Different Kinds of Minds by Temple Grandin Ph.D

Author:Temple Grandin, Ph.D. [Grandin, Temple]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group
Published: 2023-11-28T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five

Defining Genius

Historically, Mozart, Beethoven, Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Shakespeare, Newton, Curie, Kepler, Darwin, and Einstein are among the names usually associated with the word “genius.” There is no shortage of biographies and books that attempt to explain what makes a genius. My first brush with one occurred in elementary school, when I was mesmerized by that book of famous inventors I mentioned earlier. I read it over and over, fascinated by the stories and inventions. From reading that book (and a lot of others, too), I’ve noticed some things that a lot of geniuses have in common. One is that, like me, many were branded “difficult children” by their teachers or parents. They were “strange.” Some exhibited traits that we now associate with the autism spectrum and a variety of other conditions, such as hyperactivity (part of ADHD), dyslexia, poor performance in school, poor social skills, and an inability to focus. Interestingly, some with ADHD are also known as “hyper-focusers.” This is when you are single-minded and can lose yourself in a single activity with extreme focus.

The Wright brothers made nearly a thousand test flights, obsessively studying and improving their flying machines, until they finally were able to achieve lift-off with the Kitty Hawk Flyer, the first successful flight of a powered aircraft, in 1903. These first flights—the longest of which covered 850 feet—would pave the way for the hours-long flights that are commonplace today. This speaks to me. I remember that as an eight-year-old, long after a “normal” or “neurotypical” child would have become bored, I’d adjust my paper airplanes over and over, experimenting with folding and refolding the paper to get them to fly that much better.

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