30 Smart Gift Ideas for Brainy People
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If you know someone that is intellectual then it is not always easy to know what to buy them as a gift. You may worry that what you pick may not really be suitable for the way that their brain works. This means that you may feel that you need some help with deciding what to choose for them. Hopefully this list will help you as it has a big selection of different items. There are interesting books and puzzles but also more fun things that will hopefully make them smile. You should be able to find something that they will like and will hopefully find plenty of things in your price range too.
30 Presents for Intelligent People
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This is a fun activity book for grown-ups called ‘Think you know it all?’ It has all sorts of questions and tests such as the capitals of Europe, 52 states of the USA, 38 Shakespeare plays and all of the James Bond films, in order. There are places to fill in your answers and then when you get stuck the answers are in the back. Great for quizzing yourself or competing with family members.
This is a fun mug for a saxophone player as it says on it ‘Saxophone the instrument for intellectual people’. It comes in two sizes either 11oz or 15oz and is a white mug with yellow and black writing on and a picture of a saxophone and some musical notes. The print is on both sides and it is printed using due sublimation so it will last a long time. It is suitable for using in the microwave and dishwasher.
The GCHQ Puzzle book is full of really difficult puzzles. They will challenge even the best brains in the country. The book contains tips on how to get the mindset of a codebreaker, puzzles from easy to brain bending and a competition section. It also has explanations of how to crack the puzzles and the solutions. It is a tricky book to master so should keep even the biggest intellectuals puzzling for some time.
These are a selection of wooden brain teaser puzzles. They are nice to look at and fun to do. You have a soccer ball, Halley’s comet and Galileo’s globe. They can be dismantled and put back together but are not as easy as they seem as each piece has to be twisted to lock it together. They are 7.5 x 7.5 x 7.5cm and come in a lovely box so are great for gifting.
This is a book that will help you with intelligent conversation. It is called ‘The Intelligent Conversationalist’ by Imogen Lloyd Webber. It contains 31 cheat sheets that will show you how to talk to anyone about anything. The sheets have information on the things which tend to come up most in conversations and you can get a bit of knowledge about each. Things like religion, history, culture, biology and geography.
This is a t-shirt for someone that knows they are clever. It says on it ‘I may be wrong but its highly unlikley’. It has a regular fit and short sleeves and comes in a big varied choice of colours. It comes in men’s sizes small – XXL. It is a Tim and Ted branded t-shirt and good quality, made from ethically sourced ring spun cotton which is pre-shrunk and brushed.
This is a puzzle lock in the style of the DaVinci code. The unlock code is set to ‘iloveyou’ so it can be a romantic gift, but you can set it to anything you wish. Inside it has room to store two rings, so it can make a really unique way to give an engagement ring or other mini gift or a note. It is 5.9 inches in length. It comes with dismantling tools and spare screws as well as a lanyard.
This is a DG collectors edition of ‘Tchaikovsky: The Symphonies’ played by the Russian National Orchestra and is great quality. It is a 7CD boxed set so offers great value for money. Classical music is supposed to help inspire intellectual thoughts and also is loved by many intellectual people so it could be a very fitting and welcome gift for an intellectual that you want to give a present to.
This is a beautifully illustrated edition of ‘Life on Earth’ by David Attenborough. This is a new anniversary edition of the book which is updated with modern scientific discoveries, has other additions and changes to the text as well as some new photography to add to the stunning selection already there. It is a fantastic coffee table book and a great gift for anyone that loves nature, wildlife, the environment and David Attenborough of course.
This is an imitation luggage tag which says on it ‘Nerd? Geek? I prefer the name intellectual badass’. It can be attached to luggage using the buckle so you can identify your bag easily but it has no space for your name and address so you will need to add a supplementary tag with this on. It is made from high quality faux leather so it is strong and measures 100mm x 70mm.
This is a car air freshener which is black and on it in white writing it says ‘Geek? I prefer the term intellectual bad ass’. It is round with a 75mm diameter and has a string so it can be tied up in the car. It comes in a choice of fragrances such as Vanilla, Ice Water, Ice Noir, Cotton Fresh, Beach Breeze, Bouquet, Cee Kay, Pine, Bubblegum, Cherry, New Car, Rose, Citrus, Lemon, Cinnamon, Lavender, Peach and Apple.
These are fun socks which have a nuclear physics theme. They are black but all over them (apart from toe, heel and cuff which are plain black) there are nuclear physics related words and pictures which are printed in white. They are made from 65% cotton, 33% polyamide and 2% elastane so they are soft and stretchy. The are unisex socks and suitable for size 6-11 feet. They are machine washable.
This is a fun adult puzzle book designed to keep the cleverest of adults occupied. It has 100 assorted puzzles so crosswords, wordsearches, missing vowels, word fills, code words, cross numbers, cell blocks, sudokus, missing numbers, arrowords and riddles. It is a paperback book so not too heavy and so can be carried about to keep someone occupied all of the time. Would make a great gift for puzzlers and is challenging because there are so many different types.
This book is called ‘Conspiracy Theories: A guide to some of the world’s most intriguing mysteries’. This is a fun book for anyone that likes to solve mysteries and gets annoyed when there are not straight answers to things. There are all sorts of mysteries discussed such as whether aliens built the pyramids, if the food industry is trying to make us sugar addicts, the circumstances around Bruce Lees & Michael Jacksons deaths etc.
