Blow our minds with curiosity

Curiosity has been said to be "the lust of the mind" (Hobbes, 1886, p. 34). In fact, what the philosopher said was:

"Desire to know why, and how, CURIOSITY; such as is in no living creature but man: so that man is distinguished, not only by [...] reason, but also by this singular passion from other animals; in whom the appetite of food, and other pleasures of sense, by predominance, take away the care of knowing causes; which is a lust of the mind, that by a perseverance of delight in the continual and indefatigable generation of knowledge, exceedeth the short vehemence of any carnal pleasure" (Hobbes, 1651, p. 26; spelling and characters amended to 21st century conventions).

Curiosity is therefore a human drive that we all have; a "singular passion" to know which sets us apart from other animals over and above our base needs (Hobbes, 1651, p. 26). Phew!

But did you know there was such a thing as a curiosity quotient, or CQ? Apparently, having a high CQ quotient means that we have a "hungry mind" (Chamorro-Premuzic, 2014). This idea was first proposed by Friedman (2005), in relation to the intelligence quotient (IQ): that curiosity and passion together outweighed IQ. 

Those of us who have higher CQ scores are reported to be "more inquisitive and open to new experiences" (Chamorro-Premuzic, 2014). Routine is not for high CQ scorers, they are always seeking the new. Idea generators, and likely "counter-conformist', CQs are thought to be "more tolerant of ambiguity" and have "higher levels of intellectual investment and knowledge acquisition" long-term. They are the epitome of continuous learners (Chamorro-Premuzic, 2014). The CQ "nuanced, sophisticated, subtle thinking style defines the very essence of complexity", which grows our "[k]nowledge and expertise". What this results in is our curiosity quotient is our secret human sauce for "produc[ing] simple solutions for complex problems" (Chamorro-Premuzic, 2014).

There does not appear to be an assessment test for our curiosity quotient, but a list of tasks. Learn a new language. Watch films and read books which are outside our preferred genres. Meet new people. Explore our environment in new ways. Attempt to solve problems by skull sweat, not via Google. Bash through the barriers by brute brain-force alone.

Curiosity. Powerful stuff.

Sam

References:

EmojiTerra. (2023). Emoji: Testa Che Esplode. https://emojiterra.com/it/faccina-con-testa-che-esplode/

Friedman, T. (2005). The World is Flat: A Brief History of the 21st Century. Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

Hobbes, T. (1651). Leviathan, Or, The Matter, Forme, and Power of a Commonwealth, Ecclesiasticall and Civill (1st ed.). Andrew Crooke at the Green Dragon.

Hobbes, T. (1886). Leviathan, Or, The Matter, Form, and Power of a Commonwealth, Ecclesiastical and Civil (reprint from 1651 ed.). George Routledge and Sons.

Chamorro-Premuzic, T. (27 August 2014). Curiosity Is as Important as Intelligence. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2014/08/curiosity-is-as-important-as-intelligence