All it consists of is a bell a group of four-year-old children and a plate of marshmallows. The question is can a child resist eating the one marshmallow in front of them for the promise of getting three later? If they don't want to wait the time they can ring the bell. It's like watching a primeval battle between man or woman and their own desire. The waiting time is ten minutes just five minutes shorter than in the original. First to go is Bridie. See she's now thinking when's he coming back? See I'm not absolutely convinced that she is now thinking about the marshmallows. I think she might be thinking about whatever kid's thoughts now. Now she's thinking about the marshmallows. If Bridie is going to succeed she will have to devise strategies like the children in the original study to look away or stop thinking about the taste and smell of the marshmallow. Just seconds to go and Bridie is still resisting. I'm feeling a bit sorry for her now. Ooh. Oh-oh. She's gone for the bell she's gone for the bell. Is she ringing or is she just looking at the bell? Now she's rung the bell she rang the bell.
I'm so disappointed for her. Next up is Olivia. God has she eaten one? Oh my God she's eaten a marshmallow before the experiment's started. But that's ruined it. That's a shame because she's clearly one with impulse control issues. So it's over to Jayden. I think I know which way she's going to go I tell you. Finally it's Keira. Welcome back to Stanford for round two of the marshmallow experiment. At first she seems to be losing heart. I think she can't bear it. I can hear the devil on her shoulder saying "eat the marshmallow!"
This must seem so long if you're a child. If you think that children have a relative idea of time that is about ten times that of an adult. Some of the children who'd succeeded before had managed to stop thinking about the marshmallow as a real marshmallow. They'd imagined it away. I wonder if she's actually consciously thought if I don't look at them I won't desire them so much. So therefore I'll be able to get through it. She did it! She did it! She did it. I'm so pleased for her. The scientists tracked the lives of the original children for years. What they found was that those who could resist the marshmallow did better at school.
And not only that they were less likely to fall ill or get divorced. It seems being able to resist a sweet at four could predict academic success and a happier adult life. This experiment serves as just one example of the traits which can be affected by nurture. Now after decades of scrutinising human intelligence we are beginning to understand that it can be affected by many variables not only by who your parents are but also the environmental influences on your upbringing. And it's not just the causes of intelligence that are wide-ranging. We're also beginning to broaden our definition of intelligence itself. years ago it was simple. Intelligence was a measure of problem solving ability general knowledge and memory that could be assessed by one all-encompassing test. But now we have to look again at whether that stood the test of time.
The IQ test has lasted so long because it's got an almost magical property. It seems to show that we have one general all-round ability a kind of all-purpose thinking skill that can be represented by a single number the IQ score. Very convenient if you want to compare people. Horizon brought together seven experts from seven very different disciplines to sit the test.
0 comments:
Post a Comment