From: rsrodger@wam.umd.edu (Yamanari)
Subject: Re: Calendars and Brains
Organization: University of Maryland, College Park
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 1992 10:28:49 GMT

In article <1992Nov11.202710.2458@news2.cis.umn.edu> chi@oyster.micro.umn.edu (Ed Huai-hsin Chi) writes:
>>>   According to the article Elle came in first, the college
>>>   post-graduates last.


	Not that I want to propogate the stereotype that most models,
	male and female, have the brain capacity that would embarass
	a corpse, but...


>>I wonder how the "smart" readers of this newsgroup did with this
>>test (aimed at a model's intellect).  Ready to return your degrees 
>>guys and gals?  I would if this were the only gauge of intelegence.


	Conversely, let's give Elle and her crowd a Mensa test--or,
	better yet [since many Mensa tests require knowledge of trivial
	things like state abbrieviations (i.e. MD+??+TX==7, fill in
	the missing figure.. and it turns ouit to be thousand people
	/sq. mile for each state and so on).. ]--even better, use a 
	10th grade generic IQ test.  

	Do we really need to debate how Elle and the rest of the
	topheavy dunderheads wil score?


>I agree.  This questionaire is obviously biased toward people w/ a lot
>of traveling experience, and who says you have to learn how to speak
>french?


	I would be _very_ surprised if most of the models actually
	spoke french, but I supposed they know a lot of vocabulary
	related to fashion, makeup and so on, because American
	female society is so entrenched with the "french culture"
	myth that it makes a good sell..



>Exactly....  I don't mind being exposed as a stupid asshole, so I'll
>try to answer these questions.  To be a fair, I like to establish my
>"so-called" intelligence level.  I am a Chinese Taiwanese student


	Rather, let's try changing the context to something a little
	less model-oriented.  (No pun on that last word intended...)



>>   1) What are the names of the two airports in Paris?


	What are the names of two airports in Japan?

	(I couldn't answer this one--my memory escapes me at 4:00am..)

	Elle: "Beijing international is one... Umm, Seoul?"


>>   2) What is the name of the square in front of the big church
>>   in the center of Milan?


	Maybe a very simple one:  Where was the first atom bomb
	dropped in a military action?

	<Hiroshima>

	I can just see Elle now..

	"Oh, well that would be..  Oh, Silly!  You're trying to 
	trick me!  We never dropped an nuKYUlur bomb, the
	russians did!"




>>   3) What is the French word for shoe?


	What is the Japanese word for shoe?  (kutu) 

	Elle:  "They don't wear shoes!  They wear those two-toed 
	sock things with pads on the bottom."


>>   4) Which architect designed the new glass pyramids in front
>>   of the Louvre in Paris?


	Oh, let's make this one generic.  "What civilization 
	built the great Pyramids?"

	<Elle:  "Oh, that would be... England!">



>>   5) How many calories are in a banana?


	How many degrees farenheight to a degree celsius?


	(Elle:  "Isn't that geometry?  I had trouble in geometry..
	darn!")



>>   6) Who is the designer behind the COMME des GARCONS label?
>>   The Perry Ellis label?  The Chanel label?


	Name one astronaut that has been to the moon?

	<My favorite, Michael Collins, even though he never set foot..>

	<Elle: "Ummmmmm [forehead getting really hot from the heat]
	 Dan Quayle?  I know I've heard his name....>



>What? I have to be a fashion designer to be intelligent?


	<Elle:  "Sure!">




>>   8) What color is ecru?


	What color is bile?  

	<Elle: "Oh, I thought that was an adjective.. Blue?  Sounds
	  an awwwwwful lot like bile.. blie.. see?">



>>   9) Who is Anna Wintour?


	Who is Margaret Thatcher?

	<Elle:  Oh, she's that designer out of Milan.>



>>   10) Which poet said, "Beauty is Truth, Truth Beauty"?


	Who used the words "an iron curtain" when describing
	events relating to a neighboring group of countries?


	<Elle:  "Oh, it's that curtain guy!  You know, the one on
	TV where you're supposed to lift up the bottom slat and 
	look for a name. Like 'velor' or something...You know what
	I mean!">



	

>Don't know, but I can quote quite a few chinese poems....  Would this
>investigator understand any of these chinese poems?


	How about sayings?  What's the Chinese equivelent of 
	"Every cloud has a silver lining"?

	<Maybe, "yan1 an1 zhi1 fei1 fu2"?  i.e. Sai4weng1 shi1ma3..
		[have to use Pinyin, I don't know Wade Giles.. The #'s
		are tones, of course..]>



>Enough said...  It's bullshit.  No basis for such a test...


	Exactly.  The stupid will do anything to justify their
	stupidity.

	Ok, one last question, just for you, Elle:

	Describe the geographic position of the United States
	of America.

	Elle: "Oh, well, it's got that pointy thing on the bottom, 
	right?  One of those southern things.. States, I mean.. 
	like South Dakota.. So it's this big one, um, thing over
	here at the bottom on the left side, under that other big
	thing that looks like Asia.. Greenland, that's an island off
	of Asia, right?  So that's the united states, right down there.
	See, it says Chilli along a part of it so it must be America!"


>


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