Update — December 19, 2006
A very busy web site

The year end is a good time to review what has been happening with this web site and interest in savant syndrome in general this past 12 months. The addition of streaming video, thanks to a grant from The Brinson Foundation specifically for that purpose, has led to a massive increase in traffic in terms of pages viewed this past year. In October, 2005, for example there were 40,913 page view requests. In October 2006, that number increased to 244,411 page view requests, or over 7800 requests per day. Those inquires come from around the world, and come from other clinicians, researchers, parents, other caretakers, teachers, therapists, students from grade school to graduate school, and media, both print and broadcast. New persons with savant syndrome have come to attention from around the world as well through contact with the website, and new research findings regarding savant syndrome have also been regularly reported.

Part of the popularity of the streaming video is because savant syndrome is often so much better seen, than described. For that reason the intention is to add even more streaming video in the coming year on some of the previously described savants, as well as those newly coming to attention. Of course research findings, as they surface, will be reported as well.


Update — December 11, 2006
"Beautiful Minds—Expedition ins Gehirn"

A number of persons have inquired about the availability of the three hour documentary "Beautiful Minds—Expedition ins Gehirn", having seen portions of it on this web site and in some other places. It is a remarkable production. There is a DVD available, with both German and English versions, directly from the producers, Colourfield Productions in Dortmund, Germany. One hour of the program is on Memory; a second hour is on Creativity; and the third hour is on differences in the Male:Female brain. Segments of the program feature various savants including Matt Savage, Kim Peek, Stephen Wiltshire, Alonzo Clemons and others.

You can view a ten minute trailer of the production by clicking here.

Copies of the DVD can be obtained directly from Colourfield at mail@colourfield.de


Update — November 1, 2006
Stephen Wiltshire Opens His Own Gallery

Savant artist Stephen Wiltshire has now opened his own gallery in London where he will be resident three days per week. The Stephen Wiltshire Gallery will be located at the Royal Opera Arcade in Pall Mall, London. The gallery was established with the encouragement of his sister, Annette, who, along with Stephen, felt it was time that he have his own gallery where he will be present three days a week doing his drawings, painting and some commissioned work. He enjoys meeeting the public and enjoys displaying his works, and himself at work. A trust has been established to manage the fees and royalties from his work according to an article recently published in The Independent.

A streaming video of Stephen at work following a 45 minute helicopter ride over Rome is available on this site.


Update — November 16, 2006
Taylor Crowe: My Life With Autism

Taylor Crowe is now in his mid-twenties. He and his father, Dr. David Crowe, have put together two excellent DVD's, one of which follows Taylor's remarkable progress since his late-onset autistic disorder began as a child, and the other is an instructive and moving lecture Taylor gave to the 2006 Texas State Conference on Autism. Both are titled The View from Here: My Life with Autism and the first one was seen at the Texas Autism Conference and the second was recorded as Taylor delivered his excellent lecture to that group.

More information about Taylor can be obtained, and the DVD's purchased from, Taylor's web site at www.taylorcrowe.com.

Taylor's "View from Here" is really a view of autism from within. So many lectures are 'about' autism by others; this lecture is by someone 'with' autism and provides poignant and practical insights and advice for any of us who deal with autistic persons in any capacity. His life story is also an uplifting one from a normally developing child, through a devastating regressive process to improvement and recovery to where Taylor is in his senior year studying character animation at the California Institute of Arts.

I hope his story and lecture will get wide visibility through these DVD's, and in person for those groups fortunate enough to hear him first hand.

Darold A. Treffert, MD

Update - October 10, 2006 Greg Blackstock: "I'm famous" Two important events happened in Greg Blackstock's life in early October: The publication of his book and a book signing at a formal exhibition of his works at the Garde Rail Gallery in Seattle, Washington. The book has increased interest in his work internationally. "I'm famous", Greg is quoted as saying in the very favorable review of his work in the Seattle Times. The review describes his work as having "an orderliness that satisfies the pesky drill sergeant who rules our brains — and also a spark of chaos to thrill the soul." It is delightful art.

