| The individual and collective egoism of fans over their superior mentalities is not without sound basis. From actual tests such as those given by Speer to the '43 Michiconference and the slan shackers, and by Bob Pavlat to WSFA members, tentative conclusions were drawn that practically all fans fall into the upper 25% of the population in intelligence, with the average within the top 10%. Fans in the Armed Forces went up quickly, and many instances can be cited of fans grasping points in a discussion too subtle for the average person to pick up. Of late, however, actual statements of genius qualities have been somewhat discredited by exuberant claims of superhuman IQs on the part of the Degler fringe.
For those who are not satisfied with general intelligence ratings, it may be said that fans' intelligence manifests itself primarily verbally rather than mechanically, altho we have a number of artists and other craftsmen. Whether our general intelligence correlates inversely with social intelligence is a mooted point.
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