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CAN INTELLIGENCE BE INHERITED?
THEintelligence Is it one of the things we inherit? And if so, how is this good fortune calculated? In the past, scientists argued thatintelligence It is inherited and for this reason they were often criticized, if not ridiculed, by skeptics who did not believe in the genetic basis of our gray matter. It was not easy for geneticists to demonstrate that this was indeed the case. Since half of the Years' 90 researchers focused on fifty geniuses, considered good candidates to be the custodians of our intellectual faculties.
HOW INTELLIGENCE IS CALCULATED
Until a few years ago, however, the results were disappointing for various reasons, as were the conclusions that many laboratories reached. After the discovery of DNA and of all its variants (at least 10) – which together contribute to making certain individuals particularly intelligent – the genes analyzed by the researchers were very little material to go on.
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TEST TO CALCULATE INTELLIGENCE
To find a solution, all that remained was to study many more people than had been studied up to that point. 2017. Another complication was two variables: the years and type of school, which influenced the intellectual abilities of a certain individual and which in turn seemed to depend on genes. Meanwhile, in Australia, Holland, England and the United States other studies were being conducted on identical twins, which demonstrated that for the 40-60% intelligence is inherited.
An idea was needed, so scientists analyzed the genome of a million people and then they established for each of them a certain index, "Gps” (Genome wide polygenic score), which put together thousands of DNA variants, wherever they were found in the genome, with the schooling.
Since it is impossible to use the so-called intelligence quotient in a million people, the researchers used the years of school, which can be obtained more easily by obtaining for each individual the “DNA of intelligence" or "Iq GPS” which does not change over time and is not influenced by external circumstances, such as for exampleanxiety performance, when someone undergoes a intelligence test. Ultimately, the results of this enormous effort have demonstrated that “you are indeed born intelligent, but only a little.”
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THE METHOD TO FIND OUT HOW MUCH INTELLIGENCE YOU HAVE INHERITED
The neuroscientist Robert Plomin and the economist Sophie von Stumn, respectively of King's College and the London School of Economics and Political Science of London, are the authors of a publication in the journal Nature reviews Genetics which concerns the heredity of intelligence. The two scholars have demonstrated that, although intelligence genes can be inherited (at least in part), their function is however strongly linked to conditioning, in particular those oftechnology and familyThe people you hang out with also have an impact, as does the very organization of the society in which you are born and raised.
Soon the “genetics of intelligence" or the "GPS IQ" of each of us can be measured and will cost only a hundred euros (and even less in a few years). Genetics provides degrees of probability but does not provide certainties and there are many doubts about how we will use this information in school assessments or in the assumptionsThose with a low “GPS IQ” will still be able to reach the same goals as those with a higher one, even if, at times, it will cost them a lot of effort.
It will therefore be up to us to make the best use of the information that will come from the study of DNA, for the genes of intelligence and for those that predispose to certain diseases, for example, or to abuse alcohol and drugs. Finally, it will certainly not be the scientists who decide who will have access to the data collected which will be available to each of us from time to time, on many different occasions, but very soon someone will have to do it and with great responsibilities.
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