MBTI Test: I'm an INTP

It says so here. I didn't think it was very true until I read it through a few more times, then I started to be persuaded that yup, I am rather like that (the bolded parts are when it's so me that I can no longer be in denial):

INTPs are pensive, analytical folks. They may venture so deeply into thought as to seem detached, and often actually are oblivious to the world around them. (Note: When my brother read that, he affirmed this with a resounding "YES, that's you." I think my dad called it Day-Dreaming And A Lack Of Awareness :P)

Precise about their descriptions, INTPs will often correct others (or be sorely tempted to) if the shade of meaning is a bit off. While annoying to the less concise, this fine discrimination ability gives INTPs so inclined a natural advantage as, for example, grammarians and linguists.

INTPs are relatively easy-going and amenable to most anything until their principles are violated, about which they may become outspoken and inflexible. They prefer to return, however, to a reserved albeit benign ambiance, not wishing to make spectacles of themselves. (Note: Which is why I quite enjoy languages but am a crappy debator.)

A major concern for INTPs is the haunting sense of impending failure. They spend considerable time second-guessing themselves. The open-endedness (from Perceiving) conjoined with the need for competence (NT) is expressed in a sense that one's conclusion may well be met by an equally plausible alternative solution, and that, after all, one may very well have overlooked some critical bit of data. An INTP arguing a point may very well be trying to convince himself as much as his opposition. In this way INTPs are markedly different from INTJs, who are much more confident in their competence and willing to act on their convictions.

Mathematics is a system where many INTPs love to play, similarly languages, computer systems--potentially any complex system. INTPs thrive on systems. (Note: How shall I explain myself here? I do poorly in school for my maths and my line of work is more creative than systematic. However, I identify with the penchant towards logic and systems, for that's how my mind works. I pick up things like languages and software knowledge through such a mental process. My poor maths grades were more often than not a result of my laziness :P So far, for my major exams, I've aced my maths.) Understanding, exploring, mastering, and manipulating systems can overtake the INTP's conscious thought. This fascination for logical wholes and their inner workings is often expressed in a detachment from the environment, a concentration where time is forgotten and extraneous stimuli are held at bay. Accomplishing a task or goal with this knowledge is secondary. (Note: I find this quite true. Often times when studying, I wander off and read up on topics that interest me, but are of no relevance to the exams, and as a result, the task / goal is rather poorly accomplished =P )

INTPs and Logic -- One of the tipoffs that a person is an INTP is her obsession with logical correctness. Errors are not often due to poor logic -- apparent faux pas in reasoning are usually a result of overlooking details or of incorrect context.

Games NTs seem to especially enjoy include Risk, Bridge, Stratego, Chess, Go, and word games of all sorts. (I have an ENTP friend that loves Boggle and its variations. We've been known to sit in public places and pick a word off a menu or mayonnaise jar to see who can make the most words from its letters on a napkin in two minutes.) The INTP mailing list has enjoyed a round of Metaphore, virtual volleyball, and a few 'finish the series' brain teasers.

Feeling tends to be all or none. When present, the INTP's concern for others is intense, albeit naive. (Note: True, too. I find it hard to develop a genuine concern and affection towards people, so often my emotions are rather detached and nonchalent. But when it finally does happen, it's intense.) In a crisis, this feeling judgement is often silenced by the emergence of Thinking, who rushes in to avert chaos and destruction. In the absence of a clear principle, however, INTPs have been known to defer judgement and to allow decisions about interpersonal matters to be left hanging lest someone be offended or somehow injured. INTPs are at risk of being swept away by the shadow in the form of their own strong emotional impulses.

Famous INTPs:
Socrates
Rene Descartes
Blaise Pascal
Sir Isaac Newton

Try the test here!

PS: I also love to play Sudoku =)