The Complete Book of Intelligence Tests : 500 exercises to improve, upgrade and enhance your mind strength (11 page)

29

?

73

What number should replace the question mark?

9

?

I

T

L

N

R

A

E

What letter should replace the question mark?

10 WAVE = 13

TAXI = 8

HALT = 10

FAIL

= ?

LINK = 9

What value is FAIL?

Test 4.6

Lateral thinking exercises

The puzzles in this test are not timed and an assessment is not provided.

They are included purely and simply in order to exercise powers of

lateral thinking and encourage creative thought.

It is suggested that should you not find a solution immediately,

you do not rush to look up the answer but instead return to the

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question some time later. It may be that your mind has been

subconsciously working on the problem and that an answer which

previously may have eluded you may suddenly become apparent.

1

Join all nine dots with four straight lines without taking your

pencil off the paper.

2 ENEI = 78

URON = 41

NESE = 97

????

= 86

(Hint: page 205)

3

Which windows in the third figure should be blacked out?

(Hint: page 205)

4 What is it that when you remove the whole you still have some

left?

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5

1

2

3

4

5

6

Which is the odd one out?

(Hint: page 205)

6

Reposition two only (no more, no less) of the sticks, so that you

end up with four squares of equal size and no sticks left over.

7

Add three sticks to form three squares without disturbing any of

the other sticks.

(Hint: page 205)

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8 A man is working on the edge of the roof perimeter at the very

top of the Empire State Building in New York. He slips and falls

off the ledge he is working on and falls onto the concrete below.

He only suffers very mild concussion and a sprained wrist. Why?

9

What comes next?

10

sunflower, among, statuette, Sweden, enthusiasm, befriend, ?

What completes the above list?

abbreviated, Denmark, hopelessness, insatiable, criminal

(Hint: page 205)

Section III ^ Problem solving

In psychology, a ‘problem’ is defined as a situation in which some of

the components are already known and additional components must

then be ascertained or determined, and ‘problem solving’ is broadly all

the processes involved in the solution of that problem.

There are several problem-solving techniques which have been put

into practice over the years, such as brainstorming, critical path analysis and SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats), which in

their own way have often proved successful.

In brainstorming techniques, for example, the object is for groups or

individuals to break away from conventional and habitual ways of

thinking and to generate fresh ideas, which can then be evaluated and

the most effective ways selected. Brainstorming is therefore a method

of searching for, and developing, creative solutions to a problem by

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Creativity

focusing on the problem and deliberately encouraging the participants

to come up with as many unusual and creative solutions as possible.

The French mathematicians Poincare¤ and Hadamard defined the

following four stages of creativity:

1. Preparation: The attempt to solve a problem by normal means.

2. Incubation: When you feel frustrated that the above methods have

not worked and as a result you move away to other things.

3. Illumination: Eureka!! The answer suddenly comes to you in a

flash via your subconscious.

4. Verification: Your reasoning powers take over as you analyse the

answer which has come to you and assess its feasibility.

Of course, there are other problems which can be solved by using

what is often referred to as ‘common sense’. Common sense is the

almost forgotten tenth type of intelligence, and can hold the key to

solving many real-life problems. Take, for instance, the following

scenario:

A motorist encounters a shepherd and his dog with a flock of

sheep travelling in the same direction on a narrow lane, and finds

there is no room to drive through. The shepherd regards the

motorist as a nuisance and wants rid of him, as the dog is

barking and the sheep are disturbed, and the motorist regards

the sheep as a nuisance because he cannot continue his journey.

How is the situation resolved amicably to the satisfaction of both

the motorist and the shepherd?

You may be forgiven for thinking there appears to be no easy way

of solving this problem. However, this need not be the case with

the application of a degree of common sense. Consider, therefore, the

following solution which was reached to the entire satisfaction of both

parties and with the very minimum of inconvenience:

The car stops and the shepherd and his dog drive the sheep

back along the lane for a few yards past the car. When all the

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sheep and the dog are to the rear of the car, the way is then clear

for the motorist to continue his journey, and the shepherd is also

free to continue his journey unhindered.

Test 4.7

Problem-solving exercises

The puzzles in this section are not timed and an assessment is not

provided. They are included purely as problem-solving exercises in

finding creative solutions.

As in the case of similar tests in this book, it is suggested that,

should you not find a solution immediately, you do not rush to look

up the answer but instead return to the question some time later;

perhaps even on several occasions.

1

How do you accurately weigh a small puppy with just a standard

household step-on weigh scale if the puppy is extremely lively and

will not keep still?

2 Many hundreds of years ago a thief was charged with treason

against a Roman emperor and sentenced to death. The emperor,

feeling slightly merciful, asked the man how he would like to die.

