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I think another factor is that there isn't just one math, and people are not equally good at all of them. I've known people who had a knack for topics like Arithmetic and Cryptography (these seem to go together but that may be coincidence) Algebra and Calculus Geometry and Trigonometry...

Yes, I have done this. In intermediate school, I practiced giggling in the mirror, until I sounded just like the other girls, and reflexively did so whenever I heard others giggling. I had/have some other "canned" reactions. (If you haven't heard the song "Persona" by Blue Man Group, you should...

How old are you? For a lot of INTPs, their 20s aren't any easier than their teens. 35-ish is when things often come together. Speaking from my mid-40's, yeah, it is really worth it. I haven't made any major discoveries, despite a physics degree, but I have made a happy life and a lot of good...

This is going in a completely different direction, but are you sure people being mad at you is all that common? It is obviously unpleasant when someone says you are rude, or unprofessional, or whatever insult. So such a incident sticks in your mind, and becomes important. I agree with...

There is way too much even in my layman's understanding to summarize properly in a post. But basically, the books I have read on the subject all say that the brain is naturally prone to certain behaviors and biases, and that these can be exploited. I've read a lot about the subject, and put two...

I am an INTP female, and I have never fit the gender stereotypes for women in American society. I concluded the stereotypes were wrong. From your description, it sounds like you think your gender and your physical body don't quite match, which is a different thing. If that is the case, you...

I assume people are good, though like Red Myst I don't trust easily. I just assume that they have their own narrative or circumstances or background that makes their actions make sense, and that disagreeing with me isn't automatically bad. Thus I am often disappointed. But I have experienced...

That was a really good answer, Phoenix. As I sat there with my feet tucked up under me, contemplating ideals in my head, rubbing my tired eyes with dark circles under them, I realized I agreed with all you said (except being thin and gangly - I haven't been able to take that for granted since I...

Why thank you! I have liked your posts, too. Yes, that would be nice if the careful wording were appreciated. But since I sometimes miss the implications of things other people say, I guess I can't throw any stones.

Subwayrider, I assume you are trying to act or write an INTP character. I do things like this all the time in role-playing games, and whatever you think about Keirsey, Please Understand Me II has a lot of great descriptions for use in acting. The lack of exercise comment is silly. Some INTPs...

You might want to look at the book Phobia Free by Harold Levinson. It doesn't look relevant at first glance but has a lot of stuff about brain chemistry. Phobia Free: Medical Breakthrough Linking 90% of all Phobias and Panic Attack to a Hidden Physical Problem: Harold N Levinson, Steven Carter...

My husband and I (one of each) have found one obvious difference, which is how we approach planning a project. Neither way is easier. We are both about equally successful at completing tasks in the same amount of time, and with the same outcomes. It is more a matter of assumptions and ways of...

If you like illusions, check out Richard Wiseman's blog and search for illusions. He has examples like this one, but also performance art and magic tricks and all sort of things.

You know, I was really flattered to be asked, since I am rarely asked for my take on personality types. And I tried, I really did. But I couldn't do it. I don't have any trouble with one thing each type tends to need, but I don't really know what all the stereotypes are. And of course each...

You've been on this forum for quite a while, Scorpiomover. Did something happen to make you wonder if MBTI is worthwhile, or did you just get tired of the same old threads and misconceptions? Yeah, that is actually a mistake. Any skin can burn. Sunscreen and hats are really important for...

I worked in IT for seven years. It was pretty fun. Programming didn't suit me, though I tried it for a while. It was more fun to muck about with the insides of a computer or make ethernet cables. I taught basic electronics for people learning to fix computers, too. That was also fun. IT...

Re: Is someone wrong with me? (Empathy) I don't think there is anything wrong with you. You sound cynical and burned out, maybe, or just annoyed at other people's expectations. You don't have to volunteer anywhere if you don't want to. You say you only want to help those who are friends...

Yes, organizations like air cadets are essentially following military rules, which have their own standards. They don't follow the unwritten societal rules about much of anything, I expect. There is a proper, written, way to do things. Very rarely have I had someone ask to be called...

I tend to believe that people are basically good, and I don't enjoy feeling cynical. Sure, there are those days of pessimism, but I do find the world to be awesome at least some of the time. I actively fight the cynicism and I frequently share my feelings about the awesomeness of it all with...

I always call people whatever they prefer to be called. I don't find it an imposition to use titles and more formality, nor a sign of disrespect to use their first name. Here in the US, most professors prefer to be called Doctor or Professor Last Name. If I don't know, I ask, or default to...

Well put. I guess I'll have to stop sneering at all those people who don't do what I do. :) I know for a fact that there are charities that make a difference. I like my small local ones, but big ones like the Red Cross is unquestionably helpful in an emergency. While I agree that it is...

Architect, it sounds like you are assuming you know what charity means to do. There might be many reasons for setting up a charity. A single charity might have more than one purpose, and some purposes are more common than others. And please note that I don't necessarily like all of these...

I enjoyed listening to that, but it seemed very simplistic. Sort of a beginner's primer. For example, he brought up Martin Luther King, Jr., and argued that if popular relativism were true, MLK would have been evil for going against the majority of his society. This discounts any possibility...

SF and Fantasy: Redshirts by John Scalzi - initially a humorous parody of Star Trek, it turns into a really good story way beyond mere parody, and won the Hugo for best novel of 2013. History: Between Silk and Cyanide by Leo Marks - this is an autobiographical book about an English codemaker...

