m e ns a i n te r n a ti on a l j o u r n a l

february 2012 issue number 557

from the Director of Smaller National Mensas...

them that the topic could be offensive to people of Muslim or Christian A young society faiths. It made me think of Mensa in general, where members of so Recently, when I visited two great many different beliefs and opinions Mensa meetings in Malaysia and can exchange views respectfully, and Bulgaria, it ocurred to me that in tolerate even that which they find light of what is to come, Mensa, at offensive, as long as nobody forces the age of 65, is still very much a young organisation. We are growing them to listen. The second meeting of the two globally, spreading to new countries, was the International Board of and recruiting new members where Directors in Sofia in October. The we are already established. Growing in numbers is not all: in recent years, chairmen and representatives of all Full National Mensas met, as they I notice a deepening understanding do every year, to make decisions of what Mensa is. Increasingly, we and exchange experiences and ideas travel across borders, arrange mulfor how their own groups as well as tinational gatherings, and not least the international organisation can meet and trade ideas and thoughts online. Modern globalisation is mir- develop. Among all decisions taken, I can mention that the Leadership rored, in a smaller scale, in Mensa, Exchange Programme will continue as national groups learn from one another, adopting ideas and programs after its two year pilot phase, and and discover more of what Mensa is, also that the component (tax) that all countries pay to Mensa Internain the process. tional was cut by a fifth on the last First of these two was the inauday of the meeting. Further, we got gural Asian Mensa Gathering in Kuala Lumpur in September. Mensa to learn what Mensa Germany does Malaysia really went out of their way to achieve their outstanding 99.9% membership renewal rate. And now to create an excellent event that will that Mensa China is starting to grow, likely be followed by others. I liked what future do they envision? Other the combination of Mensa topics presentations included topics like the with cultural themes from several value of diversity, SIGHT, megaissues Asian Mensa groups, lectures on and strategic planning. Please go to leadership, science and spirituality, mensa.org and download the minutes among others. It was humbling also to see how, in such a diverse country for more details. As for the hosting, Mensa Bulgaria did a remarkable as Malaysia, the hosts made such an effort to treat everyone with respect, job, and we got so much PR that the chairman had to throw out a televias for example when visitors to a sion cameraman who was filming our presentation on past-life regression budget discussions. therapy were met by a sign alerting
mensa international journal february 2012

Bjrn Liljeqvist

Indeed, Mensa is still young and fulfilling its potential. You are all cordially invited to participate in shaping Mensa in the world. Local meetings are great, but the international ones add extra dimensions to the membership experience. There are several taking place very year. Simply by going there and returning, members add not only to their own pleasure, but also to that mysterious emergent property of groups, the collective intelligence when individuals connect and contribute whatever they have to share. As it happens, this can also be seen as one way for Mensa to fulfill its constitutional goal to identify and foster human intelligence for the benefit of mankind. On a final note: My name is Bjrn, and I used to be chairman of Mensa Sweden. Now I sit on the Executive Committee of Mensa International, elected by the chairs of the smaller nations (250-9999 members) to speak on their behalf, thereby ensuring that the multicultural and multilingual nature of Mensa International is not forgotten, but rather put to good use, as we continue to grow.

Bjrn Liljeqvist dsnm-mil@mensa.org 01

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Leadership Exchange Ambassador Program (LEAP) 2012

At the recent annual meeting in Sofia, Bulgaria, the IBD approved a permanent program of promoting the exchange of leadership skills among all countries with Mensa groups the Leadership Exchange Ambassador Program (LEAP). After a two-year pilot program in which fourteen Mensans participated, the outcome demonstrated that the initiative did indeed assist in bringing forth new, energized leaders while enhancing the Mensa experience worldwide for them and their audiences. For 2012, current members of all National Mensas (FNMs, PNMs, and ENMs) are encouraged to apply for this program. Selected members will design and present their lectures/workshops/topics on some aspect of Mensa management and/or leadership during two major Mensa gatherings. The participants will be expected to also evaluate other presentations and report on their experiences to their home Mensa group and to the IBD. Most expenses are covered by Mensa International. To begin the process, consult your chairman and obtain an application package to submit your name in nomination by 10 March 2012 or email the LEAP committee at lepcomm@mensa.org. Prospective candidates must be nominated by their own national Mensa group. As of this writing, the two gatherings where LEAP participants will present their workshops are not yet determined, the events under consideration being the American Mensa Annual Gathering in Reno, Nevada (AG, 4-8 July 2012), the European Mensas Gathering (EMAG, 8 12 August 2012), or the Asian Mensas Gathering (AMAG, late September 2012). For more information, see your chairman or email lepcomm@mensa.org.

