Despite starting the research on 100 college students with the hypothesis that multitaskers had some special abilities, the study found that multitaskers were actually quite ineffective at managing information, maintaining attention, and getting results.

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One study suggested that neonicotinoids affected the abilities of hives to produce queen bees.

BBC: Bee deaths: EU to ban neonicotinoid pesticides

And in Plowden's day, there was nothing like the Third International Maths and Science Study, published in 1996, which compared the abilities of more than 500, 000 pupils in 26 countries.

ECONOMIST: New skool rules, OK? | The

According to a new study by a team at UCLA, older brains have differing abilities to gauge troubling situations and may be less prone to screen out swindlers.

FORBES: Why Older Folks Are Targeted for Fraud

As early as age 3, children have what researchers call a "positivity bias" a tendency to see themselves as smart regardless of their abilities, and to exaggerate positive traits in others, says a 2010 study in the journal Child Development Perspectives.

WSJ: The Case for Lying to Yourself

But, according to the study's authors, the main reason for their success has more to do with their looks than their abilities.

UNESCO: Communication and Information