Theory of multiple intelligences

Intelligence - How does one define intelligence? Since ages, many researchers have tried to define intelligence and have put forth one theory after another. Four main paradigms have been extensively used in the course of this research.

1. Psychometric Theories - Researchers employing this paradigm have tried to define intelligence by comprehending how it is structured. Accordingly, they wanted to find out what are the various abilities that constitute intelligence and resorted to testing psychologic experiments to evaluate that minds' abilities
2. Cognitive Paradigm - Cognition/noesis is the result of the perception, learning and reasoning. Likewise, cognitive theories of intelligence attempted to unfathom what were that processes underlying intelligence. Simply put, cognitive theories stated that a person's intelligence is his ability to organize information in its various representations and to process them
3. Cognitive_Contextual Theories - These theories explain the manner in which the congnitive process works
4. Biological Theories - I somehow have the feeling that this paradigm is wierd. Biological theorists of intelligence are trying to study intelligence in terms of is biological basis. Maybe someone would come up with a gene for intelligence sometime in the future!!

Of all these theories, I found an interesting one in a book called 'Frames of Mind' by Howard Gardner a Harvard professor . Howard has outlined the constituents of intelligence into seven basic sets. The seven intelligences are

• Linguistic Intelligence - This is the ability to read, write and communicate with words
• Logical_Mathematical Intelligence - Ability to think logically and be proficient in numbers
• Visual_Spatial Intelligence - Ability to imagine, to think in pictures
• Musical Intelligence - Ability to compose music
• Bodily Kinesthetic Intelligence - Athletic ability and manual dexterity
• Inter-personal Intelligence - Ability to work well with others, and relate with them
• Intra-personal Intelligence - Ability to comprehend self and plan ahead

All said and done, how do I define intelligence? Well, quite simple - common sense. Probably I must try to make some sense out of all this intelligence no(n)sense