British boy, 3, admitted to Mensa

[Sol Invictus]

Feb. 17, 2010 | UPI.com

PACKMOORE, England, Feb. 17 (UPI) -- A 3-year-old British boy has become one of the youngest-ever members of the world's largest organization for people with high IQs.

David Potter and Lynn Goldstraw of Packmoore, England, said their son, William Potter, was accepted to Mensa after scoring an IQ of 140 on the organization's tests, placing him in the 99.6 percentile among Britons, the Daily Mail reported Wednesday.

"He could count to 20 before he was 2 and knew his alphabet and colors and shapes," Goldstraw said. "When in his pushchair, he'd read car number plates. Now when we go in the car, he's in the back with a map on his knee."

"He reads the signs and tells you when to turn," she said. "He's like a sponge. You only have to tell him something once and he remembers it. I think a lot of it is about spending time with him."

There are only about 30 Mensa members less than 10-years-old, including two girls who joined at the age of 2.

http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2010/02/17/British-boy-3-admitted-to-Mensa/UPI-57991266443532/

[antonio]

Poor boys and girls, they would always live in that exclusive nerdy club so he can never socialize with people like us, intelligent, wise and clever enough but still within the boundaries of sanity. :cool:

[Groenewolf]

Poor boys and girls, they would always live in that exclusive nerdy club so he can never socialize with people like us, intelligent, wise and clever enough but still within the boundaries of sanity. :cool:

Hmm, that thing is a bit overrated. Pretty hard to socialize with people who come across as slow minded part of the time.

[antonio]

Hmm, that thing is a bit overrated. Pretty hard to socialize with people who come across as slow minded part of the time.

My bad English makes me to wonder about what you're saying, if you mean:
"Pretty hard to socialize with people with slower minds" I dont agree. :thumb001:

[Groenewolf]

My bad English makes me to wonder about what you're saying, if you mean:
"Pretty hard to socialize with people with slower minds" I dont agree. :thumb001:

Same thing, alto mine way of saying is less harsh. And is actually hard to pull of. Try to talk with people who in a way actually bore you. And sometimes hard to tell how they really think about and whether or not they are just mocking you.

[Psychonaut]

Hmm, that thing is a bit overrated. Pretty hard to socialize with people who come across as slow minded part of the time.

Perhaps 90% of my workmates are eligible for MENSA membership. It makes for extremely a intellectually stimulating interpersonal environment. I'm actually a bit scared of what it'll be like working around "normal" folks once I'm out of the Army.

[antonio]

Same thing, alto mine way of saying is less harsh. And is actually hard to pull of. Try to talk with people who in a way actually bore you. And sometimes hard to tell how they really think about and whether or not they are just mocking you.

First thing: are you all assuming that boredom of the cleverer on talking with the fooler have a linear proportion thru all the IQ range?...WTF, this is complete nosense, and very offensive for many clever persons. In fact if I ever meet a Mensa member getting bored with my flourish conversation, I inmediately would think that he's a fucking prick, if not a fake one. :cool:

Second: when talking English to a non-native English speaker(excluding Northeuropean people which seem to be higher standars) , you sometimes ought to be harsher for the sake of comprehension. :D

[Octothorpe]

Sadly, I must agree that talking to normals is often an excruciating exercise. Think of it this way: let's say you attempt to have a conversation with someone who is technically retarded, at least two standard deviations below norm. Not an easy task, is it? Now, stop and think for a moment; that bright person you're bothering is as far above you (at dead statistical norm) as you are above the retarded person. It's just as difficult to talk to a normal as it is for a normal to talk to a "mentally-challenged" person.

This is a big problem for my honors/AP students. They find it hard to socialize with people that are so far below them in ability and talent. :( Me? Naw! No problem. I'm dumb as bricks! ;)

[Aemma]

Yes well, the above comments are all well and good but we are talking about 2 year olds here, Good People. I'm sorry but I doubt very much that toddlers will be traumatised in life by having to hang out with the 'dullards' about them for the next couple of years. Give me a flippin break! :rolleyes:


Sadly, I must agree that talking to normals is often an excruciating exercise. Think of it this way: let's say you attempt to have a conversation with someone who is technically retarded, at least two standard deviations below norm. Not an easy task, is it? Now, stop and think for a moment; that bright person you're bothering is as far above you (at dead statistical norm) as you are above the retarded person. It's just as difficult to talk to a normal as it is for a normal to talk to a "mentally-challenged" person.

This is a big problem for my honors/AP students. They find it hard to socialize with people that are so far below them in ability and talent. :( Me? Naw! No problem. I'm dumb as bricks! ;)

Hmm but think of it this way, it is just as difficult for a run of the mill person to actually speak with a Spec Ed kid on this side of the spectrum as it is with one on the other (the 'retarded' one as you mention), Octothorpe. Neither group outside of the comfy 68% of the Bell curve (+/- 1 S.D.) is easy to deal with nor easy to talk to. This is the reason for Special Education classes to begin with!

And to be honest with you, I do tend to think that today's society has played up the whole "giftedness" bit way too much, much to the detriment of some of these kids. Some of the gifted kids I have met throughout my life have been some of the most socially-maladjusted people I have ever met. In the end, giftedness is but a different ability to see the world and to process information; it requires a special approach in teaching, granted. But let's do these kids a favour too and not set them up to become social failures either. Social skills are learned and are necessary to function in life. I would like to think that we're not letting them down in this aspect.

[Guapo]

Wow, smarts kids!


Anyway, I find "intellectual educated know-it-alls" to be boring pricks. I'd rather hang out with a stupid, funny Jewish guy or John Preston. Even The Papist and I hate him.

[Cato]

Poor boys and girls, they would always live in that exclusive nerdy club so he can never socialize with people like us, intelligent, wise and clever enough but still within the boundaries of sanity. :cool:

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=676688&d=1242940644

Ogre doesn't like nerds and nor do I.

Seriously, I think it's fairly likely that this tyke won't have much of a normal life- unless people stop coddling him and treating him like he's anything more than a clever 3-year old.

[Groenewolf]

Perhaps 90% of my workmates are eligible for MENSA membership. It makes for extremely a intellectually stimulating interpersonal environment. I'm actually a bit scared of what it'll be like working around "normal" folks once I'm out of the Army.

That would of course all depend on the kind of work you will do once you are out of the army. Some private work places might offer the same kind of environment as you are now experiencing.


Yes well, the above comments are all well and good but we are talking about 2 year olds here, Good People. I'm sorry but I doubt very much that toddlers will be traumatised in life by having to hang out with the 'dullards' about them for the next couple of years. Give me a flippin break! :rolleyes:

No need to become dramatic. However it could be bad for their social development. It is not easy being the smartest kid in school on those ages. In essence there not enough other kids around where you can relate to. And the other kids might pick on you, because well you are different.

[Peachy Carnahan]

Perhaps 90% of my workmates are eligible for MENSA membership. It makes for extremely a intellectually stimulating interpersonal environment. I'm actually a bit scared of what it'll be like working around "normal" folks once I'm out of the Army.

You arent in the British army i assume...?