I think most folks agree that an optimal environment is necessary to achieve intelligence potential, which is inherited. What people disagree on is what that optimal environment is. I think the optimal environment is pretty bare-bones, i.e., a "good enough" environment, within which a person can develop at their own pace. Kids are smart in developing their smartness and messing with that by intense training in specific areas, while influencing brain development, doesn't change their overall functional intelligence IMHO. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction - so perhaps messing with nature through training that is not self-initiated may cause another skill area to suffer. Then again, I could be completely wrong and my parents cost me several IQ points by not making sure I did those math workbooks they got for me... smile