Belgaum boy beats Einstein, Hawking in IQ score

Mangalore Today/DHNS

Bangalore, July 10, 2013: This thirteen-year-old has an IQ higher than that of Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. Keshav Iyengar, a Belgaum-born boy, whose family is now settled in Cheam, London, has scored the highest score possible (162 on 162) in the Cattell III B IQ test, recognised by Mensa, the high IQ Society whose members stretch across 100 and more countries in the world.

Securing the complete score in this test is unprecedented. Keshav is now among the top 0.1 per cent having high IQ in the world. Both Einstein and Hawking are said to have had an IQ of 160.

 

The results of the test were announced in the first week of May. “I knew that he would clear the test. I had not expected him to top it. When I called up Mensa to find out the result, they told me it was big, that it was the highest score ever achieved till date,” said the boy’s mother Jyothika Punekar, speaking to Deccan Herald.

Keshav’s mother holds a PhD in Aeronautical Sciences and his father is an alumnus of Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. A student of Wilson’s School, London, Keshav is now in Eighth Grade. His parents identified his special talent when they realised that he could remember registration number of cars after having seen the vehicle just once. His mother felt that he could have got the trait from his maternal grandfather in Belgaum who could remember phone numbers stretching back 30 years.

He aimed to pursue his career in software design, Keshav told Deccan Herald. As for the IQ test, he did not make any special preparations. “It is a test comprising logical questions. It is not possible to make any prior preparations,” said Keshav.

Mathematics in general and Trigonometry in particular along with English language are his favourite subjects. Though he does not always top in all the subjects in school, he is among the top two or three students in his class.The student is also into Badminton and Football. Coming from a family of musicians, Keshav is a good singer too, his mother said.

He is undergoing training in Carnatic music. “In the very first few days of his music classes, he could identify nuances of the notes,” said his mother.

Keshav is a very shy child and until he topped the test he did not want to believe that he had any special talent, she added.

Their roots are calling back and Keshav might continue his further studies back in Bangalore if he gets admission into any good school in the city next year. “I am not a pushy mother. I want him to have fun with academics. But I would love for him to pursue education at the IISc some day,” Jyothika said.