你认为什么样的人才是聪明人呢，或者说你认为自己是聪明人吗？其实聪明的定义很笼统，谁又能肯定自己就很聪明呢？在我的理解中，聪明的人应该是会生活的人，明白自己的责任，有着自己的行为准则，可以处理好生活与周围的人际关系……
其实，我觉得聪明其实很难具体说清楚，但是通过众多的经验教训告诉我们，一般聪明人都具备下面的13个特征，你知道分别是什么吗？一起来看看吧。
1. You’re not easily distracted不会轻易分心
Frank Zhu says "people who can focus for long stretches at a time and tune out distractions" are highly intelligent. As evidence, he points to a 2013 paper published in the journal Current Biology.
弗兰克.朱说，智商高的人“有更强的专注力，不会轻易分心他顾。”他的证据是2013年发表在《当代生物学》杂志上的一篇论文。
The paper describes two small studies that found people with higher scores on an IQ test were slower to recognize large background movements in an image. That’s likely because they focus on the most important information and filter out the rest.
那篇论文介绍了两项小型研究，发现智商测试得分较高的人在识别较大的背景物移动行为时，速度反而较一般人慢。这很可能是因为他们习惯于把注意力放在最重要的信息上，并把其余部分过滤掉。
2. You’re a night owl夜猫子
终于为自己多年来坚持熬夜找到了一个正经点的理由
The smarter you are, the more you’re inclined to stay up into the wee hours of the morning, according to research.
研究发现，一个人越聪明，就越倾向于将睡眠时间推迟到凌晨之后。
One study, published in 2009 in the journal Personality and Individual Differences, looked at the link between childhood IQ and sleep habits among thousands of young adults. Sure enough, smarter individuals said they stayed up later and woke up later on both weekdays and weekends.
2009年发表在《个性与个体差异》杂志上的一项研究分析探讨了数千名青年的童年智商和睡眠习惯之间的联系。果然，无论平日还是周末，聪明的人都是晚睡晚起。
3. You’re highly adaptable适应能力很强
Several Quora users noted that intelligent people are flexible and able to thrive in different settings. As Donna F Hammett writes, intelligent people adapt by "showing what can be done regardless of the complications or restrictions placed upon them".
几位Quora用户指出，聪明的人更具灵活性，能够在不同的环境中茁壮成长。正如多娜.F.汉密特所写的那样，聪明的人能适应形势：“不管情况多么复杂，有什么限制条件，都可以有一番作为”。
Recent psychological research supports this idea. Intelligence depends on being able to change your own behaviors in order to cope more effectively with your environment, or make changes to the environment you’re in.
这一观点得到了最新的心理研究的支持。智商高不高，取决于你能否为了更有效地融入环境而改变自己的行为，或改变自身所处的环境。
4. You understand how much you don’t know了解自己的不足
The smartest folks are able to admit when they aren’t familiar with a particular concept. As Jim Winer writes, intelligent people "are not afraid to say: ’I don’t know.’ If they don’t know it, they can learn it".
最聪明的人能承认自己不熟悉某一概念。正如吉姆.维纳所写，聪明人“并不畏惧说‘我不懂’。如果他们不知道，他们可以学习”。
Winer’s observation is backed up by a classic study by Justin Kruger and David Dunning, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, which found that the less intelligent you are, the more you overestimate your cognitive abilities.
维纳观察到的这一点得到了贾斯汀.克鲁格和大卫.邓宁在《人格与社会心理学杂志》上发表的一篇经典论文的支持，该论文指出，智力水平越低的人，越会高估自己的认知能力。
In one experiment, for example, students who’d scored in the lowest quartile on a test adapted from the LSAT overestimated the number of questions they’d gotten right by nearly 50 percent. Meanwhile, those who’d scored in the top quartile slightly underestimated how many questions they’d gotten right.
例如，在一个实验中，学生参加了从法学院入学考试题改编而成的测试，成绩最差的学生把自己答对的题数高估了50%。与此同时，那些成绩最好的人略微低估了自己答对的题数。
5. You have insatiable curiosity永无止境的求知欲
Albert Einstein reportedly said, "I have no special talents, I am only passionately curious."
据称，爱因斯坦曾说过这样一句话：“我并非天赋异禀，我只是对世界充满了好奇心。”
Or, as Keyzurbur Alas puts it, "intelligent people let themselves become fascinated by things others take for granted."
