The word, IQ, seems to be not only on the minds of consumers but also companies looking for product names.  Toyota is unveiling one of their newest cars, the Toyota iQ.  It should be out in Europe soon and may make its way to America shortly.

What does this choice of naming say about the car or about the marketing strategies employed by Toyota?  One thing is clear - it's about intelligence.  Intelligent decision making.  Intelligent price.  Intelligent economy.  Intelligent consumer.   Especially during tough economic times, intelligent decision making is extremely important.

At FunEducation.com, we offer a free and fun way to test your intelligence.  Take our Online IQ Test and find out what your IQ score is.  It is a PhD-Certified and accurate exam and best of all, it's a free IQ test!

“When I consider the short duration of my life, swallowed up in the eternity before and after, the little space which I fill, and even can see, engulfed in the infinite immensity of spaces of which I am ignorant, and which know me not, I am frightened, and am astonished at being here rather than there; for there is no reason why here rather than there, why now rather than then. Who has put me here? By whose order and direction have this place and time been allotted to me?” - Blaise Pascal

Blaise Pascal is one of the less known and less studied philosophers. A 17th century Renaissance man, he is more known for his contributions to physics and mathematics, especially regarding projective geometry and the theory of probability, than the search for the meaning of life. However, he is one of many French philosophers who have studied the topic. Each of the major philosophers that have come from the land of wine and snails has developed his own distinct theories on the meaning of life. Also, like Pascal, they tend to dip into other subjects and realms.

René Descartes was a contemporary of Pascal though he operated in different circles. Probably most famous today for his quote "I think, therefore I am," he was well known for his work in mathematics, science and literature, as well as philosophy.

He has also been given the illustrious title "Father of Modern Philosophy" for which he may or may not enjoy taking credit. Descartes centered his musings on the idea that our essence is thinking. Our senses may give information but our minds allow us to make sense of the world. This led to a questioning of our physicality, whether we exist in a corporeal form at all. Reading Descartes, you are led to question whether in fact this is all a dream or imagined state of being, which begs the question of whether there is any meaning at all.

Jean-Paul Sartre is best known as an existentialist, famous for his explicit depiction of the idea that existence precedes essence, the core theory of existentialism. He was also a prolific writer, winning the 1964 Nobel Prize for literature, and political activist. This is a theory in opposition to most traditional philosophy, which espouses the idea that essence, or the meaning of life, is an unchanging and fundamental thing. Basically, Sartre claimed that a person defines oneself, rather than being defined or directed by some outside force. He said, "man first of all exists, encounters himself, surges up in the world - and defines himself afterwards." Another view of this theory is that we create our own meaning in life out of our experience, though that meaning is dependent on the fairness of the outside world.

Throughout the millennia, there are countless stories of men and women who have spent their lives searching for the meaning of life. However, is this a worthwhile pursuit or a waste of time? 

Let us suppose that there is a meaning of life. If it cannot be discovered after hours, days, weeks, months or even years of searching, is it worth taking the time to do so? In effect, does the possible answer merit the search?

It would be hard to find anyone over the age of 10 that has not once wondered why they exist. It seems though that most people either accept an already posited answer to the meaning of life, generally from a theological or philosophical tradition. For some though, it may make more sense to contemplate the subject, find it unanswerable, and then move on to other pursuits.

It is also worth considering if the meaning of life is important on a personal or a grand scale. "What is my meaning of life?" is a very different question than "What is the meaning of all of this?" Then again, does either question matter?  Would knowledge of the meaning of life change all that much in your life?  Certainly the consensus of most accepted meanings given so far has been that your purpose is to live a good life. This may vary depending on the religious leader or philosopher you subscribe to, but this is a very common theme. The search for the meaning of life does not seem to be critical to this idea. Instead, it seems to be built on the search for comfort for you and your family in this life.

There are many people who live good, virtuous, happy lives without spending time contemplating the meaning of it all. To be a good person, to be happy, to love and be loved – all of these are worthwhile pursuits that may actually satisfy the tenets of some philosophies unintentionally.

Another time [the Buddha] said, "Suppose a man is struck by a poisoned arrow and the doctor wishes to take out the arrow immediately. Suppose the man does not want the arrow removed until he knows who shot it, his age, his parents, and why he shot it. What would happen? If he were to wait until all these questions have been answered, the man might die first." Life is so short. It must not be spent in endless metaphysical speculation that does not bring us any closer to the truth. - Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen Keys

Buddhism is an interesting religious tradition. In fact, it is not even always considered a religion, but rather a family of beliefs and practices. Buddhists trust in what are referred to as the Three Jewels: the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha which are respectively the Awakened One, the Teachings and the Community.

