10 Shocking Traits Of Genius

10 Shocking Traits Of Genius

• Virginity And Masturbation

It plays into the common conception of the more academically inclined among us that smarter people tend to spend less intimate time with other people. The reasons, however, may be more complicated than the simple explanations (no one wants to cuddle a nerd) we’re used to. Recent studies of students and graduates of top universities, including MIT, indicate that the number of sexual partners per student was significantly lower than the average-intelligence control group. The rate of virginity amongst graduates was also noticeably high at about 45 percent.

There’s a number of theories to explain this phenomenon, but it comes down to a few key factors. First, the hormone testosterone, which is responsible for masculine features in males, works in contradiction to the chemicals that influence intelligence. Testosterone has even been shown to inhibit intelligence—big shock, right? The second factor is that intelligent people are more acutely aware of risk. Sex in the modern age is inherently dangerous, and the more astute mind may easily perceive this as an unnecessary risk, especially when self-pleasure or abstinence present virtually no danger at all. Third, focused individuals who spend time on their education tend to be more reclusive, viewing social gatherings as less important than other things. This limits the amount of exposure to the opposite sex and therefore decreases the opportunities to procreate.

The result of all this anti-copulation? Sources in the UK are reporting that LoveHoney, a sex toy retailer, has uncovered an unusually large amount of money being spent on products for personal pleasure from universities in the area. Oxford and Cambridge take the top spots, spending more than double the amount of Manchester and Lancaster.

• Drug Use

Researchers received quite a shock when they interviewed nearly 8,000 people and found that those with higher IQs were more likely to experiment with illegal drugs. Conventional wisdom would dictate that smarter people would be aware of the inherent dangers involved with drug use and the potential life altering effects. What they discovered, however, was that higher-IQ subjects were significantly more open to new experiences, such as illicit drug use.
How much more open? Men were 50 percent more likely to take amphetamines and 65 percent more likely to experiment with ecstasy. This was even after having taken socioeconomic status into account. Interestingly enough, these subjects are also generally more likely to not smoke, eat healthier diets, and enjoy higher social and economic standing in their communities. So, why the drugs? As with alcohol, the researchers say smarter people are more likely to seek out experimental and novel experiences.

• Being Active at Night And Probably Sleeping During The Day

One of the hallmarks for intelligent people is an obvious tendency to ignore the “accepted” behavior of the general public. Smart people seem to have their own agendas and their own schedules. A recent study by the London School of Economics indicates that insomnia is a natural tendency of the intellectually elite amongst us. It doesn’t appear to a be a fluke, either. The rates of sleep achieved in hours per night declines as the average IQ level raises. Speculation may lead us to believe it is an overactive mind that finds rest less easy to achieve, or that perhaps the late night hours are a quieter environment for personal pursuits.

• Alcoholism

The great literary minds of the 20th century would no doubt raise a toast to this curious indicator of heightened intelligence. A study by Satoshi Kanazawa indicates that it may be likely alcoholism is the sign of a genius at work. The reasoning is slightly unexpected. Unlike the sexual tension issue highlighted above, it appears that alcohol consumption has very little to do with releasing stress as much as it does the experience of drinking the alcohol itself.
The report—which revealed that “very bright” students in the UK were significantly more likely to develop alcoholic tendencies than their “dull” classmates—describes drinking as an evolutionary novel activity. The very act of drinking is considered a luxury, an activity that can be classified as a leisure pursuit more than a hobby or skill. According to the study, since the novelty of drinking remains ingrained in social behavior, individuals of higher intellect are drawn to it as a pastime.

