Mensa

Yesterday I did something that I have been thinking about for around 40 years:  I took the test to get into Mensa.  And much to my surprise, the test was really hard, and I am not at all confident that I will be invited to join.  Lucas went with me, and he might have done better -- he was certainly faster -- so maybe one of us can join.

Mensa says they take the top two percent in intelligence.  Well, I was already tested in the top two percent when I was a kid.  In addition, I have taken the types of tests that are supposed to be indicators of your ability to join, and I have always done well.  For example, they have practice problems on the Mensa web site, and I got 29 of those right out of 30.  I really figured passing their test was a formality.

My incentive for finally taking the test was being unemployed and thinking that this was a way to meet people, and as a bonus, people who would know that I am in Mensa.  Well, not so fast.  There was the matter of actually doing well on the test, and there were a few problems with that.

First, you can request a non-culturally-oriented test, particularly meant for people who may not be fluent in English.  I did not request that, but we were all given that test.  Not optimal for me, I think, because some of the pictures are difficult to interpret.  More on that later.

The first section was not timed.  It was pretty easy, all based on pictures.  One question did not have an obvious answer, and one of the pictures was very bad.  I interpreted it to be maybe a small staked tree; Lucas though it might be a coat tree.  Still, overall fine; however, one person took about 15 minutes more than the rest of us while we all waited, which came into play later.

The next section was a surprise.  Four very quick, timed exercises.  If there is one thing that goes as one gets older, it is the ability to solve problems really quickly.  I could not get to all of the questions.  Lucas was faster, getting through at least a couple of the exercises.  This is a good time to mention that I was clearly the oldest person there, possibly by 15 years or more, and Lucas was the youngest.  Perhaps they will grade on a curve due to my advanced years.

The third and last section was again untimed, with pictures, and a little harder than the first section.  I had two issues with this section.  One, after finishing the first section in the middle of the pack, I was one of the last people done with the third section, and although it was supposed to be untimed, we were put on a deadline because the room reservation was running out, so I had to hurry, thanks in large part to the guy who took so long on part one.

Second, several of the pictures were tough to interpret.  Real example:  Which item is different?  A measuring tape, a folding yardstick, a kitchen scale, a calendar, or a rectangular box shape with lines on the top of it?  Kinda depends on what the box is supposed to be; I could not identify it.  Another picture may or may not have been a pile of bricks.  Another possibly bread slices.  Another a long rectangular piece of wood?  Or maybe not.

I felt like the timed section was key, and I did lousy on that, but who knows?  I guess I would not be too surprised either way.  If nothing else, it may be something Lucas can take advantage of.

Update:  Well, if I did not pass the test, I can still get in.  They will accept either the SAT or the GMAT as sufficient evidence, and my score is high enough on either to qualify.  So now we wait a couple of weeks to see the results.  That means I could have joined any time since my senior year in high school.