The Buddha is believed to have been a man named Siddhartha Gautama who shared many teachings during his lifetime sometime around the 5th century B.C. The teachings of the Buddha tend to shy away from the so-called 'Big Questions' of life. This is generally seen as demonstrative of his aversion to contemplating these issues, as they distract from the pursuit of true knowledge known as Enlightenment, a state free from worldly pleasures and suffering. Experience is emphasized over philosophical musings, although Buddha did not actively dismiss philosophy.

The quote at the beginning of this article demonstrates the Buddhist theory of why philosophical musings on the meaning of life are futile and/or distracting. It can be seen as Nihilistic, but in fact is better described as Pragmatic.

The arrow (life) should be addressed, rather than the shooter (is there meaning/God), the source (our/the Universe's origins), or why he was shot (why are we here). This is a fairly unique stance for any religious or even quasi-religious tradition, as it leaves out the usual purpose of humanity: serving a higher power. However, the Buddhist teachings are extremely interesting and can give insight to not only the meaning of life, but also to our life as it is.

How well we put together our presentations for our job can say a lot for who we are.  A sloppy presentation with unintelligible charts and graphs can not only say that we are lazy but can also vie towards our level of visual intelligence.  On the flip side, a good presentation can attest to our success.  With computers now de facto and no longer an impressive demonstration of our futuristic thinking, now more than ever do we need to focus on our visual acuteness when it comes to creating effective presentations.

Raffael Marty from IT World in his article, "How do you create good visualisations?", describes the foundation technique for effective visualizations.  He outlines the importance to be expressive and not to overdo it when it comes to color.  Spatial intelligence can also play a key factor in visualizing good charts and graphs. 

We offer a great test called the Spatial IQ Test which specifically tests your IQ using spatial reasoning.  If you take that test in conjunction with our verbal IQ Test, you can get an idea as to how your IQ score changes when using the different reasoning centers.

Maybe now you'll know why that presentation turned out like it did!

“I mean, yes idealism, yes the dignity of pure research, yes the pursuit of truth in all its forms, but there comes a point I'm afraid where you begin to suspect that if there's any real truth it's that the entire multi-dimensional infinity of the Universe is almost certainly being run by a bunch of maniacs; and if it comes to a choice between spending another ten million years finding that out or on the other hand just taking the money and running, then I for one could do with the exercise.”- Frankie Mouse, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Legions upon legions of devoted readers of Douglas Adams will have no problem in telling you the Ultimate Answer to Life, the Universe and Everything. As calculated by the second greatest computer to have ever existed, also known as Deep Thought, it is 42. The number 42. There is no more complex meaning to life than that. The problem with this, however, is that The Ultimate Question is unknown. For that solution, the greatest computer to have ever existed was built: Earth. After many eons and more random events than could be imagined, the Question was discovered: "What do you get if you multiply six by nine?" as spelled out in Scrabble tiles.

While this is, indeed, both an amusing and fictitious question and answer (also incorrect according to most known methods of multiplication), it poses a reasonable question to any searchers for the meaning of life: what if the meaning of life does not make sense or, worse, offers futility rather than meaning?

We search because we want to know our purpose, to know that we mean something in a universal, not just a local, sense. The problem with searching is always what we might find. If, in fact, the reason for being is not for our own sakes but for some others' needs or even a cosmic gag, is the search still meaningful itself?

Be happy while you're living, for you're a long time dead.
- Anonymous Scotsman

There are so many ways to express this philosophy: Carpe Diem; Eat, Drink and Be Merry, for Tomorrow We Die; Memento Mori; Be Happy.

These endeavors go on record as the most pleasurable search for meaning: hedonism, in which the main pursuit of life is pleasure. Hedonism espouses the fact that man is in essence selfish and lustful. Hedonism is often joined with utilitarianism, which claims that we should act based upon the best interest of the group, or on a grander scale, everyone. We seek good for both ourselves and our families.  Coupling hedonism and utilitarianism, therefore, should result in everyone aiming for the happiness of everyone.

Hedonism has a long history. As early as the 5th century BC, Democritus was advocating the chief goal of life being "contentment," long before Plato was advocating the relentless search for knowledge. Epicurus advocated a similar position a century later, emphasizing the highest pleasure of a simple, moderate life of friends and philosophical discussions. Of course, most people today would associate Epicurus with the term Epicurean and high dining. There are also those who would say that Freud was a proponent of hedonism. His description of a "life instinct" is very similar to the philosophy's claims that people pursue pleasure.

Hedonism is closely associated with Egoism, a theory that claims that humans act solely in their own self-interest. They are sometimes combined and referred to as ethical hedonism. This combines ethical egoism, individuals seeking their own good, with hedonism. Ethical hedonism, in short, advocates that humans should rightly seek their own pleasure and act accordingly. It is important to distinguish, however, the search for pleasure from selfish acts. In order to contribute to one's meaning, the intention must be a pleasurable life rather than just a selfish, pleasurable act.