Wednesday, March 25, 2020

The Role of Mental Energy in Intellectual Performance



In his essay in the Genius and the Mind ((1) David Lykken cites mental energy as a likely heritable characteristic of genius.  No doubt, mental energy--or mental stamina, as I describe it --drives performance.(2)  Tackling big problems requires sustained focus, long periods of heavy concentration.  History is filled with folklore of geniuses with prodigious mental energy.   Galileo, Archimedes, Franklin, Edison.  We all know the Einstein quote: "it's not that I'm smart, it's just that I stay with a problem longer."

Consider a business example.  Edwin Land, the founder of and energy behind Polaroid, was renowned for pulling overnighters. His employees tell stories about arriving in the morning to find him still at his desk, oblivious of the time, absorbed in some mental challenge.  Once Land  supposedly put in 36 hours straight struggling with a single problem.

Let’s put this in perspective.  Staying awake 36 hours is hard enough, but, sustaining mental focus is a different proposition altogether.  Most people  work 7-10 hours a day; but, even that's not all on task. We're not concentrating for 7-10 hours.  Even in knowledge-based jobs we spend much of our workday on ancillary tasks, tasks that may be necessary but don't require the same mental energy.

Personally, I can work 2 or 3 hours at a stretch on intellectual tasks.  Reading, thinking, writing, extrapolating thoughts, wrestling down problems. I love that stuff.  So perhaps I might be able to push myself to 4 hours, that is if I'm particularly motivated, intrigued, feeling energetic, and the conditions are otherwise just right.  But sustaining 30+ hours?  No way. I can't even fathom that.  

How do we account for such a feat?  It's hard to unravel which element to attribute to IQ (nature), which to motivation (nurture), which to sheer physical energy (a mix).

That the intellectual giants of history always seemed to have demonstrated extraordinary mental energy suggests mental energy is likely genetic, at least in part. Lykken is surely onto something.  It’s worth clarifying that mental energy is not simply general discipline applied in a cognitive realm—that it’s more than mere habit and will-power.  We see too many examples of people with otherwise strong discipline in one realm who are simply unable to channel that discipline to cognitive focus. (3)  In turn, while mental energy surely correlates with IQ, it can't correlate perfectly.  Obviously not all with a genius IQ can focus like Galileo or Edwin Land. And not all who focus like Land have genius IQs.  

It's also self-evident that mental energy works in tandem with physical stamina.  You need sheer endurance to endure grueling work sessions.  This might explain why great intellectuals usually peak early in life.  For example, mathematicians usually make their breakthroughs at a young age, and rarely contribute after the age of 40.  That's a long established fact.

There has to be something specific at work, beyond the traditional explanations--IQ and nurture-- for intellectual prowess, for neither alone explains why intellectuals peak early.  Consider.  If, on the one hand, you believe intellectual prowess is mostly genetic and shaped by IQ, this wouldn't explain this phenomenon of the "early peak" since your IQ doesn't drop as you age.  Of course, the brain, as an organ of the body, ultimately will break down and you'll eventually suffer some form of mental deterioration.  But, that's well into old age. For a normal, healthy person, your IQ certainly wouldn't show a material dip by the age of 40.

Alternatively, if you believe prowess is mostly a function of environmental factors, then, if anything we should see greater intellectual contributions from older academics. After all, as you age you accumulate more knowledge, more experience, and should have more fluency with logic and intellectual skills.

So neither IQ nor environmentalism explains the early peak.

But, if we add mental energy to the mix, it all begins to make sense.  We can see why the "under 40" phenomenon would hold.  For, again, mental energy must work in tandem with physical stamina.  And physical stamina--more broadly all of the attendant physical traits that enable prolonged concentration--does indeed ebb as we go through our thirties and forties.  If you're healthy and take care of yourself, you may feel and look fine.  But physically, you're simply not the same as you were at twenty-four.  And applying mental energy--focusing, engaging in deep thinking--is deceptively exhausting.  You don't have to lift weights or run marathons or even tax your large muscles to physically tire.  Think about how stress tires you out, or grinding away on a report, or being in an intense work meeting.  These things are physically draining.  Mustering and maintaining prolonged focus is especially draining.

When you hit middle age, your IQ will hold.  You'll have accumulated more knowledge.   But, if intellectual prowess hinges on mental stamina…and mental stamina  relies on physical stamina…then, we can see why many intellectuals peak early.

It's a tough thing to isolate and directly observe; but, mental energy is likely a distinct, explanatory factor of superior performance; and it's likely to be, at least in part, genetic.

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