Update - October 2, 2006
Marathons

While this is not about a savant, the parent/child dedication displayed in this video reminds me of the 'marathon' that so many parents of savants, and disabled children in general, run in their lives.

Eighty five times this Dad has pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in marathons. Eight times he's not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on his handlebars — all in the same day. This Herculean effort by this Dad is documented by Rick Reilly of Sports Illustrated in his "Strongest Dad in the World" article about Dick Hoyt and his son, Rick. Most touching, though, is his son's reaction to this loving effort: "Dad, when we were running it felt like I wasn't disabled anymore."


Update - September 15, 2006
Quantum Leap

Matt Savage, who was featured on the CNN special on Genius on 9/18, has just released his newest CD — Quantum Leap — for worldwide distribution. Matt, who Dave Brubeck refers to as the "Mozart of jazz," composed all the pieces on the new CD, which features The Matt Savage Trio. You can read a review of Quantum Leap at www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:ge7zeflk5gfj~T00.

Matt also continues his cross country tours. He will open for Wynton Marsalis in a solo performance in Philadelphia in October and then the Matt Savage Trio will have a trip to Los Angeles at the Jazz Bakery later that month.

There is an excellent article about Matt here on seacoastonline.com that gives some interesting details about his musical genius and other skills (calendar calculating, math and roller coasters). Also, there is a link on the site to listen to several pieces from his new album.


Update - September 15, 2006 (item originally posted September 11)
A CNN program on Genius and Savants

On Sunday, September 17 at 10 p.m. EST CNN is scheduled to broadcast a program titled GENIUS. Portions of that program will examine savant syndrome as one kind of 'genius', including some brief segments with Matt Savage, George Widener, Stephen Wiltshire and Orlando Serrell, along with some commentary by Dr. Treffert. A story titled Savants: Charting 'islands of genius' has already been posted on the CNN Web site. That story contains links to several video clips from the GENIUS program. It can be accessed at www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/09/06/savant.genius/index.html.


Update - September 12, 2006

Kim Peek: His travels and his documentaries Kim and his father, Fran, continue to criss-cross the continent, and the world, to share Kim's story, skills and message with a national and international audience. Global television satellite broadcasts allow them to be seen in a number of different countries, such as Okinawa, or Belgium, for example, now without even having to travel there. They have also traveled to the U.K. and Germany within the past year for some 'live' appearances there. The audiences total well over 2 million persons now for just these in-person appearances. The message is an inspirational one both with respect to Kim's extraordinary abilities, as well as the touching portrait of a father and son who, as Kim describes it, "share the same shadow." There are two hour long documentaries now on Kim in addition to the numerous shorter programs he has participated in. Focus Productions in the U.K. has produced "The Real Rain Man" which is being aired on the Discovery Science Channel in the U.S. Swedish television has aired an hour long program titled "Mot Kim Peek:Verklighetens Rainman—den manskliga datorn" which gives a special insight into the relationship between father and son.

In addition to these hour long documentaries, Colourfield Productions in Germany included considerable footage of Kim Peek in its Beautiful Minds three hour documentary on memory, creativity and the male:female brain. That program is scheduled to be seen on the National Geographic Channel in the U.S. and has aired already in other countries including Ireland and Australia.

Kim Peek and Daniel Tammet, two memory giants, are filmed together in an interesting sequence in Brainman, the story of Daniel Tammet, again a Focus Productions hour-long documentary. Click here to view a short segment from Brainman.

Some brief clips of Kim from Focus Productions and Colourfield are now in streaming video on this site. More will be added as they become available.


Update - September 1, 2006

Extraordinary People Published in Korea Extraordinary People: Understanding Savant Syndrome is now translated and published in Korea by the Wu-Nan Book, Inc. company. The book is also being translated for later publication in both Simplified Chinese and Complex Chinese forms for distribution in those countries.

Update - September 1, 2006
"J-Mac" and the Indianapolis Colts

Jason McElwain has been a tremendous ambassador for bringing autistic disorder to greater public attention in a very inspirational and touching way. A movie is in the works, he met the President and has had numerous media appearances, all of them upbeat and positive. But in addition, he will be able to carry on his equipment manager duties now as a member of the equipment staff of the Indianapolis Colts. That story can be accessed here.

