So, um, who’s a smarty-pants? Mensa is having its annual convention, or “gathering,” in Portland this weekend. (Don’t know what Mensa is? It’s “an organization for anyone who scores in the top two percent of the general population on an accepted, standardized intelligence test.”) If you think you’re part of that brainy little club, admission tests are planned for tonight and—for anyone too pure to spend their Friday night drinking and carousing and huffing paint fumes and/or marijuana smoke—on Saturday morning.
I might try it. Why not? It’s apparently free for working journalists. The details:
Who: General public (age 14 and older) A parent or guardian must be present at registration for those 17 years of age or under.
What: The American Mensa Admission Test
Where: American Mensa Annual Gathering
Hilton Portland & Executive Tower
The Council Suite (Thursday)
The Grand Ballroom (Saturday)
921 SW 6th Ave.
Portland, Ore. 97204When: Tomorrow, June 30, 6:30 p.m. (6 p.m. registration)
Saturday, July 2, 9:30 a.m. (9 a.m. registration)The test will take about two hours to complete. Test takers will be required to show a photo ID.
Cost: $40 (The fee is waived for members of the working media.) First year’s dues are $63. Test takers will receive a one day pass to the 2011 Mensa National Conference.
Contact: For more information, please contact (800) 66-MENSA.
Ugh. My desire to have my intelligence validated is confusingly offset by a strong sense that people who need to have their intelligence validated are assholes.
If someone had told 10 year old Kiala she would one day choose to pay to take a test on a Saturday, 10 year old Kiala would have thrown her dr pepper slurpee at that person.
If you’re *really* smart, though, you’ll finish the test in half an hour and use the rest of the time to work on your solution to the Birtch and Swinnerton-Dyer conjecture. Or doodle naked butts.
How smart are you REALLY?
What is your vampire name?
How much do you know about Harry Potter?
What is your Gay Card score?
You know what’s way more fun than hanging out with pointy-head MENSA boners?
Joining me and my party squad at DENSA: we only take those who score in the bottom 98 percent of the general population and love huffing paint and/or weed smoke.
WE DON’T DEBATE SHIT.
@CC:
Some of us are brilliant enough to do both.
Mensa is’nt so terrible even I was a member for a time although I do find quantitative tests of intelligence both subjective and inaccurate. @ Allison they may be on the blowhardish side but are they any worse than “tall bike rider” or ” has a tiny amount of knowledge but spouts off anyway vegan”? How does Mensa differ? The truth is they are indeed bloody boring but I did’nt encounter much in the way of “asshole” behavior. I find it comical they are waiving the fee for Media members. Because of course they are renowned for being brilliant!(heavy sarcasm). Actually thinking you are intelligent is not quite the same as actually being intelligent and going to some uppity liberal arts school does not mean you are smart. The truth is many of us (including Me) are not quite as intelligent as we’d like to believe. I will at least cop to it
@pdxMB:
Really? You’re brilliant enough to be in both the top 2% and bottom 98% of the general population?
@ Showstopper, if you want to convince Alison to do anything, I’ll suggest that comparing it to tall bike riding might not be the most persuasive tack to take.
@Alison: Yes.
I actually spent my work morning with two folks who were in town for the MENSA convention. They were nice enough, but did seem to conform to every Lambda Lambda Lambda nerd stereotype every. Pants were high. Glasses were big. Social graces were lacking. We got along, but I was filled with squicky, weird nerd-shame.
Really? I get to be the jerk to remind everyone that “mensa” is a slang term for “stupid bitch” en espanol?
Really?
Being in a club of people so smart they chose this acronym is not quite the validation I want in regard to my intellect, is what I’m saying.
@CC:
Exactly. The synapses really start firing when I’m huffing WD-40.
I can’t think of a better way to spend my 4th of July weekend than paying $40 to take a test at 9am to prove to people how smart I am.
@CommentyColin, I am not an insider here and to be fair my analogies suck(thanks for the heads up though). Someone i know on the Mercury staff, did tell me that Allison is very intelligent (which I believe) and I just think It would be interesting for her to chronicle this, although I am sure she has WAY better things to do on this 4th of July weekend, I know I do and I don’t have a bloody life! I dunno whats with the whole tall bike thing (I find them sillY), but it was not my intention to insult her at all. As I said, my analogies are brutal.lol