timf wrote:
One of the characteristics of old age is being able to irritate people by telling them how much better it was in the past.
Ha! Isn't that the truth! However, I remember having to pretend that I didn't like the song "Hangin' Tough" in 1989 because I was "too cool" for that. I am now unabashedly so cool that I can like anything I want.
I did a deep dive into some related academic articles yesterday. Intelligence is one of the things I've had to keep up with because it keeps coming up in my research with other things.
I can't find my note about it so I'll go off of memory. In a normal population, 68% of the people have intelligence that we would call regular. The intelligence test score numbers vary and in my opinion don't matter that much. Most autistic people actually score inside of the 68% range. Autistic people often seem more intelligent because they can focus their brainpower onto one thing and excel at that. NT people spread their energy around and are "masters of none" when it comes to things they are interested in.
13.5% of the population on the right has "superior" intelligence. Again, the numbers vary, but a smart NT person like me and more of your regular autistic people will be in this region. These are people who will likely go to college, marry, and have white collar jobs. 13.5% of the population there on the left is what we would now call intellectually disabled, but like on a Forrest Gump scale. You will also find some autistic people here in this area, but these will be people who cannot "pass" as non-autistic and will require helpers to get along in life. The types of NTs you'll find here will be people who cannot functionally read books, go to college, or do more complex jobs. Autistic people in this range probably could do those things, but likely could not do more complex social things.
Those 2.35% regions on either end are "very superior" on the right and I don't even know the current PC word for the left. A person with Downs would score on the left. Downs people, in my opinion, cannot be IQ tested with others because they are too different. Autistic people who have significant trouble communicating will score in this range on the left. On the right you will find these 130-140 range people. They can function at a high level either as NTs or as autistic people but will not necessarily succeed. They are too different.
The 0.15% on either side is what my husband calls "on the podium." This is scoring something like a 0 on an IQ test or beyond either 140 or 150, depending on the test. My husband is in this range on the right. These people are definitely untestable and will need some kind of help with some aspect of their lives. They are not like other people and will likely either feel lonely or be used to being alone and have trouble when asked to communicate.
Pardon me if any of that sounded offensive. I am tired today and perhaps speaking extra plainly. But this topic interests me so I thought I'd post.