It's Not Rocket Science?

The Christmas edition of the British Medical Journal compared scores (on the Great British Intelligence Test) for international cohorts of more than 300 aerospace engineers and around 70 neurosurgeons with those obtained by more than 18,000 members of the british public (https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/dec/13/brain-surgeon-or-rocket-scientist-study-tries-to-find-out-who-is-smarter ). The study also assessed the ability to answer questions relevant to age, sex and levels of experience in their speciality of the subjects. There was little evidence that rocket scientists or neurosurgeons were notably more intelligent than the man in the street. The only significant difference involved the neurosurgeons, who were faster at problem solving (but slower at memory recall). This might be a consequence of self-selection. Neurosurgery is fast-paced, not leaving much time for careful thought. Only fast problem solvers would thrive in such a career.