As an INTP in an INTP/INTJ relationship, I can say that this can work. It might not for everyone, but that pairing is actually really good if you can negotiate ways to communicate. Our cognitive functions might not match, but our communication styles pretty much do, as long as both people...

I'm with Jennywocky, it is more interesting to play different characters even if they are a bit clumsy. About a quarter of my characters are male (I'm female). Sometimes it fits the game system better, sometimes it fits my mood better. No one in my group has any problem with characters of any...

INTPs are quite hard to offend, except when we aren't. Hit us in a vulnerable area, and we will never forgive you. For everything else, mere annoyance will suffice.

Well, I'm older than 20 :) so maybe that changes the violence ratio. We just like to come up with clever solutions and leave stuff un-destroyed, rather than the usual kick down the door, spray bullets, and loot the room. Also, in SF games, violence is super dangerous. You get one hole in...

Listen to Amagi. This is wisdom. It doesn't matter how your sexuality manifests. It will change over time, anyway. It is yours, you own it. Don't let anyone else define what you are or should be or should do. I don't think there is a way to be 16 and not worry about sex, but try. It will...

It's great. Friends, fun, creativity, a chance to be someone else, I love it. We recently started a Pathfinder campaign with our 9-year-old because she has been begging to try for years. She is surprisingly good at it, if still very inexperienced. It is really important to have the right...

Re: INTx sens of humor Hey! I used to be in IT. We were funny. At least to us. I think. But, yes, culture, age, profession, and so on definitely define humor, at least some. That's almost sort of Monty Python, though, isn't it? But we're completely agreed on the quality, and I also...

Re: INTx sens of humor The INTJs I know are funny and joke around a lot. They use a lot of historical and literary references, quote Monty Python a lot, and enjoy surrealism and satire. They enjoy PDQ Bach. The INTPs I know are funny but don't joke around as much as the INTJs. We like lots of...

Here is my advice: ignore that someone. Even if it is someone you care about, that doesn't make them right, or give them the right to criticize you when you aren't hurting anyone. I spent years trying to be someone other than who I am. I pretended not to be as smart as I am, dumbed down my...

Good for you. Actually INTPs can make fine actors, and plenty of actors are introverts. Don't even worry about that. The anxiety is hard to overcome, that is for sure. Remember, however hard it gets, it won't last forever. Assuming you have a reasonably supportive class, or at least teacher...

Neither one really fits me. Intuitive fits a tiny bit better. But both are pretty negative and have some aspects that are completely wrong. Perhaps these describe immature INTPs? I think they both fit me better when I was in high school than either one does now.

If you have a lot of time, go browse sciencedaily.com. That is one of the categories of articles. (Warning: each article leads to at least two others, all of them interesting.)

Yeah, actually I first calculated the area between the two parallel lines, then reread the question and had to subtract. Careful reading: your friend in math. (Or maths, for those who spell it that way.)

Yes, I have met many INTPs in real life. Mostly in college, but also at work. Plus my dad. Some INTPs I get along with really well, and others I find annoying. I don't find the number surprising, since we are at least a couple percent of the population. Finding INTPs is harder since it isn't...

I had an INTP coworker once who was pretty vain about his appearance. My INTP dad has always been very interested in fitness and nutrition. As for vaguely imperious, yes, I think many of us get called that. I don't see why fascination with beauty is inconsistent with being INTP. We like to be...

No. Just no. I have never been poor, but my dad was. I am keenly aware of my privilege. I am not ashamed of it, just aware. John Scalzi (author of many excellent SF books) explained what being poor is, which he knows because he was poor and isn't now, and you should read it because you...

Thanks! His name is actually Avatar, though we didn't name him that to use his photo on websites.

Yes, and that's okay. Everyone has faults. A relationship has to include a way for people to deal with each other's faults. As for feeling fake, I suspect that is really common around here. I feel like that a lot, though I wonder if it is not fake so much as self-conscious. If you choose a...

This is a very good idea, actually. It will help. But the mind doesn't change fast, so you have to keep at it for at least two months. Libraries and nature centers are good choices. They always have stuff to do, and the people there are generally dedicated and kind. I notice you live in...

This puts me in mind of a scene from I, Claudius. Livia, Claudius's grandmother and wife of Caesar Augustus, is well known in her family to be an expert poisoner, and willing to kill absolutely anyone who might make it harder for her older son Tiberius to become Emperor (which he did). In...

I find it hard to forgive someone who calls me unprofessional, or calls my integrity into question. If it is to my face, I can handle it, but not behind my back. A very senior employee once tried to torpedo me by complaining to my boss (falsely) that I was "conspiring against her" and I had to...

Insufficient information. Does he have a motive to murder me? Did he use poison to kill his wife? Why would I be accepting tea from him in the first place? Why would I even be at a dinner party where I am pretty sure some of the drinks are poisoned? If someone has been released from prison...

Most of the INTPs I know, including myself, bounce around and can't settle until they hit their mid-thirties. It isn't so much that we know what we want to do then, as that we learn how to apply our strengths to what we do end up doing. We don't grow up fast, and we don't ever really grow up...

I hate making actual hour-by-hour plans or writing down checklists. I prefer to simply gather whatever resources seem likely to be needed and see what happens. I'm very good at packing for anything, but when I plan a trip it tends to be "just enjoy whatever I find there." I love what Lot...

I loved the photos Polaris posted, and the point of them. Beauty is at least partly in the intention of the beholder. To someone being sanctimonious and decrying how there is no more beauty and no one cares, of course the world will be ugly and uncaring. You have to look for beauty, and...

Yep, a fellow drummer. Hi fellow drummer!