Take The Intelligence Test That Thomas Edison Gave to Job Seekers

The article describes the 1921 leak of Thomas Edison’s employee test, the public debate it sparked, and the way newspapers and magazines copied and parodied it. It also notes that the quiz was seen as a measure of intelligence even though many questions were trivia and the test was changed after the leak.

Reading notes

#

• Edison’s test for potential employees was filled with trivia that was considered largely irrelevant to work under him.
• The leaked questions became a topic of national discussion after publication in the New York Times in May 1921.
• Newspapers copied and parodied the test, and by May 13, 1921 a full set of 146 questions and answers had been published.
• The Chicago Tribune gave students at the University of Chicago a short version and reported low scores.
• Reporters also quizzed Albert Einstein and Edison’s son Theodore, both of whom did poorly on the test.
• The article says Edison created the test because he was frustrated with college-educated applicants who lacked the knowledge he wanted.
• The National Park Service notes that the test changed several times after it leaked with the answers.
• The page reproduces the 146 questions and the answers as they appeared in the New York Times.
• It also warns readers to answer as if living in 1921.