Cattell defined fluid intelligence as the ability to reason, analyze, and solve novel problems — what we commonly think of as raw intellectual horsepower.
Crystallized intelligence, in contrast, is the ability to use knowledge gained in the past. Think of it as possessing a vast library and understanding how to use it. It is the essence of wisdom. Because crystallized intelligence relies on an accumulating stock of knowledge, it tends to increase through one’s 40s, and does not diminish until very late in life.
— Read on kottke.org/25/07/your-professional-decline
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