The original clip on Jason's spectacular three point shooting can be found on the Internet in many formats by searching for "Jason McElwain video". It is 240 seconds of wonder, and hope.

[Original Jason McElwain item from February 23, 2006]
Three Pointers, Free Throws and Zoning: The Athletic Savant
I have said all along that on this journey of discovery about savants I've learned as much about matters of the heart as I have about circuits in the brain. Recently across the wires and on video clips (here or search the Web for "autistic basketball player") came an amazing and dramatic story about a high-functioning autistic lad in Rochester, New York. You may have seen it. It touched the heart.

It was the last game of the season, and the last game for this young fellow as one of the 'managers' of the basketball team. The coach allowed him to suit up and with four minutes left in the game, and with four minutes left in the last season for this senior, he put him into the game. His teammates, who loved him so, passed him the ball. The first shot was an air ball. But then, like any athlete 'in the zone,' he made six straight three point shots in less than 4 minutes. The crowd went wild, even storming the floor as the buzzer sounded. His teammates carried him off on their shoulders.

You can't make movies as powerful and deeply moving as that little clip.

It also reminded me of one of the first savants I met over 40 years ago. He was severely autistic with almost no language at all. But could he make free throws! Since with free throws there is a fixed distance between the free throw line and the basket each time, conceivably if you put your feet in exactly the same place, and hold the ball in exactly the same way, and used exactly the same motion each time, since there is a fixed trajectory, the ball should go through the basket each and every time. And for this little guy it did. And, I submit, the same principle applies to shooting three pointers.

There are some reports of athletic 'savants' through the years, usually with exceptional balance or spatial skills, but they are rare in the already rare condition of savant syndrome. In these reports though exactly-the-same repetitive motions, coupled with sensitive spatial skills, are usually at the core of the athletic ability.

Any of who engage in sports, every now and then, 'zone out.' There are some days in basketball when nothing seems to go in the basket, and other days when anything you toss up goes through — "nothing but net." Fellow players might term it "unconscious." Some days no putts go in. On other days everything drops in the cup. We call that 'zoning.'.Some well known athletes 'zone' often and we can see it when it happens. They know it and we know it.

As pointed out elsewhere on this site, mathematical savants use the same unconscious, or more accurately, pre-conscious circuitry that math geniuses use. Both 'zone out', so to speak, mathematically, using such unconscious, or pre-conscious, circuitry. Could it be that when the professional player — or any of us — 'zone out' athletically, we are temporarily using certain pre-conscious circuitry that is unconsciously obsessive and repetitive, undistracted by emotion or deliberate, conscious 'trying' with its correction, then over correction, then frustration? Could it be that at those times when we 'zone' athletically, we are temporarily tapping into the more dormant and less accessible circuitry that we speak about elsewhere on this site? Is that the temporary contact with some little "Rain Man" that resides, perhaps, within us all? I think that might be the case.

But however one explains the magical four minutes in this young man's life — whatever that explanation — the moments were truly magical and fortunately were captured on camera to touch, and inspire, us all.


Update - August 10, 2006
Web Trailer for Colourfield Savant Documentary

Click on this link to open a QuickTime trailer from the Expedition ins Gehirn (Beautiful Minds: A Voyage Into the Brain) documentary produced by Colourfield Productions of Dortmund, Germany. Note that this link will open in a new window and that it is a very large QuickTime video file.


Update - July 7, 2006
Rain Girl: Henriett Seth F.

Henriett Seth F. is a Hungarian Autistic Savant who is an accomplished, highly recognized, writer, poet and artist. Her book Autizmussal onmagamba zarva (Closed into myself with autism) is available in Hungarian and can be ordered via her Web site which Henriett maintains at http://sethfhenriett.shp.hu. That book was published in 2005 with the support of the Hungarian Autism Research Group and the Ministry for the National Cultural Heritage. A second book, Autiznus—Egy masik vilag (Autism—Another World) was published in 2006 in anthology New Galaxy (in Hungarian: Uj Galaxis) University of Pecs. Henriett's Web site is maintained in Hungarian. However she provided this general translation in English for this Web site: Henriett Seth F was born in Hungary on October 27, 1980. She is an autistic savant writer, poet and artist. In 1985 Henriett had immunothrombocytopenia from which she fully recovered after treatment in Budapest.

