I’m quite amazed that I haven’t looked into this subject before; It’s so odd and interesting.
Some autistic people, because of their mind’s odd configuration, sometimes excel in certain intellectual concepts, such as memorization, calculations, etc. The way they interpret and analyze data is very different from regular folk. Some excel so much in certain areas, that they could almost be considered super-human; they are called Savants. Seeing what they can do seems so surreal. At the same time though, most of them act very retarded because of their uniqueness, and so cannot function normally in society. Needless to say, it’s pretty damn unusual.
The most popular Savant is Kim Peek. The character Raymond, in the movie “Rain Man”, was inspired from him. He is able to memorize anything he sees or hears with 98% accuracy :O. He seems to act pretty retarded though, which in a way just makes him even more entertaining. Here’s some youtube video links to learn about him:
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What I find freakin amazing, is how fast he can come up with the information people are asking from him. How the hell is he storing all that information in a way that it can be accessed so fast? He’s got one hell of a search engine in his head anyway.
The next one I looked into was Derek Paravicini. Although he’s blind and acts retarded, he is able to comprehend,and remember, sound and music composition at a very very deep level. He can remember and playback close to anything he hears, and can easily transform the music into different styles. video:
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Documentary extract: part 1 part 2 part 3 part 4 part 5
And the last one I checked is very interesting in the fact that he doesn’t appear to act retarded, yet has amazing calculating abilities, as well as an amazing facility for learning; he learned the Icelandic language within 7 days. He is called Daniel Tammet. video of his calculation abilities, and backstory:
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Documentary extract: part 1 part 2 part 3 part 4 part 5
In a way, it may make us seem inferior and disappointed when we look at these guys and compare them to ourselves; I felt that a bit, but then I realize that it’s actually a super glimmer of possibility; considering that the human mind is capable of such amazing potential, it leaves hope for being able to improve considerably in many ways. We may not come close, but that ounce of possibility and mystery is a wonderful thought. Maybe one day we’ll be able access our true potential, and shoot zappy lasers from our eyes to fry our popcorn. Just really good memory would be good though.
*I’d like to add that I know that someone autistic isn’t technically retarded. And I’d like it if society would lighten up about using the word ‘retard’, Anything goes in my book… and I have more to say about that, but that’s a different topic for another day.
