Rated
Apr 02 2006
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4 reviews
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neuroscience
• nih.gov
Cortex Matures Faster in Youth with Highest IQ

From the page: Youth with superior IQ are distinguished by how fast the thinking part of their brains thickens and thins as they grow up
"Studies of brains have taught us that people with higher IQs do not have larger brains. Thanks to brain imaging technology, we can now see that the difference may be in the way the brain develops," said NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D.
"Brainy children are not cleverer solely by virtue of having more or less gray matter at any one age," explained Rapoport. "Rather, IQ is related to the dynamics of cortex maturation."
Shaw notes mounting evidence suggesting that the effects of genes often depends on interactions with environmental events, so the determinants of intelligence will likely prove to be a very complex mix of nature and nurture.