Henriett receiving the Gardonyi Prize

Henriett could speak by the age of 9 months, but kept repeating that which she heard (echolalia). There was also ritualistic behavior, such as opening and locking doors, which was difficult between the ages of 3 and 6. She also did not like coarse foods so she would eat only pudding and drank only cocoa. Henriett slept little and was restless. In 1987 all the primary schools in her town refused her admission application because of her communication problems; she also did not make eye contact. She was not put into a special school because of a Raven IQ score of 140, but instead she was placed in a music and art class.

Nightly Nature

At age 8 Henriett's knowledge was excellent; she knew Attila Jozseff's book of poems. She played flute at age 8 and played contrabass at the age of 10-12, and until the age of 13 she was in many concerts in the Garrison and Soliders of Club. At age 9 she was composing poems. At the age of 10, Henriett was the winner of a short stories competition.. Hanriett's first poem was published in the periodical Lyceum Paletta in 1999 In 2000, at age 19, Henriett was the winner at the XIIth International Literature Competition in the poem category in 2000, and won first prize in the poem and novel category in the XIII International Literature Competition in 2001. Her prize winning entry, Process of Writing (In Hungarian: Az ire valas folyamata) was published in the periodical Naq Face (Uj Arc).

Horse-with my autistic eyes

In 1995 she began attending Cistercitan High School where she specialized in art, where her memory was a real asset to her art ability. Henriett won the Geza Gardonyi Prize at the age of 18 after being a top student for four years, and also because of a her work being shown at the House of Arts gallery (Muveszetek Haza) between the ages of 16 and 18.

Henriett was a student at Eszterhazy Karoly College of Psychology and Sociology but her communication and her behavior problems were such that in 2002 she was "pensioned with a diagnosis of high functioning with autism, immunthrombocytopenia, hyperthyroidism and endometreosis".

Also in 2001, Henriett learned the Gypsy language during two months, and she had a successful language examination on Eolvos Lorand University of Budapest. In September, 2005 Henriett was invited by Sandor Friderikusz, the famous Hungarian filmmaker, to participate in a documentary titled Freedom of Speech (Hungarian: A Szolas Szabadsaga). In this film Henriett discusses her autism and her art work. Henriett's second book, Autism—Another World, was a candidate for the Peter Zsoldos Prize of 2006, by the Alliance for Hungarian Science-Fiction literature because this second book is a short story science-fiction work. Since 2005 Henriett has also written many articles about her autistic life and art's work in the periodical Rainman (Hungarian:Esoember). At the present time Henriett is writing her next book, which is a book of poems.

Closed into Myself with Autism

Update - June 27, 2006
Article on Doctor Treffert and this Web site

Madison, Wisconsin's Capitol Times newspaper has published an article about Doctor Treffert titled "Savant syndrome is doc's lifetime study." The article details how Doctor Treffert came to be interested in autistic savants and some of the things he's learned and found important in his decades of study. The article also mentions the growing popularity of this Web site, including the fact that the number of page requests per month has more than tripled in the past year.


Update - June 20, 2006

Scientific American gets "Inside the Mind of a Savant" The June/July 2006 issue of Scientific American MIND contains an article on Kim Peek called "Inside the Mind of a Savant." The article, by Darold A. Treffert, MD and Daniel D. Christensen, is prefaced by these words: "Kim Peek — the inspiration for Rain Man — possesses one of the most extraordinary memories every recorded. Until we can explain his abilities, we cannot pretend to understand human cognition."

Update - June 9, 2006
New Video Postings

A video excerpt from the Expedition ins Gehirn (Beautiful Minds: A Voyage Into the Brain) documentary is now posted under the Matt Savage profile. It provides a superb look at a remarkable young man.

