Is it true, reading makes you 'smarter'?

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Fran
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Is it true, reading makes you 'smarter'?

Post by Fran »

I'm not certain reading makes you smarter (not even sure what you mean by smart anyway) but it certainly can broaden your mind & depending on how eclectic your reading it can expose you to views and experiences outside your "comfort" zone. Like travel it broadens the mind and adds to the sum of your experiences provided you approach it with an open mind in the first place.
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Post by andr70 »

I think it really does. It helps you to learn to speak good, to think better to improve your spelling skills, thus to summarise all I would say it helps your mind a lot!
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Post by i_love_reading09 »

It does make you smarter. The more you read, the bigger your vocabulary will be. This will definitely help with SAT testings and such. It really benefited me :D
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Post by MrWright »

I suppose it depends on your definition of "smarter". And what you read. Although some smart people claim to have read very little fiction, such as Ricky Gervais, who said the only novel he's read is Catcher in the Rye.
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Daily Alice
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Post by Daily Alice »

I don't think it necessarily makes you smarter. A person could read a dozen books a day, and not gain one bit of knowledge if they are not understanding or thinking about what they read.

If a person actually thinks about what they read, and uses their own reasoning skills to form their own ideas and opinions about what they have read, then reading can make that person smarter.
MuchoLoco
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Post by MuchoLoco »

I think it depends on the material. If a person reads textbooks then they will become smarter. If they read children's book then they probably (hopefully) won't become smarter. Most of us read somewhere in between and gain a least something from reading.
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31w30
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Post by 31w30 »

I know reading makes me more aware of the past history, it does make me more informative in discussions on politics, Political Government and Presidents previous and past. So I guess the answer would be, yes it has made me more intelligent (smarter) :lol:
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Post by Leonidas »

It's a simply matter of biology. The more you use something the more efficient it becomes. So the more you use the parts of the brain related to the brain the better they will become e.g. work faster for longer periods. This also has carry on effects on other aspects of your life because obviously you use the memory part of your brain while reading otherwise by the end of the book your liable to forget parts of the beginning, therefore your memory will improve - which obviously effects mathematical ability. It also improves you ability to analyze things effectively - among other things - by increasing the connections between the neurons in the related part of the brain, which obviously will effect other aspects of your life.

That's not to mention you will learn things related to the actual content of the book e.g. history, how to grow a certain plant, physics and religion etc.

So basically anything you read will make you overall smarter - or at least the potential to be smarter, simply because of the biological response your body has to outside stimuli because it tries to adapt. So that person who said it depends on what you read was incorrect. Although they were also correct.
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Post by The Bookaholic »

I think it does the more you read, the more you will know:-)
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amok917
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Post by amok917 »

Funny thing about reading. People sometimes read to reinforce their pre-existing biases and ignorance. Those folks could read oodles and never get smarter.
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Post by Madcap Syzygii »

Well, my grandmother always thought people who went to college were the smartest people alive. She revers them, puts them on a pedestal, and looks at her own grandchildren who are doing their best in school, or have jobs instead of going to college, or are raising families and says, "That's alright honey, you have to be really smart to go to college, and you're doing what you can." But I have met many people who have gone to college, read many books, and still don't know what the heck anyone's talking about. I think many of us have. (Their parents should have played Mozart for them when they were sleeping as babies.) So does reading make you smarter? Sometimes. Depending on if we pay attention, remember the things we've read, our choices of literature, and what decisions we make after we've read. I think that reading is actually one of the biggest things that can make us smarter. I know it has helped me. Oh, and Mozart ;-)
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Post by FFGIRL12 »

I believe reading does make you smarter. Ever since I started reading I have always done well in English class with my vocabulary, spelling, and writing skills. I definitely have a larger vocabulary from reading and I am proficient at spelling. It pays off to read :)
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Post by Sherlock_1 »

What I've found is the more I read, the more eloquently I am able to construct arguments. I don't know if that translates to being any smarter, but it certainly opened up opportunities in different fields, opportunities I don't think I would have had if I didn't read as much as I do.
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Post by jellymonty »

Definitely! I know my conversational skills have improved since I took up reading
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Post by jcheiser »

Yes, definitely. There have also been studies that have shown readers to be more empathetic than non-readers. Basically, everyone should read. It's good for you, and could help make the world a better place. "Let us read and let us dance; these two amusements will never do any harm to the world" ~Voltaire.

-- 19 Dec 2013, 18:31 --
Sherlock_1 wrote:What I've found is the more I read, the more eloquently I am able to construct arguments. I don't know if that translates to being any smarter, but it certainly opened up opportunities in different fields, opportunities I don't think I would have had if I didn't read as much as I do.
If this were Facebook, I would "like" this. :)
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