Picnic Science
john blinke
Nucleation is the situation in which a particle becomes the core, or nucleus, of a collection of particles. Snowflakes start out this way. So do raindrops, mineral crystals, and gas bubbles. That last case is very useful for entertaining people at picnics: if you drop the right kind of candy into the right kind of carbonated beverage, you get a foamy geyser several meters high. Its a guaranteed crowd pleaser. The most famous combination is Mentos chewy mints and Diet Coke. This is what the Eepy Bird guys use in their You Tube demonstrations, though they now say Coke Zero is best. Side by side tests show that diet soda is more effective than sugared soda. One can imagine that some other combination works even better. Let me know if you find something really good. Why does this trick work so well? Were told that the surfaces of the candy are covered with tiny bumps and cracks that encourage the formation of carbon dioxide bubbles. Im not sure this is perfectly correct in detail. I suspect the key is that the hard candy surface dissolves quickly, releasing a cloud of tiny crystals. The number of reaction sites in a cloud of particles must be exponentially greater than that of a surface, no matter how bumpy. I can support this idea with an observation: If you look at the candies after the geyser is done, youll see that the hard outside layer is entirely gone and only a smooth white core remains.

Did you know ?

Mensa was founded in England in 1946 by Roland Berrill, an Australian barrister, and Dr. Lance Ware, a British scientist and lawyer. They met on a train. Mensa has three stated purposes: to identify and foster human intelligence for the benefit of humanity; to encourage research into the nature, characteristics and uses of intelligence, and to promote a stimulating intellectual and social environment for its members.
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If the nucleation idea is basically correct, then other things should trigger the geysers. I tried dry sand, and the result was wonderful! Eventually, I might figure out how much sand is equal to one candy. For now, I can say it works well as long as the sand doesnt clog the exit nozzle. Now ask: what happens if there are no nucleation sites available? In this case you get a supersaturated solution or a supercooled liquid in which a tiny disturbance might trigger a sudden phase change. A glass of supercooled water can freeze solid in an instant if the glass is tapped sharply. A supersaturated salt solution can suddenly rain a precipitate of tiny crystals until the remaining liquid is merely saturated.

Why Do Some People Never Forget a Face?

ted smoothly together. Thats because our brain automatically combines them to form a new - and unfamiliar - face, says Liu: evidence of holistic processing. The other marker of holistic processing is the whole-part effect (WPE). In this one, people are shown a face, then asked to recognize a part of it, say, the nose. They do better when the feature is presented within the whole face than when it stands on its own among other noses: again, we remember the nose integrated into the whole face. The researchers also assessed participants general intelligence. The results: those participants who In daily life, we recognize faces scored higher on CFE and WPE both holistically and also analytically - that is, picking out individual - that is, who did well in holistic parts, such as eyes or nose. But while processing - also performed better at the first task of recognizing faces. the brain uses analytical processing for all kinds of objects - cars, houses, But there was no link between facial recognition and general intelligence, animals - holistic processing is which is made up of various cognithought to be especially critical to tive processes - a suggestion that face face recognition, says Liu. processing is unique. To isolate holistic processing Our findings partly explains why as the key to face recognition, the some never forget faces, while othresearchers first measured the abilers misrecognize their friends and ity of study participants - 337 male relatives frequently, says Liu. Thats and female students - to remember why the research holds promise for whole faces, using a task in which therapies for that second category they had to select studied faces and flowers from among unfamiliar ones. of people, who may suffer disorders such as prosopagnosia (face blindness) The next two tasks measured perand autism. Knowing that the mind formance in tasks that mark holistic processing. The composite-face effect receives a face as one whole thing (CFE) shows up when two faces are and not as a collection of individual split horizontally and stuck together. parts, we may train people on holistic Its easier to identify the top half-face processing to improve their ability in when its misaligned with the bottom recognizing faces, Liu says. ScienceDaily (Dec. 2, 2011) one than when the two halves are fitFace recognition is an important social skill, but not all of us are equally good at it, says Beijing Normal University cognitive psychologist Jia Liu. But what accounts for the difference? A new study by Liu and colleagues Ruosi Wang, Jingguang Li, Huizhen Fang, and Moqian Tian provides the first experimental evidence that the inequality of abilities is rooted in the unique way in which the mind perceives faces. Individuals who process faces more holistically -- that is, as an integrated whole -- are better at face recognition, says Liu.

