Islands of Genius

Beginning Paragraph In Star Trek, Science Officer Spock is forever baffled by the illogical decisions of Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy. His Vulcan logic simply cannot make sense of human emotions. However, Spock's prodigious intellect makes him an indispensable member of the team. Analogy Many people on the autism spectrum have the same experience, struggling to understand "neurotypicals" while excelling in fields of study that most people find incomprehensible. And the abilities of some autistic savants, who can perfectly play Tchaikovsky's First Piano Concerto after hearing it just once, seem superhuman to the rest of us. About 1 in 10 people on the autism spectrum have some savant abilities, but many others with savant abilities do not have autism at all. What is the difference between gifted people with high-functioning autism and those with savant skills? Thesis Statement Both Asperger's syndrome and savant syndrome describe people with unusual abilities coupled with unusual disabilities, but these conditions differ in terms of degree.

Middle Paragraphs The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) outlines two main criteria for Autism Spectrum Disorder: (1) persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction and Definition (2) restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities ("Diagnostic"). In other words, people on the spectrum have difficulty understanding other people and have deep interests in specific areas of specialization. Like Mr. Spock, they may find the behavior of others to be baffling and may struggle to fit in socially while at the same time having interests and abilities well beyond those of their neurotypical peers. People with high-functioning autism, or Asperger's syndrome, have fewer social deficits than others with autism and often have higher IQ ("Asperger's"). They may be socially awkward but often have strong talents in reading, writing, music, or art, and they may have an encyclopedic knowledge of science, history, or another area of interest.

Topic Sentence About 1 in 10 people on the autism spectrum have such amazing talents that they are classified as savants. The DSM-5 does not specify a category for savant syndrome, though the condition has been recognized and studied since 1789. Darold A. Treffert, author of Extraordinary People, defined the syndrome in this way: "Savant syndrome is a rare, but extraordinary, condition in which persons with serious mental disabilities, including autistic disorder, have some ‘island of genius’ which stands in marked, incongruous contrast to overall handicap" (Treffert). Examples He points to the fictional character Raymond Babbitt from Rain Man, based on the true-life Kim Peek. Peek could simultaneously read the left-hand page in a book with his left eye and the right-hand page with his right eye, retaining 98 percent of the information. Peek had also memorized maps of every city in the United States and could give street-by-street driving instructions to reach any address (Brogaard). Stephen Wiltshire, another savant, took a helicopter ride over Rome and then spent three days drawing a five-and-a-half yard picture of what he had seen, down to each street and building. Overlaying a blueprint of the Colosseum on the drawing showed that his recollection of layout was astonishingly accurate (Treffert). Some savants can perfectly play a complex musical piece after hearing it just once, while others can instantly know the day of any date given to them throughout history. Dr. Benjamin Rush, the father of American psychiatry, described one of the earliest savants in Thomas Fuller, who had profound mental handicaps but could instantly calculate the number of seconds a person had lived: a man who was 70 years, 17 days, and 12 hours old had lived 2,210,500,800 seconds, even accounting for 17 leap years (Treffert). Each of these unique "splinter abilities" is rooted in a brain that remembers massive amounts of data and can access it at lightning speeds.

Causes/Effects What is happening in the brains of people with Asperger's syndrome or savant syndrome? In most cases, the person's brain works differently from a neurotypical brain. Contrasts MRI scans of those with Asperger's syndrome show increased blood flow in areas that regulate attention, which helps explain the tremendous focus of these individuals but also the tendency to become overstimulated. Scans also show decreased blood flow and fewer neurons in areas that control social interactions (Laino). In those with savant syndrome, the brain differences are more profound. Damage to neural wiring caused by birth defects, disease, or injury cause signals to be rerouted to areas ill-adapted to processing the information. In many savants, the left temporal lobe has been damaged, and the posterior neocortex has taken over the processing duties. In other cases, damage is even more pervasive. Kim Peek was missing his corpus callosum, the central structure that should have connected the two hemispheres of his brain (Treffert). Even adults who suffer brain injury can gain savant abilities as their brains reroute and rewire themselves to process the information in different locations. Using the "wrong" part of the brain for a specific task can cause pronounced disabilities but also can unlock intriguing savant abilities.

So, the difference between a person with Asperger's syndrome and a person with savant syndrome is largely one of degree. Both people use their brains differently from neurotypical peers, but the savant's brain is more profoundly affected. Both have a strong memory, though the savant's is often eidetic (photographic), with lightning access. Statistics Asperger's is common (1 in 88 people) while savant syndrome is rare (1 in 200,000 people without autism) (Treffert). But the difference isn't just one of degree. About 50 percent of savants do not have autism at all. Their neurologic damage comes from another condition or even injury. In 1994, Tony Cicoria was struck by lightning in a phone booth and afterward developed a savant ability not only to play music but to compose it, releasing a 2006 album titled Notes from an Accidental Pianist and Composer (Lammle).

Comparisons Despite their differences, Asperger's syndrome and savant syndrome both respond to a similar treatment strategy: train the talent. Focusing on developing the areas of disability is less successful than focusing on developing the area of ability. Fostering the person's talent helps the individual engage with others and generalize the learning to reduce areas of deficit. For example, allowing a person with Asperger's syndrome to pursue his fascination with trains lets him practice study skills, organization, resource management, and social skills such as attending special events or even organizing a train club. Allowing a savant to develop a specific skill helps the person move from imitation (drawing Rome) to improvisation (recombining different neighborhoods) to creation (drawing fantasy cities that have never existed). Along the way, the person makes social connections and gains a sense of self-worth (Treffert).

Ending Paragraph You've met four of the most famous savants: Kim Peek, Stephen Wiltshire, Thomas Fuller, and Tony Cicoria. You'd probably never heard of them before and will probably not remember them much after this reading. But how about a few famous people with Asperger's: Bill Gates, Dan Aykroyd, Tim Burton, Albert Einstein, Emily Dickinson, Isaac Newton? You've likely heard of them. That's because many people with Asperger's syndrome go on to great success, using their intense focus and intellect to excel in their chosen fields and overcome their social struggles. Applying savant abilities is more difficult. A person who has memorized the maps of all cities in the U.S. is amazing, but we have GPS. A person who can instantly calculate numbers is astonishing, but we have calculators. A person who can draw a scene with photographic accuracy is incredible, but we have cameras. In fact, our phones do all these things because of a person with Asperger's named Steve Jobs. Even so, the best hope for savants and those on the autism spectrum alike is to help them develop their areas of special ability. Let them use their abilities to overcome their disabilities. In fact, that's good advice for learners of all types.

Works-Cited Entries Works Cited

"Asperger's Syndrome." WebMD, 20 May 2018, https://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/mental-health-aspergers-syndrome.

Brogaard, Berit. "Kim Peek, the Real Rain Man." Psychology Today, 11 Dec. 2012, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-superhuman-mind/201212/kim-peek-the-real-rain-man.

"Diagnostic Criteria." Autism Spectrum Disorder, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 26 April 2018, https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/hcp-dsm.html.

Laino, Charlene. "MRI Scans May Help Evaluate Asperger's Syndrome." WebMD, 6 Dec. 2010, https://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/news/20101206/mri-scans-may-help-evaluate-aspergers-syndrome.

Lammle, Rob. "The Amazing Stories of 6 Sudden Savants." Mental Floss, 29 June 2010, http://mentalfloss.com/article/25048/amazing-stories-6-sudden-savants.

Treffert, Darold A. "The savant syndrome: an extraordinary condition. A synopsis: past, present, future." Physical Transactions B, The Royal Society Publishing, 27 May 2009, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2677584/.