Study gives more proof that intelligence is largely inherited Tuesday, Mar 17 2009
intelligence 2:26 pm
From PhysOrg:
They say a picture tells a thousand stories, but can it also tell how smart you are? Actually, say UCLA researchers, it can.
In a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience Feb. 18, UCLA neurology professor Paul Thompson and colleagues used a new type of brain-imaging scanner to show that intelligence is strongly influenced by the quality of the brain’s axons, or wiring that sends signals throughout the brain. The faster the signaling, the faster the brain processes information. And since the integrity of the brain’s wiring is influenced by genes, the genes we inherit play a far greater role in intelligence than was previously thought.
Genes appear to influence intelligence by determining how well nerve axons are encased in myelin — the fatty sheath of “insulation” that coats our axons and allows for fast signaling bursts in our brains. The thicker the myelin, the faster the nerve impulses.
Thompson and his colleagues scanned the brains of 23 sets of identical twins and 23 sets of fraternal twins. Since identical twins share the same genes while fraternal twins share about half their genes, the researchers were able to compare each group to show that myelin integrity was determined genetically in many parts of the brain that are key for intelligence. These include the parietal lobes, which are responsible for spatial reasoning, visual processing and logic, and the corpus callosum, which pulls together information from both sides of the body.
The press release mentions the possibility of enhancing human intelligence:
And could this someday lead to a therapy that could make us smarter, enhancing our intelligence?
“It’s a long way off but within the realm of the possible,” Thompson said.
I guess it’s becoming more acceptable for mainstream scientists to talk about human intelligence enhancement. I wonder if the increasing profile of transhumanism has anything to do with that, or if it’s about more of these ideas in fiction, or something else.
“intelligence is largely inherited”
That’s true when considering variation between species, and variation within middle-class populations in rich countries, but not when considering deprived environments. Heritability is much lower among the lower classes in rich countries, and differences between rich and poor countries are mostly driven by big environmental differences. Moderate iodine deprivation can drops IQ by 13-15 points and 2 billion people lack adequate access to iodine (a couple decades ago it was 4 billion). Likewise for iron deficiency and lack of modern education.
Bringing adequate nutrition, schooling, and medicine to the world’s poor is by far the greatest currently existing opportunity for cost-effective intelligence enhancement on a massive scale.
Cheers to that, Carl.
Myelin repair? Sounds like this can be used as treatment for Multiple Sclerosis. Here’s hoping…
Good axons Mushy Axons
High IQ Low IQ
This duality is artificial, contrived, simplistic and deceptive. We should not buy into it. Reality is far more interesting.
Winter Tires Smooth summer tires
Diesel engine Gas engine
Hummer Porsche
Good Gar Lousy car
I declare a rebellion against these kind of simplistic representation. Tweaking the brain will not just slider bar the brain in a linear fashion from uncle bob the retahd to doogie howser, MD.
The brain can be tweaked in all kinds of ways, even if we don’t acknowledge this now. Each way we can must be charted, experimented with and made available as affordable commodity, as long as people don’t get hurt along the way.
I’d LOVE to see healing of existing disparities, as well as boosting of select quialities. I would adore diversity, of the kind where everyone has a talent and a cause to feel proud, safe, productive and appreciated.
IMPORTANT >>> For me this means – getting rid of a variant of depressions that leaves me incapacitated 6 months out of the year. My mind shuts down every year in october and starts functioning again no earlier than end of march each year. My confidence and gregarious nature completely collapse. In winters I become dull and stupid. I screw up projects due to thoughtless impulsiveness and then completely panic when people complain.
Am I suddenly less intelligent in winters? Hell no – but I’d love something that treated my predicament in a safe, pleasant and robust manner.
Damn my entire formatting was stripped away. That’s annoying.
This is an encouraging finding, Michael. Thank you for posting it…
Could as well be “Study gives more proof that you need smart parents to be smart and beautiful parents to be beautiful, tall parents to be tall, etc.”
Duh.
Variance in organisms’ attributes due to environmental and genetic factors is inevitable, a fact of life, but it’s not all necessarily good. Nature isn’t inherently good – quite the contrary. We need to get rid of the bad kind of variance, one that strays too far from the optimum; one that, if it was a rocket, doesn’t fly, but explodes, injuring those nearby.
We need global convergence toward optimal parameters. Because we can readily perceive and measure what the optima are, we know what our goal are: high IQ, high talent, high scientific, literary and artistic performance, high beauty. Yes, even the seemingly superficial thing called beauty. Beauty isn’t superficial – it’s actually a robust and reliable manifestation of the organism’s superior fitness across a wide range of physical and mental parameters. They’re ALL desireable. And they’re all readily apparent to every member of the human species. We all have a built-in module for reliably detecting desireable attributes.
You DON’T want the other end to exist, AT ALL, in the world, no more than you want your child to be stupid, lazy, incoherent, and ugly – and compensating for these with crime, violence, and drug abuse. If you do, you’re a sadist – you want suffering to continue, suffering that the blind idiot process, nature, has no idea even exists.
…wait, I got a phone to answer
-Hello?
-…mumble…
-Oh, it’s a bad idea?
-…mumble..
-You mean, it’s been tried before?
-…mumble…
-It led to MASS MURDER?!
Oh well. I guess the obviously good isn’t always good.
Any ideas how this thing could be pulled off without resorting to grinding 90% of the population to dog food for our genetically optimized dogs?
Seriously, ANY attempt at improving humanity is so obviously seen as [cue ominous music] Eugenics [gasps and screams] that YOU. JUST. DON’T. GO. THERE. if you want other people to treat you as anything but the reincarnation of a certain statesman A. H.
Hence, eugenics will emerge in a country unfettered by the legacy (and trauma) of nazi fascism. Period. The west is stuck because of its collective trauma, and by 2030 chinese kids will have IQ 20 points higher, on average.