Which way would you choose to die if you found yourself in the

same situation?

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3

Move the position of four sticks only to produce three equilateral

triangles.

4 Today Amy celebrates her birthday. Two days later her twin

brother Matthew celebrates his birthday. How can this be so?

5

How many triangles appear above? What is the best strategy to

adopt when tackling this and similar, but more complicated,

triangle-counting puzzles?

6

The sticks produce an equation that is obviously incorrect.

Remove three sticks without disturbing the sticks already placed

in order to make the equation correct.

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7

Add the largest possible equilateral triangle so that it does not

touch any of the other triangles and does not overlap the side of

the rectangle.

(Hint: page 205)

8

Find a way to add 16 sticks, without disturbing any of the 18

already in place, in order to make the equation read correctly.

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9 Before crowds of people at the arena, the emperor offers the

gladiator one last chance to escape death by drawing one of two

slips of paper from a bag. The emperor announces that on one

piece of paper is written the word ‘death’ and on the other is

written the word ‘freedom’. The gladiator’s lover, who is the

emperor’s wife, manages to whisper that both pieces of paper say

‘death’. Despite this, the gladiator still wins his freedom. How?

10

Divide the rectangle into the smallest possible number of

segments of equal size and area, so that each segment contains the

same number of triangles, bells and circles.

(Hint: page 205)

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5 Emotional

Intelligence

Emotional intelligence, more commonly referred to as emotional

quotient (EQ), is the ability to be aware of, control and manage one’s

own emotions and those of other people. The two main aspects of EQ

are:

* Understanding yourself, your goals, aspirations, responses and

behaviour.

* Understanding others and their feelings.

The concept of emotional intelligence was developed in the mid-

1990s by Daniel Goldman, coming to prominence with his 1995

book Emotional Intelligence. The early emotional intelligence theory

was originally developed in the USA during the 1970s and 1980s by

the work and writings of Howard Gardner of Harvard University,

Peter Salovy (Yale) and John Mayer (New Hampshire).

The EQ concept argues that IQ, which has tended to be the

traditional measure of intelligence, is too narrow and that there are

wider areas of emotional intelligence, such as behavioural and character

elements, that help to dictate how successful we are. It is because of

this that emotional intelligence, in addition to aptitude testing, is now

an important part of recruitment interviewing and selection procedures.

Although scoring highly in an aptitude test may impress a

prospective employer, it does not reveal the full story, as it does not

automatically follow that the applicant will be suited to the position

for which they are applying. While they may be intellectually qualified

to do the actual job, it may be they do not actually enjoy many aspects

of the work involved or will not fit into a team, as a result of which

they would be very likely to under-perform.

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Emotional Intelligence

To prevent such a mismatch occurring, personality profiling tests

are becoming increasingly common as part of the job interview process.

Such tests measure personality traits, e.g. how you relate to other

people; how you relate to emotions, both your own and those of your

colleagues; how you respond to stressful situations; or what motivates

you.

In general, the term ‘personality’ refers to the patterns of thought,

feeling and behaviour that are unique in every one of us, and these are

the characteristics that distinguish us from other people. Our personality

thus implies the predictability of how we are likely to act or react

under different circumstances, although in reality nothing is quite that

simple and our reactions to situations are never entirely predictable.

Goldman summarized the five EQ domains as:

1. Knowing your emotions.

2. Managing your emotions.

3. Motivating yourself.

4. Recognising and understanding other people’s emotions.

5. Managing relationships, i.e. managing the emotions of others.

It is now widely recognised that if someone is deemed intellectually

intelligent, it does not necessarily follow they are also emotionally

intelligent, and possessing a high IQ rating does not mean that success

will automatically follow.

Being intellectually brilliant does not mean that persons are able to

relate to other people socially, neither does it mean they are capable of

managing their own emotions or able to motivate themselves.

The following questionnaires are designed to test different aspects

of your personality. The procedure for completing each of these is to

answer the questions as truthfully and as realistically as possible; in

other words, be true to yourself at all times in order to obtain the most

accurate assessment.

There is no need to read through these tests first before attempting

them: just answer intuitively and without too much consideration.

There are no right or wrong answers and, although you should work

as quickly as possible, there is no set time limit.

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Test 5.1

Anxious or relaxed

In each of the following choose from a scale of 1^5 which of these

statements you most agree with or is most applicable to yourself.

Choose just one of the numbers 1^5 in each of the 25 statements.

Choose 5 for most agree=most applicable, down to 1 for least agree=least

applicable.

1 I often have to work to tight deadlines.

5

4

3

2

1

2 Loud noise aggravates me.

5

4

3

2

1

3 When I get little aches and pains, I often worry that it could be

something more serious.