Cerebral Cortex development affects IQ results

I came across a very interesting article in the Science Magazine. It discussed how the development of the cerebral cortex in young children has a correlation with their IQ (intelligence quotient). The cerebral cortex begins to thicken during childhood, reaches a peak, and later thins out a bit. A study was made where 300 kids’ brains were consistently scanned and were given IQ tests. The results of the IQ tests were categorized into three categories: superior, high, and average. A relation was found between the groups relating to the initial thinness of the cortex and the timing of the peak. Average children reached their peak between the ages of 7 and 8, while superior children reached their peak at the age of 11 with a thinner cortex before their growth. The study also discovered that superior kids had a prolonged and distinct growth in the prefrontal cortex, where the most complex thinking occurs. This article is interesting because it relates brain development to the intelligence of a human.

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/311/5769/1851