• Question: How does our brain work when solving questions and problems? Is there a link between fluid intelligence and the frontal lobe?

    Asked by gavins to Fiona, Jane, Joanna, Michelle, William on 18 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Joanna Brooks

      Joanna Brooks answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      Well, fluid intelligence is a concept that describes general problem solving ability and the ability to think ‘outside the box’. IQ tests are usually used to measure fluid intelligence and working memory ability (the type of memory you use when you do maths to hold numbers in your mind) is thought to be strongly related to it. The frontal lobes are thought to be highly involved in fluid intelligence because when the frontal lobes are damaged this type of intelligence is impaired.

    • Photo: Michelle Murphy

      Michelle Murphy answered on 17 Jun 2010:

      Well how the brain works at answering questions depends on the topic of the question if it is what’s your name it will usually be easy for you too answer this and you will mainly use the language part of your brain, if it is mental maths it will be a different area but the process of how the brain works in simple terms is the same it will send chemical or electrical signals to talk to other cell in the body in order to create a response. Damage to the frontal lobe tends to relate to difficulty with problem solving (fluid intelligence) so it is likely that there is a like. Sorry I don’t know much more about this but great question. Thanks.

    • Photo: Fiona Randall

      Fiona Randall answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      The frontal lobe is involved in reasoning/debating different ideas/problem solving and planning. It is also involved in some movement, speech and emotions. I would have thought that the frontal lobe is critical to intelligence but I’m not sure that anyone has found a direct link between intelligence and a particular aspect of the frontal lobe. Everyone solves problems in different ways and so likely the frontal lobes of individuals influence how that individual solves a problem.

    • Photo: William Davies

      William Davies answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      For complex cognitive tasks, electrical and chemical interactions between neurons in the cortex (the outer layer) of the brain are particularly important. Different regions of the cortex have different functions. The frontal cortex (which is much bigger in humans than most other mammals) is involved in many functions that seem to make us human, such as the ability to plan ahead, to change our behaviour when things aren’t going as planned, and to use our current knowledge to generate and tests new ideas (reasoning). When people have damage to the frontal cortex (e.g. because of stroke, accidents or disease like dementia) they tend to act in strange ways, and often have no inhibitions. I remember hearing about one family with so-called fronto-temporal dementia whose members used to cut their lawns (and their pubic hair) into strange patterns apparently!

    • Photo: Jane Henry

      Jane Henry answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      We tend to solve questions and problems using the same ways we have found works for similar problems in the past. Usually this works, sometimes it misleads us. Search insight problems on the net and you’ll get example of when it misleads us. Draw three sets of three dots equally spaced and parallel to each other to make a square, can you join all nine dots with four straight lines without taking your pen off the paper? Younger kids are often better at this than adults as they are less set in their thinking patterns.

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