或者如凯伊祖布尔.阿拉斯所说：“高智商的人会迷上那些其他人觉得理所当然的事物。”
A study published in 2016, in the Journal of Individual Differences, suggests that there’s a link between childhood intelligence and openness to experience - which encompasses intellectual curiosity - in adulthood.
2016年《个体差异杂志》上发表的一项研究表明，童年的智商水平与成年后对各种体验的开放态度（其中包含了求知欲）之间有一定的联系。
Scientists followed thousands of people born in the UK for 50 years and learned that 11-year-olds who’d scored higher on an IQ test turned out to be more open to experience at 50.
科学家们连续50年跟踪调查了数千名英国人。调查发现，在11岁时获得较高的 IQ测试分数的人们，在50岁的时候也更能接受新鲜事物。
6. You’re open-minded思想开明
Smart people don’t close themselves off to new ideas or opportunities.
高智商的人们不会对新的观点和机会抱有消极的态度。
Hammett writes that intelligent people are "willing to accept and consider other views with value and broad-mindedness," and that they are "open to alternative solutions".
汉密特写道，聪明的人“愿意用开阔的心胸接受和考虑其他观点，发现其中的价值”，而且他们“对不同的解决方案持开放态度”。
Psychologists say that open-minded people - those who seek out alternate viewpoints and weigh the evidence fairly - tend to score higher on the SAT and on intelligence tests.
心理学家表示，思想开明的人-那些能够找出和权衡各种不同观点的人-通常能在美国学术能力评估测验和智力测试中获得更高的分数。
At the same time, smart people are careful about which ideas and perspectives they adopt.
与此同时，聪明的人也会谨慎决定自己采纳的意见和想法。
An intelligent mind has a strong aversion to accepting things on face value and therefore withholds belief until presented with ample evidence, says Alas.
阿拉斯说：“聪明的人不喜欢只看表面来决定是否采纳，因此在得到充分证据之前都会持保留态度。”
7. You like your own company喜欢独处
Dipankar Trehan points out that highly intelligent people tend to be "very individualistic".
迪潘卡.特雷汉指出，智商高的人往往是“非常个人主义的”。
Interestingly, recent research from the British Journal of Psychology suggests that smarter people tend to derive less satisfaction than most people do from socialising with friends.
有趣的是，《英国心理学杂志》最近的研究表明，聪明的人从社交中获得的满足感要比多数人低。
8. You have high self-control自制力很强
Zoher Ali writes that smart people are able to overcome impulsiveness by "planning, clarifying goals, exploring alternative strategies and considering consequences before [they] begin."
佐尔.阿里写道，聪明的人能通过“计划-明确目标-寻找多种策略-在行动前考虑后果”来克服冲动。
Scientists have found a link between self-control and intelligence. In one 2009 study, published in the journal Psychological Science, participants had to choose between two financial rewards: a smaller payout immediately or a larger payout at a later date.
科学家们也发现了自制力和智商之间的联系。在2009年发表在《心理科学》的一项研究中，参与者需要在两种奖金中作出选择：马上可以得到一小笔奖金，或晚些时候得到更大的一笔奖金。
Results showed that participants who chose the larger payout at a later date - i.e., those who had more self-control - generally scored higher on intelligence tests.
结果显示，选择在晚些时候获得更大奖励的参与者，也就是自制力更高的人，智商测试的分数更高。
The researchers behind that study say that one area of the brain - the anterior prefrontal cortex - might play a role in helping people solve tough problems and demonstrate self-control while working toward goals.
研究人员表示，人脑的前额叶皮层也许起到了协助人们解决难题并在实现目标的过程中行使自制力的作用。
9. You’re really funny非常幽默
Advita Bihani points out that highly intelligent people tend to have a great sense of humor.
阿德维塔.毕哈尼指出，高智商的人往往都有很强的幽默感。
University of New Mexico scientists agree. One study they conducted found that people who wrote funnier cartoon captions scored higher on measures of verbal intelligence. Another study they ran found that professional comedians scored higher than average on measures of verbal intelligence.
新墨西哥大学的科学家们也同意这个观点。他们开展的一项研究发现，能够写出更有趣的漫画解说词的人在言语智力测试中的得分更高。他们的另外一项研究还发现，专业喜剧演员比普通人的言语智商更高。
10. You’re sensitive toother people’s experiences对他人的经历有较强的感受力
Smart people can "almost feel what someone is thinking/feeling," says one Quora user.
