Looking for an old sci-fi about increasing IQ on earth passing thru a stellar cloud

[Jwoody]

The story line of the Sci-Fi story is about a scientific genius, married to a beautiful but intellectually challenged blond on earth, just as a discovery is made that the solar system is about to pass out of a mysterious stellar cloud. As the earth moves into clearer space, the effects of the cloud begin to deminish and the IQ of every living thing on earth begins to significantly increase.

It seems that the earth had been in the cloud that affected the evolutionary maximum IQ of all life and inhibited any increase beyond the 'norm'... but once earth was removed from the cloud, the inhibiters were gone and IQs, even in animals were greatly increased. It changed the planet in interesting ways...

Story proceeds and the scientist, with friends build a spaceship to investigate the cloud, but as they fly into it, they lose their ability to cognate rapidly, and almost how to run the ship, because they are unable to remember or understand the complexed controls of the ship. However, they do finally get back out of the cloud and are contacted by other races of aliens that had evolved inside the cloud and then came out with greatly increased intellects too...

I can't remember the title of the story... Help!

J Woody
jwoody(at)techie.com

[chrispenycate]

Brain Wave, by Poul Anderson, from the description?

[Jwoody]

Thanks! I'll look it up.