• Large Breasts

It appears there is a strong correlation between women with big breasts and higher IQs. A well-reported study claims that a comparison of 1,200 women with varying sizes of breasts showed that larger-breasted women tended towards having, on average, a 10-point IQ advantage to their smaller-breasted counterparts
What actual studies in human evolution and sexual selection indicate is the likelihood for larger breasts to reproduce, combined with other factors that would produce an ideal mate, intelligence included. Larger breasts are likely perceived by the instinctual mind as more capable for nourishing a growing brain, evidenced by the fact that lesser-evolved species of mammals seem to pay this feature no mind whatsoever. The second potential factor is that the hormones that control breast size and firmness would be more abundant in a well-formed and better-functioning brain.
So what happens is a male chooses the partner most likely to produce the most intelligent and healthy offspring. Those children inherit the traits of their parents (large breasts included) and continue to mate with equally well-developed partners. Through this process, the most intelligent minds will also possess the best genes in other categories as well. There will be exceptions, of course, and genetics is a complicated science.

• Trivial Hobbies

A study of accepted “geniuses” throughout history might reveal that the majority engaged in seemingly trivial or pointless exercises for personal pleasure. This may have to do with the brain’s need to focus on non-taxing pursuits from time to time in order to facilitate recovery from intense sessions. It may have to do with the way an above average person sees their world and their altered perception of triviality, but one thing is for sure—this common trait was shared by some of the greatest minds in history. Einstein enjoyed sailing. Stephen Hawking enjoyed climbing, rowing, and even wrote children’s books. Perhaps a tendency towards water sports is another little-known indicator.

• Pointless Pursuits

Geniuses throughout history have been noted as dedicating themselves to what were considered at the time pointless pursuits of human activity. John Alexander Newlands was laughed out of science when he invented the first periodic table, while the Wright Brothers were ridiculed for their incessant flight experiments and even called liars while offering live demonstrations. Gregor Mendel discovered the roots of genetics and was promptly ignored by the science community as a whole. The point is, a genius mind by definition does not see the world through the same lens as the rest of society. Therefore, it is a lot more likely to undertake odd pursuits in order to achieve great advancements.

• Doodling

There are two things artists and genius-level individuals have in common—the ability to process abstract thinking effectively. Individuals possessing higher intelligence learn how to express themselves in abstract ways. As typical communication methods fail the advanced mind, theories and ideas present themselves in pictorial form, amongst others. People with higher IQs tend to want to share their ideas and put them down in a way that makes them easier to understand. Artistic pursuits, such as absentminded drawing, may provide an outlet for that inspiration to reach the physical world. Van Gogh and Picasso would certainly make the list as advanced doodlers, while musical geniuses like Beethoven and Mozart chose a different medium for the same creative instinct.

• Mental Illness

Smart people are oddballs. Virtually every leader in the academic realm has been noted for having a sort of eccentricity (or several) that set them apart from their peers. It stands to reason that a brain developing outside the “normal” spectrum of human understanding might also adapt differently to its environment. This includes mental disorders of all kinds. I know university lecturers who stink while some others dress haggardly.

OCD and ADD are very common traits amongst the intellectually well-endowed. Tesla was reportedly afraid of human hair, while Da Vinci was hailed as a world class procrastinator with strong ADHD tendencies. Being strange is just part of the territory when it comes being a brain. Perhaps the most disheveled and “strange” amongst us might be geniuses in disguise.

• Social Isolation

Smart people are often loners who would rather stay at home all day or working in an isolated lab. Isolation is one of the main challenges faced by gifted individuals, especially those with no social network of gifted peers. In order to gain popularity, gifted children will often try to hide their abilities to win social approval. Strategies include underachievement and the use of less sophisticated vocabulary when among same-age peers than when among family members or other trusted individuals.
The isolation experienced by gifted individuals may not be caused by giftedness itself, but by society's response to giftedness. Plucker and Levy have noted that, "in this culture, there appears to be a great pressure for people to be 'normal' with a considerable stigma associated with giftedness or talent." To counteract this problem, gifted education professionals recommend creating a peer group based on common interests and abilities. The earlier this occurs, the more effective it is likely to be in preventing isolation.
Research suggests that gifted adolescents might have deficiencies in social valuation, mentalization, and social adaptive learning.