“高智商的人几乎可以感受到他人的想法和感觉。” 一位Quora用户说。
Some psychologists argue that empathy, being attuned to the needs and feelings of others and acting in a way that is sensitive to those needs, is a core component of emotional intelligence.
一些心理学家表示，同理心是情商的一个核心要素，聪明人能够理解他人的需求和感受，并且贴心地作出行动。
Emotionally-intelligent individuals are typically very interested in talking to new people and learning more about them.
情商高的人通常都很愿意与新朋友交流并且更多地了解对方。
11. You can connect seemingly unrelated concepts超凡的联想能力
Several Quora users suggested that smart people are able to see patterns where others can’t. That’s because they can draw parallels between seemingly disparate ideas.
一些Quora用户指出，聪明人能够看到其他人看不到的模式。那是因为他们能找到两个看似不沾边的想法的相通之处。
As April Astoria notes: "You think there’s no relation between sashimi and watermelon? You’d be wrong. Both are typically eaten raw and cold."
就像阿普里尔.爱斯托利亚所说：“你认为生鱼片和西瓜之间没有关系？你错了，这两样东西都可以冰镇后生吃。”
Interestingly, journalist Charles Duhigg argues that making these kinds of connections is a hallmark of creativity (which can be closely linked to intelligence). Duhigg studied the process through which Disney developed their hit movie Frozen and concluded that the movie only seems clever and original because it "takes old ideas and pushes them together in new ways".
有趣的是，记者查尔斯.杜希格认为，建立这种联系是创造力的标志，而创造力也和智商紧密相关。杜希格研究了迪斯尼的大热影片《冰雪奇缘》的制作过程，并得出结论说，这部电影给人感觉机智又新颖是因为它“把老故事重新组合”。
12. You procrastinate a lot拖延症
Mahesh Garkoti says smart people are likely to procrastinate on quotidian tasks, mainly because they’re working on things that are more important.
马赫什.戛克提说，聪明的人可能会拖延日常工作，主要是因为他们正在处理更重要的事情。
That’s an interesting proposition - but some scientists would say that smart people procrastinate even on work they find meaningful. Wharton psychologist Adam Grant suggests that procrastination is key to innovation, and that Steve Jobs used it strategically.
这是一个有趣的看法-但是一些科学家会说真正聪明的人甚至会拖延他们觉得重要的工作。沃顿商学院的心理学家亚当.格兰特认为，拖延是创新的关键，并指出史蒂夫.乔布斯曾使用过拖延战略。
As Grant told Business Insider, "The time Steve Jobs was putting things off and noodling on possibilities was time well spent in letting more divergent ideas come to the table, as opposed to diving right in with the most conventional, the most obvious, the most familiar."
格兰特告诉商业内幕网说，“史蒂夫.乔布斯会把项目一推再推，反复思考各种可能性，等待各种不同的观点浮出水面，而不是直接选用最传统、最显而易见和最熟悉的方案。”
13. You contemplate the big questions会考虑真正重大的问题
According to Ram Kumar, intelligent individuals "wonder a lot about [the] universe and meaning of life." What’s more, Kumar writes, "they always [ask] what’s the point of everything?"
拉姆.库马尔说，聪明的人“对宇宙和生命的意义有很多的想法”。库马尔还写道，“他们总是对一切追根究底”。
That existential confusion may be one reason why smart people are more likely to be anxious. As David Wilson reported in Slate, intelligent people may be better equipped to consider situations from a range of angles, meaning they’re always aware of the possibility that things will go awry.
这种存在感的混乱也许是聪明人更容易焦虑的原因之一。大卫.威尔森在网络杂志Slate的报道中写道，聪明人可能会更好地从多种角度考虑情况，这意味着他们总是能意识到事情出错的可能性。
Perhaps their anxiety also stems from the fact that they consider a given experience and wonder: Why bother going through it in the first place?
或许导致焦虑的原因也常常来自他们的自我反省：一开始为什么要这么做？有必要吗？
看完这13个品质，你具有几个，不得不说我应该不是一个傻子，毕竟第2、7、12 这三条我做的还是非常好的，你呢？
