Brain Waves

We have a wonderful local resource for people with memoryissues.  Called “Memory Matters,” it is blessingfor those who need it.

They administer a free memory test to the public. I knowmany people who’ve taken it.  And actuallyremember that they did.  It’s calledMocCa….short for Montreal Cognitive Assessment. 

There’s another brain assessment test out there.  MENSA.  Thatone’s for really, really, over-the-top smart people.  A local magazine runs a mini-MENSA test ineach issue.

I got confused last month, thought the magazine saidmini-MoCa, and decided to test myself. Thus opening the door to trouble. And a great deal of self-doubt.

The first question was: “Add an R to a word that means ageographical feature and find a word that means something to put over anobject.”  The answer was not immediatelyapparent.  It came to me the next day.  Way too late to qualify for success or intelligence.

The second question was much easier, or so I thought. “If aweird grocer charges 11 cents for a cucumber, and tomatoes and pumpkins eachcost 9 cents, what will a squash cost?”

My answer:  squash andcucumbers are long and skinny and tomatoes and pumpkins are round and fat.  So a squash will cost 11 cents.  I felt really good about that one. 

Another possible answer: A squash is a veggie, like the cucumber. The others are fruits.  The answeris still 11 cents.  Except for the factthat a cucumber is a fruit.  Little knownfact to some of us who were desperate to get a correct answer.

Both were wrong, of course.

It seems that particular grocer, according to the MENSA people,charges one penny per consonant and 2 pennies per vowel.  Ergo, the squash will cost 8 cents.

I mean, really.  Howdoes a person think like that?  By beingsuper-smart, I guess.

My takeaway?   Stay away from brain tests.  Mini or otherwise.  Ignorance is, indeed, bliss.

Test answer sheet image thanks to southside.edu