Genes: Smart's, Don't It
According to a new study reported in Science, researchers have now found more than 1000 genes associated with high intelligence.
Being smart is a double-edged sword. Intelligent people appear to live longer, but many of the genes behind brilliance can also lead to autism, anxiety, and depression, according to two new massive genetic studies. The work also is one of the first to identify the specific cell types and genetic pathways tied to intelligence and mental health, potentially paving the way for new ways to improve education, or therapies to treat neurotic behavior.
The studies provide some of the first “hard evidence of the many genes and pathways” that work together in complex ways to build smart brains and keep them in balance, says geneticist Peter Visscher of the Queensland Brain Institute at The University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, who was not involved in the work.This tends to confirm the frequent speculations that many classic geniuses, including Newton and Dirac, were on the autistic spectrum. If you aren't worried or depressed about possibly not being smart enough, you probably aren't.
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