Incredibly ugly, indeed. It would appear that the Internet is the ultimate expression of that quote attributed to the Nazi propaganda minister, Paul Josef Goebbels (sollte das doch nicht als "Gbbels" ausgeschrieben werden?), that repeating a lie enough times makes it true (the creationists certainly are practicing it, as are many other fringe groups).
In order to properly evaluate the results of IQ tests (speaking as a non-professional), many factors have to be taken into account, including differing characteristics of the different groups being compared and whatever biases may exist in the tests. I think that IQ tests can evaluate the cognitive capabilities of individuals within a particular group, but we need to be careful when comparing different groups.
For that matter, what effect has signing had on Koko's intelligence ratings? Having learned other human languages, I've personally experienced thinking in other languages at a pre-verbal level, and pre-verbal German is different from pre-verbal English -- I've nearly bitten my own tongue having worked out a practical construction problem in pre-verbal German and then trying to offer the solution in English. There is a conceit among language students that languages structure thought and I subjectively feel that I have experienced that personally. Koko's sign language training has enabled her to take IQ tests, but have they also influenced the results of those tests?
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