NASA Studies the Original "Rain Man"
Peek has genius-level capabilities in 15 different subjects (must savants have mastery of only two or three), including sports, music, geography, literature and -- the skill made famous by the movie -- numbers. Indeed, the 53-year-old appears to be increasing his mastery of these subjects over time. His musical skills alone have been compared to those of Mozart.
The NASA researchers will compare recent MRI images of Peek's brain with those made in 1988 to measure neural activity as well as any changes over time. What they learn could have enormous impact on everything from understanding cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, to gaining clearer insight into how people think and learn.
Source: Future Now, BoredGuru.com
Listen to this article, or subscribe to the full podcast
Bookmark with del.icio.us << Home