Recent research indicates human intelligence could be improving with each generation. A study of people born and raised in Aberdeen apparently shows that persons in northeast Scotland have gotten smarter.

The research by scientists at the University of Aberdeen and the NHS Grampian was published in the academic journal, Intelligence.

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Previous studies indicated the world shows an increase in the intelligence quotient (IQ) of people by three to four points per decade. They call this phenomenon the "Flynn Effect."

This effect is named after the professor who discovered it, James R. Flynn. While it's unclear what the real reasons are behind the effect, better nutrition, health, higher living standards and more socio-economic opportunities are thought to be factors in this rise.

Scientists from The University of Aberdeen examined two groups of people raised in Aberdeen: one born in 1921 and the other in 1936. These people were tested when they were 11 years old and after the age of 62.  The study consisted of 751 people.

Comparing the two groups at age 11, they found an increase of 3.7 IQ points. It was marginally below what was expected but still within the range seen in other studies.

The comparison in later life saw an increase in IQ of 16.5 points, which was three times higher than expected.

Dr. Roger Staff who led the study said the size of the intelligences gain was "surprisingly large."

He said people born in 1921 experienced the Depression and were teenagers during World War Two. The ones born in 1936 were children during the war and experienced food rationing. The rations, while not delicious, were nutritious.

In their thirties and forties, the 1936 group experience the oil boom them brought them and the city prosperity. All these causes -- good nutrition, education, and occupational opportunities -- come together to make the Flynn Effect.