Born Smart or Built Smart? The Truth About Intelligence and Effort
A Theodore Talks Lecture given Prof T. Alexander Puutio
Sunday July 26th, 2026, via Zoom at 2:30 pm CT
In this lecture, Prof T. Alexander Puutio — who teaches AI & business leadership at Harvard P&ED and is the author of a recently published book on curiosity published by Taylor and Francis, AI for MBAs — will explore the critical distinction between being born smart and being built smart. He will also examine how curiosity, metacognition, resilience, and deliberate practice shape effective intelligence, often outweighing genetic disposition. By looking at how individuals and organizations foster, or sabotage, their own cognitive performance, we can identify the tools and environments which truly maximize human potential. For American Mensa members in particular, the opportunity often lies in shifting the conversation from static measurements of intelligence to dynamic strategies for making brainpower and adaptivity profitable in the world.
Register for this month’s presentation >> here.
Theodore Talks take place via Zoom on the fourth Sunday of each month at 2:30 pm CT.
Even if you can’t attend the live Theodore Talk lecture and discussion, as long as you register in advance you’ll receive a link to the Zoom recording of the entire event. All Theodore Talks have closed captioning enabled and this year we are offering Translated Captions as well.
A list of future Theodore Talks can be found on the American Mensa National Events Calendar at: https://www.us.mensa.org/attend/calendar/, or by viewing the January issue of the Mensa Bulletin.
Theodore Talk lectures are now being made possible by the financial support and generosity of Life Member Dr. Mark Cohen. Thank you for your support of the Theodore Talk lecture series which is offered free to all Mensa members in an effort to provide more value for membership.
Questions? Contact Brad Lucht at [email protected].
