If you feel like people aren't giving you credit for your highly intelligent ways, you may be missing one key ingredient.
A good night's sleep.
This conclusion comes from new research out of the University of St Andrews, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. For the study, researchers photographed the faces of 190 children and adults and then asked more than 200 study participants to rate the attractiveness and intelligence of the faces.
Overall, participants rated people with slight frowns and droopy eyes, which are characteristics of sleep deprivation, as less intelligent.
Lead researcher Sean Talamas told Daily Mail,
I was interested in investigating perceptions of intelligence and sleep mainly because of my interest in seeing whether people can change their perceived intelligence, regardless of their attractiveness.
So, if you're trying to appear more intelligent to your teacher, prospective employer or your date, it seems a night of quality sleep can provide you with a little boost.
Of course, perceived intelligence is hardly the only reason to get your seven to eight hours in. Sleep also keeps your stress and appetite under control, keeps your memory sharp and improves your work performance.
Unfortunately, Americans probably aren't getting enough sleep. In a survey conducted by the National Geographic Channel in 2014, 73 percent of Americans over 18 said they weren't getting eight hours of sleep a night.
If you're one of those Americans, I'd suggest you make some changes.
Citations: Want to appear more intelligent? Get more sleep (University of St Andrews), Want to appear more intelligent? Get an early night! People who look 'bright and awake' are rated smarter and better looking (Daily Mail), A Staggering Number Of Americans Say They Don't Get Enough Sleep (Huffington Post)