John Blinke Johnb44221@cs.com

What would you like to see in the IJ? More articles? Puzzles? Member communication channels? Send your ideas to me at ijeditor@mensa.org

Next years IBD meeting will be held in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

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Log into the International website at www.mensa.org for the calendar of national events
April 27-29 in Niagara Falls, Ontario
Mensa Falls for Niagara
Four South-western Ontario Mensa groups have come together to plan this event. We have a website with info on our program: www.so-mensa.org. People can register online there. We also have a Facebook Group, Mensa RG 2012 where we will post late-breaking news. People dont have to be registered for the event to join the Facebook Group. Its intended as a meeting place for people interested in our event who would like to connect with other Mensans.

Mensa Falls For niagara

southwestern ontario regional gathering
Marriott Gateway Hotel, Niagara Falls Canada

April 27 29, 2012 www.so-mensa.org

officer directory
Chair: Mr Willem Bouwens Trompenburgstraat 6-G, 1079 TX Amsterdam The Netherlands chairman-mil@mensa.org Tel: +31 (0)20 661 2718 Director Admin: Ms Sylvia Herbert 16 Farley St, St Johns, Worcester, Worcestershire WR2 6JD England admin-mil@mensa.org Tel: +44(0)1905 422231 Director Development: Ms Bibiana Balanyi Mensa HungarIQa, H-1426 Budapest 72, Postafiok 99 Hungary development-mil@mensa.org Tel: +36 209 135175 Treasurer: Cyndi Kuyper 2606 Henderson St, West Lafayette, IN 47906-1537 Tel: +1 765 463 1393 Cell Phone: +1 765 714 2272 treasurer-mil@mensa.org Dir. Smaller National Mensas: Mr Bjrn Liljeqvist Knektvgen 1, 196 30 Kungsngen, Sweden +46 (0) 730 394199 Hon. President: Dr Abbie Salny 407 Breckenridge, Wayne NJ 07470 USA Tel: +1 973 305 0055 SIGHTCoordinator: Mr Richard Kingston SIGHT@mensa.org Int. SIG Coordinator: Mr Markus Schauler sigs@mensa.org Ombudsman:Mr Martyn Davies ombudsman@mensa.org Executive Director: Mr Michael Feenan, Slate Barn, Church Lane, Caythorpe, Lincolnshire NG32 3EL, UK Tel/Fax+44(0)1400272 675 mensainternational@mensa.org Editorial Staff Editor: Ms Kate Nacard 407/23 Corunna Rd, Stanmore NSW 2048 Australia ijeditor@mensa.org Tel: +61 2 9516 1024 Science: Mr John Blinke, Johnb44221@cs.com Books: Mr Tom Elliott, tme01@verizon.net Feature Articles: Mr Thomas Hally, tjh@thomas-hally.com
The Mensa International Journal (MIJ) is produced under the auspices of the Mensa International Board of Directors. Pages 1-4 of each issue of the MIJ must be published in every national Mensa magazine. Publication of pages 5-8 is recommended but optional. Opinions expressed in the MIJ are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of any other individual or any official Mensa body. Submission Guidelines: Language: English only. Text: MS Word (Windows), .rtf (Word/Mac), plain text, PageMaker (Windows) Length: 500 word limit. Send by e-mail, fax, snail mail to the Editor. The Editor reserves the right to include or edit submissions for space and content considerations. All unoriginal submissions must be accompanied by written permission for publication from the original author.Permission is granted for MIJ articles to be reprinted in any Mensa publication provided that the author, MIJ and MIJs editor are acknowledged. Permission must be sought from the MIJ editor for reprinting of any part of the MIJ in non-Mensa publications. mensa international journal february 2012

skype: bjorn.liljeqvist dsnm-mil@mensa.org

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