This is a really tricky 3D jigsaw puzzle that will challenge even the cleverest of people. It is in a cool skull shape and comes in either white or black. It is 2.76 x 3.35 inches and will make an interesting ornament once completed. The pieces are made of plastic and it takes a lot of patience to work out exactly how to put it together to form the completed skull shape.
This is a fun mousepad which says on it ‘nerd [nurd] noun. An intellectual badass’. The mat itself is white with black writing and has a picture of a blond cartoon face with glasses. It is 220mm x 180mm and is 5mm thick. It has a rubber base which is non slip and will therefore give good grip to the desk when being used and help the mouse to work better but also brighten the area.
This is a hoodie which says on it ‘Nerd? I prefer the term ‘Intellectual Badass’’ on the front of it. It is available in a choice of colours: burgundy, black, black & grey, hot pink, navy blue, navy & grey, royal blue, red & white and red. It has a pocket on the front and comes in sizes small – XXL. It is made from 80% cotton and 20% polyester and has long sleeves.
This is a stylish desk lamp or bedside lamp. It has 48 LED light beads which give a warm light. It is a special design where the lighting element is in the frame so it feels calming. It is available in wood, black, white or red colours. It is fun to operate as it has two wooden balls in it and you lift the bottom one to switch it on. It is a low voltage lamp so cheap to run and better for the environment.
This is a fun shopping bag which says on it ‘I’m silently correcting your grammar’. A great bag for a member of the grammar police! The bag has long handles so that it can be carried on the shoulder and is printed on both sides. It is 37cm x 42cm and is a great alternative to plastic as long as it is reused lots of times. Great for books, shopping, gym kit and many other uses too.
This is a metal water bottle. It is white and says on it ‘Nerd? Geek? I prefer the name intellectual badass’ and has a picture of some glasses on it, which is all printed on one side. The bottle has two tops, one with a loop that has a carabiner so it can be hung from a belt or bag and the other with a sports top for easy drinking. It holds 600ml water.
This is an interesting print. It is actually a picture of the chemical make up of the molecule adrenaline and underneath it says ‘energy’. A great gift for someone who knows their chemistry or science and something a bit more original then you might normally see on a print. It comes in a choice of sizes, A5, A4, A3 or A2 and is on 260gsm photo lustre white acid free paper.
This is a fun jigsaw for any keen puzzler. It is a 1000 piece puzzle which has striped of fruit of different colours: raspberries, strawberries, oranges, mango, kiwi and blueberries. It is really hard because each stripe is pretty similar to the other. It measures 75.5 x 50.5cm and is cut from durable wood that is 100% recycled and therefore eco friendly. It also has safe and non-toxic ink. It has letters on the back so that you can check if you are matching it up correctly.
This book is called ‘The power of mental models’ How to make intelligent decision, gain a mental edge and increase productivity.’ It is all about how we can solve problems by understanding how mental models work and how we might be using them incorrectly. It shows you how to train your mind so that you change your way of thinking and then make better choices and judgements and ‘think out of the box’.
These are fun evolution bookmarks. They are made from bent metal and look like paperclips. There are five and each has a different picture from ape, to walking upright, to straighter, to man, to person slumped over computer. They are coloured red, orange, yellow, green and blue. They measure 16 x 12 x 1cm and would make a quirky and fun gift for anyone that likes to read. They come packaged in a set.
This is a book called ‘A Day Like Today’ by John Humphries. It is his autobiography starting with his poverty stricken childhood to moving up to being a very successful broadcaster. It includes stories about the different people he has interviewed over the years and the controversies that he has been involved in as well, including stories from when he was a BBC journalist. Is available in paperback, kindle or audiobook editions.
This is a fun pen which has an insert of the periodic table. The pen is a normal ballpoint pen which has a see through section where there is a paper insert of the periodic table. It has an ergonomic padded rubber grip near the nib to make it easier and more comfortable to use. It also has a button on the end to retract the nib and a hook to allow it to be hooked onto a book, pocket or bag.
This is an interesting book called ‘The Intelligence Trap: Revolutionise your Thinking and Make Wiser Decisions’ by David Robson. The book explains that sometimes smarter people make more mistakes and have more bias than others and therefore teaches how to use our intelligence in a wiser way and to think more flexibly in all situations. It uses behaviour science studies to fine tune intuition and emotions and navigate ambiguity and uncertainty.
This book by Paul Johnson is called ‘Intellectuals’ and concentrates on leading intellectuals. It includes Rousseau, Shelley, Karl Marx and James Baldwin and explores them in the light of the ‘heartlessness of ideas’ that the author finds endemic to much of intellectualism. An interesting read about how certain intellectuals rose to fame and whether this was justified or not. Many readers find it very enlightening and apply the message to how people report things in a biased way today.
This is a book called ‘Intellectuals and Society’ by Thomas Sowell. It is a critique of intellectuals explaining how they affect modern societies by shaping the climate of opinion on many issues such as economics, war and peace. It explains how it was not by influencing rulers but by influencing public opinion that they were successful. It goes on to explain how they were often disastrously wrong but have not changed their views.
This is a red cap with a white rim and white bobble on it. On the front it says in black ‘Nerd? I prefer the term intellectual badass’. It is an adjustable baseball cap which fits most adults and children. It is made from 100% cotton denim and is light and breathable. A fun gift which has a Christmas theme to it so would make a good secret Santa or stocking filler gift.
