it’s not the book that makes you feel dumb. Just like, “It isn’t the dress that makes you look fat, Baby, it’s your big ass that makes you look fat.”[/quote]
Uh… I don’t get it. Hmm…
No seriously, I can brag about my GPA and Theology grades to prove my ass isn’t big, but truth be told, the only book that makes me feel dumb is the Bible. It’s enlightening and all, but for something simple to understand literally (hence what I meant by third grade grammar), it requires a lot of philosophical analysis that would kill some brain cells.
But don’t judge me. I’m not a book.