Savants, Geniuses, and ‘Mutants’

By Courtney Robinson and Dalton Pittis

What is a Savant and What Defines It?

• A person of profound or extensive learning • A very learned scholar• Mainly learned in a specialized field • Can be anything from music to math to art

Definition from: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/

Examples of A Savant

• Matt Savage—Played Jazz professionally at the age of 13

• Daniel Tammet—Can recite pi up to 22,500 digits and can “see” visual images of numbers

• Kim Peek—Remembers 98.7% of anything he reads

• Stephen Wiltshire— “the human camera” has amazing photographic memory

http://www.brainskills.co.uk/savantsyndrome.html

Facts About Savants

• Only about 50% of savants have autism but only 10% of autistic people have savant syndrome

• Cause thought to be the right-brain making up for a left-brain injury

http://www.brainskills.co.uk/savantsyndrome.html

What Defines a Genius?

• A person having an extra-extraordinarily high intelligence rating on a psychological test, as an IQ above 140

• An exceptional natural capacity of intellect

Definition from: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/

Examples of Geniuses

• Leonardo Da Vinci—Painted Mona Lisa and Last Supper (most famous)

• Albert Einstein—Theory of Relativity, Unique field theory

• Galileo Galilei—Astronomical observations and studies of uniform accelerated motion

• Charles Darwin—Discovered that evolution occurs

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-genius.htm

Facts About Geniuses

• They tend to be extreme perfectionists and very productive (Genius)

• ‘whatever you do, there’s always a better way of doing it’ perspective (Genius)

• In ancient Rome, geniuses were the guiding spirit or tutoring deity for families, places, or people. (Genius)

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-genius.htm

What Defines a Mutant?

• An animal, organism, or gene that has undergone mutations

-A mutation is a change or alteration-A sudden departure from the parent

type in one or more heritable characteristics, caused by a change in a gene or chromosome.

Definition from: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/

Examples of Mutants

• Ron White—trained 6 hours a day to become a “human computer”

• Tim Cridland—Meditated and claims he can “switch off his pain nerves”

• Scott Flansburg—The fastest man on earth to do calculations in his head

• Kenny Muhammad—can “simultaneously produce and overlay multiple instruments”

Examples from: http://www.history.com/shows/stan-lees-superhumans/bios/

Works Cited• "List o’ 10 Amazing Human Savants." Aftermath. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2011.

<listsoplenty.com/blog/?p=5993>.• "Savant Definiton." Dictionary.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2011.

<dictionary.reference.com/browse/>.• "Savant Syndrome - Brain Skills." The Facts About Brain Development and Brain

Training at Brain Skills (UK). N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2011. <http://www.brainskills.co.uk/savantsyndrome.html>.

• "What is a Genius?." wiseGEEK: clear answers for common questions. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2011. <http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-genius.htm>.

• "Featured Superhumans — Stan Lee's Superhumans — History.com." History.com — History Made Every Day — American & World History. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2011. <http://www.history.com/shows/stan-lees-superhumans/bios/>.

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