IQ

Although many on the left want to deny its validity, IQ has stubbornly retained its usefulness as a predictor of achievement-- particularly academic achievement.  The 'nature/nurture' question of whether heritable or environmental factors dominate remains open, but few doubt that both factors are significantly at play.  The latest research seems to indicate that heritability sets a 'floor' for IQ but that environmental factors can add as much as 15-20 points to adult IQ-- which is quite a lot.

First-world societies are, it seems to me, relatively high-IQ societies.  As a society, therefore, we should aim to increase average IQ over time through both its heritable and environmental factors.