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You might be a genius and not even know it.

Every now and then I take an online IQ test because sometimes I think that my genius is just untapped or misunderstood, or dormant. Deep down I think I may be smarter than I look and depending on which IQ test I take, I’m slightly above average (or slightly below average).

I’m not a Mensa, like my mother-in-law. Yep, pretty damn daunting having an MIL who is one. She looks like quite a placid older lady but in her head I imagine her brain function to be a bit like in the Terminator movies when they take us inside the head of a cyborg and it’s like a fast-running computer system. They see everything. They miss nothing.

Maybe all our in-laws are geniuses, and they do all these things on purpose. Post continues after video. 


It’s also daunting to know that there are kids as young as three who are being included in the super genius Mensa club and now another young, recent addition, an Aussie boy by the name of Adam* who is only six.

You might be a secret genius or maybe even one of your kids. Image: iStock
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He joins a growing number of children being included into the international Mensa society.

All you need to do to be invited to join Mensa is to score higher than 98 per cent of the general population on a standardised IQ test assessed by a psychologist. Adam scored on the 99.7th percentile in maths and on the 99th percentile in reading.

You only need to score in the 98th percentile to be invited to Mensa. Show off.

Just so you know what that looks like at home, in case you think your kids might be gifted, Adam taught himself Chinese, devours books and regularly discusses evolution, at six.

I'm not sure what their get-togethers are like but according to the mission statement on mensa.org it sounds like a blast.

Mensa has three stated purposes: to identify and foster human intelligence for the benefit of humanity, to encourage research in the nature, characteristics and uses of intelligence, and to promote stimulating intellectual and social opportunities for its members.

If you think you might be a secret genius, or maybe one of your kids, here are a couple of the questions you need to be able to answer easily. It's not just about getting the right answer either. You are also timed as you do it.

Here are some sample questions:

Image: Mensa.a
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Answer: 25

Image: Pleacher.com

Answer: (a)

I didn't get either of these correct and became annoyed at having to even think about what might be the right answer, so I suppose that rules me out.

How did you go?

* Names have been changed to maintain privacy.