NationStates Jolt Archive

Is anybody a member of Mensa? I've heard varying things, positive and negative. I'm sure lot of people on this board are qualified for membership, but has anybody joined, and if so, why did you join? Was it a good choice? Do you enjoy membership, and what are the benefits, if any?

There's a local chapter where I live, and I thought it might be a fun social group. Anybody had good experiences? Bad? Waste of time or best time ever?

Social? No ... in general, social skills are inversly proportional to intelligence.

However, if you get 6 stamps on the back of your Mensa card, you get 10% off your next purchase at Land's End.

Lisa Simpson is a member of MENSA and we all know what an uptight little snob she is. pshaw!

Even if I could qualify for it (I don't want to take an IQ test, it proves nothing), I wouldn't join it, because I feel no need to place myself on a pedastal.

My Ego Needs Stroking Again

MENSA is a narcissists' society.

I bet they walk around in togas like Roman philosophers while they eat grapes and ask each other philosophical questions like why ask why? Those stuck up brainiacs!!!

All of this thinking makes me :headbang:

May I suggest you join the Elks instead? There's probably a lodge in your community. You can join up and do some good deeds for crippled kids, promote good citizenship, and help keep kids off of drugs. Plus there's cheap drinks and fun events like golf tournaments, trips, and barbecues. If you check out the Elks I think you'll like what you see.

Interesting...are these views the result of actual encounters with members, or does the entire premise of their membership requirements make it inherently pretentious? One member I've talked to expressed that he disliked the whole idea of measuring intelligence as a single spectrum. I remember years ago reading that many cognitive scientists recognize 8 or more kinds of intelligence. And their membership qualification seem heavily based on standardized testing, which has its limits as a measuring tool.

How would Mensa compare to something more academically oriented, like a collegiate Greek org? Any frat/sorority members out there who are sober at this hour?

To Drunk Commies Reborn: Sorry, I missed your post while I was writing mine. The Elks? They aren't religious, are they? Not that I'm against the religious folks, I'm just not one. I like the community service aspect, though.

Interesting...are these views the result of actual encounters with members, or does the entire premise of their membership requirements make it inherently pretentious? One member I've talked to expressed that he disliked the whole idea of measuring intelligence as a single spectrum. I remember years ago reading that many cognitive scientists recognize 8 or more kinds of intelligence. And their membership qualification seem heavily based on standardized testing, which has its limits as a measuring tool.

How would Mensa compare to something more academically oriented, like a collegiate Greek org? Any frat/sorority members out there who are sober at this hour?
I met several people and sat for the testing. I qualified for membership. But it seemed like major self-stroking to me.

or does the entire premise of their membership requirements make it inherently pretentious?

That's it. I don't know any MENSA members (that I know of), so I can't judge. It just doesn't seem like something i'd want to be part of.

To Drunk Commies Reborn: Sorry, I missed your post while I was writing mine. The Elks? They aren't religious, are they? Not that I'm against the religious folks, I'm just not one. I like the community service aspect, though.
Not really, but they do require beleif in a supreme being for membership. I guess I'm grandfathered in because I did beleive when I joined. Several members know I'm an atheist now, and it's no big deal as long as I don't go around waving signs or something.

To Whispering Legs: Bummer. I get enough self-stroking when my wife is out of town. Just curious, what prompted you to sit for their test?

MENSA is for wet-brained second-string semi-smarties.

This is where the real party's at:

http://www.megasociety.org/about.html

Of course, there are so few members, it doesn't provide much in the way of social opportunities. But hey, it's still more happening than the Giga Society.

To Whispering Legs: Bummer. I get enough self-stroking when my wife is out of town. Just curious, what prompted you to sit for their test?

Two of my friends are members, and major self-strokers. They suggested that I take the test (after stroking me heavily with, "you know you're intelligent..."). Gee, I don't need a test to tell me that...

Most of the members have major attitude. I think the whole thing is taking advantage of people who have high intelligence, low self-esteem, no common sense, and a surplus of cash on hand.

I was curious how well I would do on the test. But I feel that life makes a better IQ test than anything that's on paper.

But then again, if you like Boggle, think Marilyn Vos Savant is a hottie, and honestly believe that 10% of the population deserves the title of "genius," maybe MENSA is your cup of tea.

Interesting...are these views the result of actual encounters with members, or does the entire premise of their membership requirements make it inherently pretentious? One member I've talked to expressed that he disliked the whole idea of measuring intelligence as a single spectrum. I remember years ago reading that many cognitive scientists recognize 8 or more kinds of intelligence. And their membership qualification seem heavily based on standardized testing, which has its limits as a measuring tool.

How would Mensa compare to something more academically oriented, like a collegiate Greek org? Any frat/sorority members out there who are sober at this hour?

me - Phi Kappa Tau, Omega Chapter

sober (at work)

every semester we were engaged in at least one major philanthropic activity.

these experiences were fairly rewarding... helping people is fun.