An excerpt from the Brainman documentary featuring a very interesting meeting between memory giants Kim Peek and Daniel Tammet is posted under their respective profiles.


Update - June 9, 2006

The Blackstock Collections: Drawings of an Autistic Savant Gregory Blackstock's intricate drawings of many of his fascinating 'collections' are available now in a book titled: Blackstock Collections: The Drawings of an Autistic Savant. The book is published in a very attractive format by Princeton Architectural Press, New York. The book contains a Foreword by Dr. Treffert, and an introduction by Karen Light-Pina of the Garde Rail Gallery. In addition to the precise drawings of Mr. Blackstock — "an anthropologist of the everyday" — the book describes as well the interesting and busy world of Mr. Blackstock including some of his additional musical and language savant skills, along with massive memory. The book is a fascinating, colorful and informative look at the work, and the world, of Gregory Blackstock.

Update - May 2006
Discovery Channel Canada Savant Video — Featuring Alonzo Clemons

A terrific story on savant syndrome featuring the talents of Alonzo Clemons is now available on the Discovery Channel Canada Web site (opens in a new window). The segment is particularly well done as a succinct summary of savant syndrome research and where we are heading. It uses Alonzo Clemons as an example, who you can read more about here on this site.


Update - April 19, 2006
Site Updates — Video and Kim Peek Update

There are several major updates to this site, including an update on Kim Peek, "The Real Rain Man" titled "Kim Peek's Expanding Abilities and European Travels."

We have also begun the process of adding video clips to the site under the following profiles:

Daniel Tammet: Video excerpt from the Brainman documentary
Matt Savage: Video of Matt and his Trio performing Matt's original song, Infected with Hemiola
Leslie Lemke: Concert videos from 1986 and 2003
Kim Peek: Video excerpt from Expedition ins Gehirn (Beautiful Minds: A Voyage Into the Brain)
Stephen Wiltshire: Video excerpt from Expedition ins Gehirn (Beautiful Minds: A Voyage Into the Brain)
Alonzo Clemons: Video excerpt from Expedition ins Gehirn (Beautiful Minds: A Voyage Into the Brain)
Gilles Tréhin: Video excerpt from Expedition ins Gehirn (Beautiful Minds: A Voyage Into the Brain)
Richard Wawro: Video excerpt from With Eyes Wide Open

The videos give insight into these remarkable individuals that words simply cannot convey. Each video is three to five minutes in length and available in both high and low resolution. More videos will be added in the future.


Update - March 8, 2006

Beautiful Minds: Voyage into the Brain Colourfield Productions in Germany has released a three hour documentary called Expedition ins Gehirn in German, or Beautiful Minds: A Voyage into the Brain in English. The program aired on Arte television — the French-German television network on February 20, 21 and 22, 2006. It will air on ARD — German public television — in March and on 3Sat — Central Europe television (Austria, Germany, Switzerland) — in April. Plans are for later release in other countries as well including Italy, Ireland, Sweden and the United States. Savant syndrome is featured prominently throughout the three sections.

The documentary consists of three one-hour segments: (1) "Memory Masters" (human memory); (2)"The Einstein Effect" (creativity); and (3) "A Little Matter of Gender" (the male/female brain). It was filmed on locations in Germany, France, USA, Australia, Italy, Ireland and the U.K. in High Definition (HDTV 720p). The program includes experts from around the world demonstrating their research projects and findings in each of these three areas, in many instances using striking 3D animations for illustration. While the program explores memory, creativity and the male/female brain topics more broadly, research on savant syndrome itself is woven throughout the three programs with footage on many savants profiled on this site including Kim Peek, Matt Savage, Stephen Wiltshire, Howard Potter, Gilles Trehin and Christopher Taylor. Temple Grandin is also featured prominently in several segments.

The concept of "genius," in contra-distinction to "savant" is explored on the program featuring persons such math-genius, and German Calculating Champion, Rudiger Gamm who can raise 56 to the power of 33 in seconds and recall over 160 decimal digits when dividing 62 by 167, for example. Studies including other geniuses past and present are included as well. In these research findings, some of the newest imaging techniques such as functional MRI, and fiber tracking, are displayed with striking 3D graphics.

