The Complete Book of Intelligence Tests : 500 exercises to improve, upgrade and enhance your mind strength (10 page)

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21 I am very independent minded.

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22 Anytime I get a flash of inspiration or a new idea, my mind

cannot rest until I have tried to put it into practice.

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23 I enjoy spending time on my own.

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24 I revel in being different to others.

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25 When hanging onto the phone, with a pencil in my hand and a

piece of paper in front of me, the probability is that I will start to

doodle.

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Section I ^ Imagination

Imagination is more important than knowledge. For while

knowledge defines all we currently know and understand,

imagination points to all we might discover and create.

Albert Einstein

Imagination is the process of recombining memories of past

experiences and images into novel constructions. Thus, imagination is

both creative and constructive, it can be either wishful or realistic,

involve future plans, or be merely a mental review of the past.

Imagination, perception and memory are essentially similar mental

processes and can each be defined as follows:

Imagination ^ the conscious mental process of invoking ideas or

images of objects and events.

Perception ^ the conscious integration of sensory impressions of

external objects and events, including how we perceive others and

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how others perceive us. It also envelopes how we perceive the

world as a whole ^ the big picture ^ and how we perceive different

scenarios and situations that appear within the big picture.

Memory (the ‘ninth intelligence’) ^ the mental evocation of past

experiences.

One important aspect of perception is the ability to see more than

one point of view. If, for example, you look at the two drawings

below, at first glance what you see appears to be quite unambiguous:

However, if you continue to stare at each figure in turn, and keep

your attention on it focused, then the orientation suddenly shifts and

you find yourself looking at a quite different figure from what you

first imagined.

These two figures, therefore, illustrate the importance of perception.

Two different viewpoints appear ^ yet they are both correct. If anything,

this teaches us that we should endeavour to see both viewpoints, and

both sides of an argument.

Now look at the figure below. What do you see?

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Most people will say that the figure is the letter E. If, however, they

look closely they will see that there is no letter E, just three sets of

lines. It is because our mind is conditioned to what it believes it wants

to see, i.e. the image of the most common letter of the alphabet, which

it has seen many thousands of times, that it completes the object for

you and makes you come to the conclusion that you perceive

something that in reality does not exist.

Now read the following paragraph:

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was

rdgnieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid Aoccdrnig

to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in

waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, The olny iprmoatnt tihng is

taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be

a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is

bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but

the wrod as a wlohe.

Again, our mind has taken over. It knows from past experience what

it wants to see, and as a result the task of reading what, at first, appears be a load of mumbo-jumbo is surprisingly easy.

The following tests are all designed to test your powers of

imagination and creativity.

Test 4.1

Imaginative shapes

In each of the following, use your imagination to create an original

sketch or drawing of something recognisable incorporating the lines

already provided:

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You have 30 minutes in which to complete the nine drawings.

Test 4.2

Wild imagination

The object of this test is to interpret each of the 20 drawings in the

wildest and most imaginative way you can. You may also try playing

the game with other people. The wilder someone’s suggestion is, the

better it is and the more creative they are. Let your imagination run

riot and see what you can come up with.

This test is not timed or marked as it is simply an exercise in

creative thinking.

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Test 4.3

Creative logic

These questions require some logic, together with a high degree of

spatial awareness and creative thinking, and flexibility of mind in

adapting to different types of questions.

You have 30 minutes in which to complete the 10 questions.

1 Which is the odd one out?

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To which hexagon below can a dot be added so that it then meets

the same conditions as in the hexagon above?

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Which is missing?

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What comes next?

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Which is the missing tile?

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Which circle should replace the question mark?

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7 Which is the odd one out?

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8 Which is the odd one out?

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Which square should replace the question mark?

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10 Which is the odd one out?

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Test 4.4

The bucket test

The following test is based on Gestalt and Jackson’s test of divergent

ability, which requires the subject to name as many new uses as possible

for an object such as a comb or a paper clip.

In this test you are required to name as many uses as possible for a

bucket.

Allow yourself 6 minutes to write up to 10 suggestions.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________________

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_ ________________________________________________________________________________________

_ ________________________________________________________________________________________

_ ________________________________________________________________________________________

_ ________________________________________________________________________________________

_ ________________________________________________________________________________________

_ ________________________________________________________________________________________

_ ________________________________________________________________________________________

Section II ^ Lateral thinking

The term ‘lateral thinking’ was originated by its creator and pioneer,

Dr Edward de Bono, and is a systematic way of approaching creative

thinking.

The word ‘lateral’ means of or relating to either side, away from

the median axis. Lateral thinking is a method of seeking to solve

problems by unique and different ways, by attempting to look at that

problem from many angles rather than searching for a direct head-on

solution.

It therefore involves the need to think outside the box and develop

a degree of creative, innovative thinking, which seeks to change our

natural and traditional perceptions, concepts and ideas. By developing

this type of thinking, we greatly increase our ability to solve problems

facing us that we could not otherwise solve.

To solve all the questions that appear in this section, it is necessary

to think laterally and creatively and to look for solutions that may not

seem apparent on first inspection.

Test 4.5

Lateral thinking test

This test consists of 10 puzzles, all designed to exercise powers of

lateral thinking and encourage creative thought in seeking out

sometimes unexpected solutions.

For those readers wishing to assess their performance against the

clock, there is a time limit of 90 minutes allowed for completing all 10

questions.

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If, however, you prefer simply to dip into these questions at

random and attempt which ever one takes your fancy at the time, it

is suggested that, if you do not find a solution immediately, you do

not rush to look up the answer but instead return to the question

sometime later, as a puzzle that may baffle you at first may become

soluble when you take a fresh look. It is possible that your mind has

been subconsciously working on the problem and that the answer

which previously eluded you may suddenly become apparent.

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What letters should replace the question marks?

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onerously, honeymoon, pioneered, wagonette

What word below continues the above sequence?

prisoners, aborigine, cautioned, erroneous, astronomy

(Hint: page 205)

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What numbers should replace the question marks?

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What letter should replace the question mark?

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What number should replace the question mark?

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How many circles appear above?

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What letter should replace the question mark?

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