“It’s no rocket science” and “it’s NOT brain surgery” are common phrases used to show that it is not difficult for someone to do something or understand.
New research suggests that it may not take rocket science to perform brain surgery.
UCL scientists compared intelligence between brain surgeons (brain surgeons) and rocket scientists (rocket scientist).
The findings of the study show that both neurosurgeons and aerospace engineers are intelligent, contrary to common belief.
In their research, which was published in The BMJ, the researchers suggested that neurosurgeons as well as aerospace engineers could be placed unnecessarily on a pedestal.
“Other specialties may be deserving of that place, but future research should seek to identify the most worthy profession.”
These findings show that, contrary to popular opinion (stock photo), neurosurgeons and aerospace engineers have comparable intelligence levels to the general public.
Their study compared intelligence between 329 astronaut engineers and 72 neurosurgeons.
An online test was administered to assess intelligence. It measured planning and reasoning as well as working memory and emotional processing.
We also considered other factors which may affect intelligence, such as gender, handsight, experience, and specialization.
The stock image shows that neurosurgeons could solve problems quicker than the public but had slower memories recall.
Results showed that both neurosurgeons as well as aerospace engineers were equal in many aspects. However, neurosurgeons performed better with semantic problem solving, while aerospace engineers did better with mental manipulation.
Aerospace engineers showed no significant difference in intelligence when their results were compared with the general population.
While neurosurgeons were capable of solving problems quicker than the public, they also showed slower recall speeds.
These findings indicate that both the “it’s no rocket science” and “it’s NOT brain surgery” stereotypes don’t hold true.
The researchers concluded that despite these stereotypes and the larger proportion of men, neurosurgeons and aerospace engineers have cognitive abilities similar to the rest of the population.
“Our results show that further efforts are required to expand access to these specialist fields to avoid future staff shortages. They also highlight the need to create a workforce with diverse skills to support innovation in the future.