Scientific Consultants were Prof. Gerhard Roth, University of Bremen, Germany, and Dr. Darold Treffert, Wisconsin Medical Society, U.S.A.

In addition to broadcasts in the countries above, plans are being made for distribution of a DVD version of the program in Europe and the United States. The film was written and produced by Petra Hofer and Freddie Rockenhaus of Colourfield Productions, Dortmund, Germany.

Additional information about the film, including a 10-minute trailer which can be viewed on-line, is located at www.colourfield.de/expedition/index.html.


Update - March 8, 2006
Extraordinary People: Understanding Savant Syndrome — A revised and expanded edition (February, 2006)

Extraordinary People: Understanding Savant Syndrome, a book by Dr. Treffert on this condition, has just been released in an updated and expanded version by iUniverse.com publishing company. The new edition of the book includes an updated epilogue re-written to include the many research advances in the past six years since the 2000 edition, along with updates on the many persons with savant syndrome described in the earlier book, and introduction of newer persons that have come to attention since that time. The book also has been expanded to include a Frequently Asked Questions section. This new edition of the book can be ordered directly from the publisher at www.iuniverse.com. Some pages of the book, including the introductory page that describes the new edition, and the "contents" page, can be browsed at that site. The book can also be ordered from Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble, or it can be obtained directly now from the author by inquiry to savants@charter.net.

Update - February 23, 2006
The Case of the "Sudden" Savant

Savant syndrome, whether associated with autistic disorder or other developmental disability, most often is present from birth and surfaces during early childhood. However recently more instances of "acquired" savant syndrome have been reported in which savant-like abilities emerge, sometimes at a prodigious level, following CNS injury or disease in later childhood or even adult life in previously non-disabled persons. I recently received an e-mail that describes what might be called the "Sudden" savant-an otherwise normal person who suddenly and unexpectedly acquires savant-like abilities. I share this "eureka" experience in detail in the articles section to see if this report triggers similar instances.


Update - February 7, 2006
Optic Nerve Hypoplasia: A Helpful Resource

As pointed out elsewhere on this site, Optic Nerve Hypoplasia (ONH) is a leading cause of visual impairment and blindness in children, and seems to be increasing in frequency. Some of these children and adults are musically gifted, sometimes at a prodigous level, as a part of the visual impairment/musical genius/mental disability triad so conspicuously present throughout the history of savant syndrome.

There is a new resource for families and professionals regarding ONH to provide "in depth information, support, consultation and advocacy for children and youth with OHN, their families and professionals who work with them." The resource is ONH Consulting, which maintains a Web site at www.onhconsulting.com. ONH Consulting was created by Christopher Sabine, a master's degree Social 'worker who himself has ONH. The Web site provides a great deal of useful information about ONH, and provides links to many relevant organizations about the condition and resources for accessing available services.


Update - January 25, 2006
Brainman & The Real Rainman

The Focus Production television program "Brainman/The Boy with the Incredible Brain" — the story of Daniel Tammet — was named "The Best Network Feature of the Year" by the Royal Television Society of the U.K. in December, 2005. When aired on Five TV in England this program obtained the highest ever viewing figures for a factual documentary. The program has aired a number of times in the United States on the Discovery Channel, as well, and is also available now on DVD directly from Focus Productions.

Focus Productions has two more 'extraordinary people' programs in production. "The Real Rainman" — the Kim Peek story — should air sometime this Spring. A program titled "The Piano Player", about several musical savants, is also in production currently. Both these programs should air on Discovery Channel as well after release in the U.K.

The DVD "Brainman" is still available for sale to persons in the United States at a cost of $25 U.S. Dollars plus $5 U.S. Dollars for postage and handling. Inquiries for purchase should be directed to Martin Weitz, producer of the film at Focus Productions, Bristol, England. Mr. Weitz can be reached by e-mail at martinweitz@focusproductions.co.uk.