MENSA is for wet-brained second-string semi-smarties.

This is where the real party's at:

http://www.megasociety.org/about.html

Of course, there are so few members, it doesn't provide much in the way of social opportunities. But hey, it's still more happening than the Giga Society.
yipes! These guys/gals sound like I'd be out of my depth. They're looking for the top one-in-a-million, it says. I might have a better chance of hanging out a strip club and having one of the girls really really like me...

Is anybody a member of Mensa?

I have heard report from a member who was expelled for pointing out that the plural of Mensis is not Mensa but Menses. Make of that what you will.

I have heard report from a member who was expelled for pointing out that the plural of Mensis is not Mensa but Menses. Make of that what you will.
aw, man...if thats true, thats a raw deal...

I don't know if this is true, or not, but I was told that "Mensa" is singular for "table" to represent the "roundtable=forum of equals" idea. Mensis is latin for "month", I thought, and Menses would be "months", wouldn't it? Bear in my mind, I have no gift for language and this is second hand, so I could be absolutely wrong.

Still, if that report is correct, then what a bunch o' goobs.

Yeah, mensa actually means table.

My friend was in Mensa and said it's just intelligent people telling each other how intelligent they are and how great it is that they're more intelligent than everyone else.

But then again, if you like Boggle, think Marilyn Vos Savant is a hottie, and honestly believe that 10% of the population deserves the title of "genius," maybe MENSA is your cup of tea.

if i'm not mistaken, you need to have an IQ greater than or equal to 140 to get in.

less than 1% (or right around that) of the population have an IQ of 140+.

if i'm not mistaken, you need to have an IQ greater than or equal to 140 to get in.

less than 1% (or right around that) of the population have an IQ of 140+.

Mensa says 2%. And frankly, that's way too left of the decimal place as far as I'm concerned. I want way more people excluded from my societies. And I want them to be either far more secret or much more go-kart intensive. Period.

If I remember my latin, menses roughly translates to "beat me up and take my lunch money."

Mensa's site claims a "top 2% of the general population" cut off. Yet according to their site, they accept an LSAT score of 163 as sufficient, and most years, thats under the 90th percentile (meaning not quite top 10%). Only thing I can figure is, the LSAT, since it is taken by Law School bound college graduates, is not statistically normed to the general populace. But then, that would imply that college graduates are, on average, better at these kinds of tests than the general populace. So, I dunno.

A lot of the smarter folks I know don't have degrees, and pure merit won't always pay for college...so, I dunno. Any ideas?

Why does Mensa claim top 2% membership but accept an LSAT score in the 90th percentile?

Mensa's site claims a "top 2% of the general population" cut off. Yet according to their site, they accept an LSAT score of 163 as sufficient, and most years, thats under the 90th percentile (meaning not quite top 10%). Only thing I can figure is, the LSAT, since it is taken by Law School bound college graduates, is not statistically normed to the general populace. But then, that would imply that college graduates are, on average, better at these kinds of tests than the general populace. So, I dunno.

A lot of the smarter folks I know don't have degrees, and pure merit won't always pay for college...so, I dunno. Any ideas?

Why does Mensa claim top 2% membership but accept an LSAT score in the 90th percentile?

Probably because on average, a lawyer makes more money than the typical American.

Yeah, mensa actually means table.

My friend was in Mensa and said it's just intelligent people telling each other how intelligent they are and how great it is that they're more intelligent than everyone else.

The word "Mensa" means "table" in Latin. The name stands for a round-table society, where race, color, creed, national origin, age, politics, and educational or social background are irrelevant.

Hmmm. So sex isn't irrelevant?

Probably because on average, a lawyer makes more money than the typical American.

Heeheheheheee! Good answer!

Mensa's site claims a "top 2% of the general population" cut off. Yet according to their site, they accept an LSAT score of 163 as sufficient, and most years, thats under the 90th percentile (meaning not quite top 10%). Only thing I can figure is, the LSAT, since it is taken by Law School bound college graduates, is not statistically normed to the general populace. But then, that would imply that college graduates are, on average, better at these kinds of tests than the general populace. So, I dunno.

A lot of the smarter folks I know don't have degrees, and pure merit won't always pay for college...so, I dunno. Any ideas?

Why does Mensa claim top 2% membership but accept an LSAT score in the 90th percentile?

yeah, people who are taking the LSAT are probably at least a little above average in terms of intelligence compared with the general population (perhaps a good deal more intelligent... IE, average IQ of prolly around 125 vs. general population average IQ of 100).

so if you're in the 90th percentile on the LSAT, you're maybe in the 98th-99th percentile in terms of the general population.

yeah, people who are taking the LSAT are probably at least a little above average in terms of intelligence compared with the general population (perhaps a good deal more intelligent... IE, average IQ of prolly around 125 vs. general population average IQ of 100).

so if you're in the 90th percentile on the LSAT, you're maybe in the 98th-99th percentile in terms of the general population.

Seems reasonable, I'll buy that.