ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explains that Human beings may look alike, act alike, and think alike, but in one way or another everyone is different from everyone else. Sir Francis Galton, a Victorian genius of wide-ranging interests and a cousin of the famous naturalist Charles Darwin, believed that all human characteristics, physical and mental, could be measured. He attempted to apply Darwinian evolutionary principles of accidental variation and selection of the fittest to human populations. The professionalization of research and practice in any area of human endeavor is signaled by the formal establishment of a professional association and professional publications of various kinds. The book also explores that during the latter part of 19th and early 20th centuries, standardized psychological and educational tests were constructed in growing numbers for uses in schools, clinics, business and industry, and military and government service.
