What is intelligence?

Intelligence is one of the most widely studied subjects in psychological science. It has been shown to be a good predictor of not only academic and job performance, but also of other life outcomes like socio-economic status, health, or well-being. But what IS intelligence, actually?

An interesting reply to this question comes from research on artificial intelligence (AI) research. Computer scientist Alex Wissner-Gross says: intelligence is a function to maximise future freedom of action and keep options open. In a TED Talk, his explains this notion and how it is applied in computer science.

It is a different perspective and it can be applied to systems that do not only learn, but define their own goals. This field of research is certainly one that is worth following and maybe it will help us understand human intelligence better. We will certainly follow up on this.