Show F 1 Prevailing Opinions Comment Comment of the American Press Press Press- A Test That Failed After using the Thorndyke aptitude aptitude aptitude tude test for 12 years Stanford university drops it with the announcement announcement an- an that th the results results' corresponded corresponded corresponded cor cor- responded with the actual mental performance of students to the extent of only about 30 to 10 40 per cent This seems to mean that thousands thousands thou thou- s sands of applicants for entrance to Stanford rd have been subjected to a test that is practically worth worth- less And it confirms what a lotof lot lotof lotof of unregenerate ohi ohl codgers codgers- codgers in in including ourselves ourselves have have been s saying say say- ying y- y ing log for a a- along long time about cocksure cocksure cocksure cock cock- sure intelligence tests Th The variable variable- factor factor- is the idiosyncrasy idio of the individual human who may take 10 minutes to answer answer answer an an- a a simple question th that t doesn't interest him and at the same time possess a brilliant mind Many of the earlier tests seemed to have been heen devised by pedagogues gog es who regarded tH the glib lib sharper type of mind as the standard standard standard stand stand- ard of intelligence San San FranciscO Francisco Francisco Fran Fran- cisco News Drivers Born to to Cra Crash h Professor H. H M. M J who s th the chair of psychology at the Amer American can university in Washington D. D C. C has excited the attention of safety experts throughout th the country with a novel hovel thesis on the redu reduction ti n of highway accidents Using the title Born To Crash Professor Johnson sounded the note in a recent ar article icle in Colliers Collier's Weekly that certain drivers are prone accident-prone that removing them from the wheels of motor vehicles will send the curve of highway casualties down He bases his findings on a survey survey sur sur- survey vey of the accident figures kept by four large companies from 1928 to 1935 in cooperation with the National Research cd The figures show that out of 1400 drivers drives 5 per cent have liane had 30 per cent of ol the the- accidents About 10 lG per cent have had more than half the accidents and 75 per cent have gone through the average year without any accidents acci acci- dents By taking the prone accident-prone drivers from the trucks and givIng giving giving ing them other jobs the four companies red reduced d' d th the number of accidents from in 1928 to 47 in 1935 If general drivers fall into the same groupings as these as-these these commercial commercial commercial commer commer- cial drivers a key to saving lives and cutting down last years tears ears fatalities on the highway has been found Applying the key would mean revoking the licenses of from 1 to 5 per cent of the drivers now using the nations nation's highways That this will give rise to a a. complex situation for the licensing licensing licensing licens licens- ing authorities of the various stat states s is already indicated by the storm of of controversy raised by Professor Johnsons Johnson's conclusions New New York American Court Weighs Dolls Among the subjects that will soon engage the attention of the United States supreme court are labor relations utilities and mama dolls The supreme court has been asked to review w a New Jersey Jersey Jersey Jer Jer- Jer- Jer sey patent decision in the matter of mama voices or criers This is the device which induces dolls to say Mama when pressure is applied in the proper spot If it should happen that the criers case is taken up before the Wagner labor law labor law or the T V A issues what a chance there willbe will willbe willbe be to make caustic remarks about the high court For instance Nero fiddled while Rome was burning and nine old men in Washington were playing with mama dolls while the country etc But the nine old men will probably probably probably ably go about the days day's work as before taking everything in their stride now the question of ol paternalism paternalism paternalism pa pa- In in the the- new deal and now the question of in the mama dolls New New York Times Leadership Plus Education tion for democracy's sake may well become of far- far reaching discussion in this testing testing- time of the representative system system tem tern of government It might of course be said that democracy is always on t trial ial B But t the resurgence resurgence resurgence gence of the dictator ideology has given champions of free government government govern govern- govern govern- ment something to think about t Thus at the Albany me meeting ting of registrars arid and admission officers of New York state colleges educators educators edu edu- caters were thinking about the relation of their work to democracy democracy democracy racy and one of them from the speakers platform was advocating abandonment by American colleges colleges col col- col- col leges of their objective of higher education for tor all people and substitution substitution substitution sub sub- of of the development of grade first-grade ability if American democracy is to lead the world Certainly grade first-grade ability is essential to the conduct of any form of government nt and particularly lady to that of the republican form But it would be regrettable ble I if the only price at which such ability could be obtained were the abandonment of higher education for all who desire and deserve it For the representative system of government requires not only grade first-grade intellectual leadership but a high grade of fellowship as well Dr Hutchins of the University of Chicago has hag been examining possibilities by iy y which students right might ight go as far as they wished with education at small local colleges colleges col col- col- col leges before belore embarking on themore the themore themore more advanced studies at larger universities It is probable that the speaker at the registrars' registrars meeting had some such plan in mind to implement his general idea For by thus providing education education education edu edu- cation for all yet avoiding the lowering of standards of great schools to meet the mass demand both the brilliant leadership and the intelligent fellowship necessary necessary necessary sary to strengthen democracy might be provided Christian Science Monitor |