Ignacio,

I'll have to agree with you. Being only a little over 200 years old, we do lack culture, especially compared to a country like Spain, that I feel, is nothing but culture. America's founding was resolute in it's seperation from the way that Europe had been running for centuries. The founders considered Europe's endless wars for power and wealth desolate, as the pyramid on our dollar bill symbolizes.
And yes, there is a difference between dumb and lacking in knowledge. Someone who is lacking in knowledge is ignorant, not dumb, and so has the possibility of being less ignorant.

sparkalina wrote: I guess there's hope for me yet. Where do I sign up for MENSA ? Now I don't feel nearly as stupid. hehehe.. But give us a quiz on The Simpsons trivia and we're F'in Wizards! hehehe..

Saludos, MadridMan

Gazpacho, I didn't mean to offend through speaking of the USA's short history. In fact, I think that is a deduction that is not supported by what I wrote.

Many times I don't want to write endless lines to explain certain things, but it seems that many people expect me to follow a critical line in every aspect of certain matters, like the USA. In fact, there are many things that I like from the USA.

I don't know why you say this:

Maybe because of this?:

Here, I am not critizising the shortness of your history but meaning that the test is biased through asking about authors an american is more prone to know. They could also have asked about Cervantes, and Garcilaso de la Vega, or Rabindranah Tagore and Ghandi, for example.

As for the reasons of founders, Europe was truly going through stormy times, but ... I'll pass on comenting the storms the USA caused from there on. Fortunately for the country, it was riding the storm, not suffering it.

Ignacio,

I was merely capitulating to the simple fact that the U.S. is lacking in culture compared to a country like Spain. We don't have Phoenician, Greco, Roman, Arabic, Iberian, Visigothic, etc... heritage. So if you find us lacking in culture, that is understandable. Historically, we try not to align ourselves even with England. Our Canadian brothers, God Bless them, maintain more ties to the old continent. Independence is still a very strong idea here.
You can criticize us at will. We will still be Americans, and this one, darn proud of it. Do we make errors? Yep. Do we make errors even when trying to make amends? Yep.
I liken it to Don Quixote going throughout a non-chivalrous Spain trying to right wrongs in pursuit of honor. For a Spaniard, from what I have read and observed, honor is very important, maybe, some would say, the most important. But as we learn from Sancho, when it gets right down to it, there is very little honor in day-to-day life. For the U.S., justice, is very important. We go about tilting windmills in the name of justice, when in truth, only the most powerful and/or rich can afford justice.
I'm not telling you this to prolong an argument, or to justify our actions. I'm sharing this with you for insight into who we are. And perhaps you will feel as great affection for us one day, as I do for my Spanish friends.

Well, I thought this test was a hoot. As a former reference librarian, it is similar to the questions we get every day in academic libraries, and of course in our training in library school.

One also needed to have taken Chemistry to have answered some of the questions. Which means that it was biased towards those who had prepared for an academic track in high school.

The Humanities questions did require one to be a well-travelled person, so once again, it was biased to those that could afford to travel, such as the location of the Mona Lisa.

What many of you have noted are the reasons why so many academicians are opposed to norm-referenced tests and favor criterion-referenced testing.

But heck, it was just fun!

Gazpacho,

In fact, I tend to like americans, but not America as a country. At least, the capitalist-imperialist part of it (no, I am not a commie, but I like social-capitalism), however, I like many traditions and some aspects where americans (in the big cities) are freer of social constraints.

Booklady:

Anybody with an average secondary school passed could have answered most of the questions (at least outside the USA ), however, doesn't it tell you anything the fact that the history questions are related to America's history? and the literature questions about the main authors the americans study at schools?, and the geography ones about countries the americans know better?

Sure, it's easier to make a joke, and not analyze, isn't it?

Anyway, I don't want to spoil the psicologyst work on inferiority complex.

P.D.: I took chemistry, but I knew what was bronze composed of before I took it.

Social-capitalism Ignacio? Please enlighten me. Is that where everyone is free to succeed, but only if the current government allows you to. You're scaring me dude.

If us Americans wanted that we would truly be all stupid!! The problem is not that Americans don't understand the economies and governments of other countries, the problem is that many of us don't understand what makes America so great. But that's because most people function very well over here without having to.

"Sure, it's easier to make a joke, and not analyze, isn't it? "

Ignacio,

You need to lighten up dude! You are taking things too seriously, this test is silly...es una boberia. Didn't you notice that a member of Mensa got a 13! Those people outscore and outperform everyone on criterion and norm tests.

The problem is that you did not understand what I said, look at my final paragraph. You are making assumptions where there are none to make, a mountain out of a molehill. But anyway, if it makes you happy to take exceptions to what I say Ignacio, go ahead, enjoy! :p

Feliz Navidad and all tha jazz!

yeah Booklady!
I thought this was supposed to be fun??
Gee, there always has to be a party pooper spoiling the fun.
Oh my god I said pooper, someone will now try to over-analyze that too!

:p

Hey! who said that americans are stupid?? c'mon!

I know people from certain countries who say the same thing about spaniards: "Spaniards are stupid, they don't know how to do anything". Well, so if both of us are stupid, we should be good friends and have a pretty stupid fun time together!