Winter Research Journal Celebrates 'Founder of Neuropsychology,' Excellence in Research Honorees

As you can see from the cover, this is the Mensa Research Journal’s 50^th anniversary! At least it is Volume 50, Number 1. I have been trying to get confirmation of the anniversary, but so far have been unsuccessful. Until I hear otherwise, I will assume that it is our 50^th.

This issue of the MRJ is dedicated to award winners. Rather than the usual examination of a single topic, we will look at a wide range of subjects.

A Lifetime Achievement Award is given annually in recognition of a lifetime of contributions to the field of intelligence and related subjects. This year the International Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Brenda Milner, ”the founder of neuropsychology“ from the Montreal Neurological Institute of McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The first article is a tribute to her from BRAIN on the occasion of her 100^th birthday, by Kate E. Watkins and Denise Klein.

The rest of the papers in this issue are winners of the Mensa Foundation’s Awards for Excellence in Research. These annual awards are given internationally for outstanding research on intelligence, intellectual giftedness, and related fields. As mentioned, they cover a wide range of topics, from Hans Eysenck; mnemonic brain training; three different papers dealing with various aspects of helping disadvantaged, talented students; to a look at the difficulties of having high intelligence. There were a few more winners, but this was all that I had room for.

If you have published an appropriate paper in a peer-reviewed journal or presented it at a peer-reviewed conference within the past three years, please consider submitting it for award consideration. As many as 10 awards of $500 are given to the best published papers.

Published three times yearly, the Mensa Research Journal highlights scholarly articles and recent research related to intelligence from a diverse selection of nationally and internationally esteemed authors. Learn more about the MRJ and subscribe today.

Research featured in this issue

• “Hans Eysenck’s Theory of Intelligence, and What It Reveals About Him,” by Linda S. Gottfredson (Personality and Individual Differences)
• “Mnemonic Training Reshapes Brain Networks to Support Superior Memory,” by Martin Dresler, William R. Shirer, Boris N. Konrad, Nils C.J. Müller, Isabella C. Wagner, Guillén Fernández, Michael Czisch, and Michael D. Greicius (Neuron)
• “Helping Disadvantaged and Spatially Talented Students Fulfill Their Potential: Related and Neglected National Resources,” by Jonathan Wai and Frank C. Worrell (Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences)
• “A Talent for Tinkering: Developing Talents in Children From Low-Income Households Through Engineering Curriculum,” by Ann Robinson, Jill L. Adelson, Kristy A. Kidd, and Christine M. Cunningham (Gifted Child Quarterly)
• “High-Ability Students’ Perspectives on an Affective Curriculum in a Diverse, University-Based Summer Residential Enrichment Program,” by Enyi Jen, Marcia Gentry, and Sidney M. Moon (Gifted Child Quarterly)
• “High Intelligence: A Risk Factor for Psychological and Physiological Overexcitabilities,” by Ruth I. Karpinski, Audrey M. Kinase Kolb, Nicole A. Tetreault, and Thomas B. Borowski (Intelligence)