12 years old boy with higher IQ than Einstein developing his own theory of relativity

reply to post by Radiobuzz

That's the sad thing though - you can teach children anything, to any level, as long as there's an interest in it there and someone capable of doing the teaching. By that logic, technically anyone can be a 'prodigy' concerning anything (especially if they do it all day, everyday lol). Not speaking of this child's capabilities, malfunctions, or whatever else is the case. And it's not so much a criticism as a testament to what we're all capable of were we not so busy (doing other required things), lazy, or restricted to certain circumstances.

Don't worry people, watch "Limitless" lol
Surely, soon enough, we'll be the 'perfect versions' of ourselves in no time.

So either this kid is an invention by his parents or he's really interested in science but he's not at the level of a genius as the media and his parents are claiming. Let's hope for the latter.

I hope for the latter as well, and that he builds upon his abilities. Considering that he's autistic, I'd imagine there's not as high of a chance of 'big headedness' as is possible, but regardless, media exploitation's definitely working hard to do it's job lol They're as bad with him as certain sources have been with 'star children.'

I do wonder about how this relates to performing arts prodigies... the types that pick up an instrument and play practically immediately after touching it... In comparison to something like an academic prodigy since you, in many cases, actually need something (a textbook, etc) in order to 'teach oneself' anything. Do IQs vary in such situations?

reply to post by maskfan


Your statement very much depends upon which definition of IQ you are reffering to, the term was originally coined in the early 1900s and was a figure used to determine weather kids needed special classes, the formula was simple (kids estimated mental age/kids chronological age in years) X 100 meaning a child of 8 years old with a mental age of 12 would have an above average iq of 150. So basically, a child showing the development of a much older child will have an IQ that is high, so whilst you are right in what you say, so am i, ultimately you only know how to process information through the use of fomulae and experience, those of us that would be seen to be intelligent are the ones that know how to apply our knowledge(and i am not talking common sense here, that is something i feel far too many of us are lacking... including me). Rather than 'not learning' from experience. May I also point out for everyone that the original definition of IQ is in no way applicable to adults, there are other testing methods of intelligence... for example, the guy who pees into the wind is generally not considered good gene-pool matrial.

The second definition of IQ by the way is something a german guy invented that i cant be bothered to explain.

Great post, OP.
I enjoyed watching this kid speak, although I must say there are a couple of worrying signs already. Still, I hope he will have a supportive family that WILL STAY CLOSE TO HIM.

The hate/jealousy ITT is amazing. It is clear that the majority of you people don't understand "talent". Just because someone is a "prodigy" doesn't mean they are at the top level, development is key.

When Lebron James was 13 years old he wasn't strong enough physically to play in the NBA, even though his skills were good enough. He has since developed and blossomed into the inevitable, arguably the best in the world.

Just because this kid isn't at the top level of Physics doesn't mean he isn't the most talented Physics prospect to come out since Einstein. That's what he is, nothing else, no one is giving him the Physics Nobel, we aren't saying he 100% will solve the holy grail of science and show how Quantum Mechanics and General Relativity coexist. However is he develops correctly (just like Lebron) then the inevitable is that he will take us to places in Physics that have only been dreamt of.

Good luck to the kid, and I am glad it seems that he loves what he is doing, that is they key that will produce the results that make him great.

This kid is amazing. He has the potential to be one of the greatest hope for humanity.

I've seen many stories over the years about child geniuses who can solve difficult equations, perform music at a concert level, speak five languages, etc. - and after they hit puberty you never hear about them again.

I think as their minds mature, some of that genius potential fades away, and they become more ordinary and mundane like the rest of us shmucks.

reply to post by LS650


I usualy tend to assume when a child genius dissapears from media coverage, that they have merely caught up chronologicaly with thier mental age, and have ceased to be quite as amazing. Lets face it, there are some smart college and university kids in the world, but an equation solving 12 year old with designs on the theory of relativity? Thats news. Older kids/university age students and any science generaly is not.

Makes me wonder if people can be smart as him if they remove all the mental processing on useless things.

reply to post by LS650


Part of the problem is that knowing too much gets in the way of discovery. Once you "know" that ulcers are caused by stress, for example, you stop looking for the cause. But someone more open minded might keep looking and discover a bacteria not stress causes the vast majority of ulcers.

Genius is part ability, (the brains processing potential) but its also part innocence and openness to possibilities. There is no physical reason people should be less genius or creative as they age, its that they "know" too much about what is impossible, and so they stop looking as broadly and as intently in some areas and focus their search on areas they "know" to be promising.

This young man has a fantastic processing ability. Great little CPU. We will just have to see what he does with it. The wiring issue that causes this kind of genius, often times causes restrictions on other brain functions and so you do not always get the brilliant and creative genius you might expect just from seeing a child calculating so easily. You need the ability to make abstract original connections to be a creative genius, not just the ability to memorize and calculate rapidly. As he matures we will just have to see what his total package is.

I wish him nothing but the best.

This kid is pretty amazing, but I would like to point out that they are not that extremely rare. Probably 1 out of 10,000 but they often have many problems throughout life. Simple tasks can often be the thing that breaks people like this. As they get into teen years the problems really take a hold.

Originally posted by makinho21

Originally posted by RisenAngel77

Jake was diagnosed with Aspergers syndrome, a mild form of autism, from an early age.

...Matt Damon never was autistic in that movie. He was just a smart ass non-educated bostonian. Also, Asperger's is a grey-area diagnosis: alot of asperger's patients use the title as almost a badge of supremacy, alluding to the fact they might be advanced in "intelligence" than a normal human, yet doctors don't really classify asperger's as autism. It's a basically just a description of a tendency to be socially inept.

I don't know any with Aspergers that use it as a badge of supremacy and most professionals do consider Aspergers to be under the umbrela of autism, but I wouldn't mind, if it remained a separate classification. They are talking about merging the High Functioning Autism and Asperger's Syndrome, because of the similar traits to High Functioning Autism only. They have a single focus that revolves around their interests, which makes it difficult to teach them in a public school. I know, becaused I homeschooled my Aspie son for four years.

It's a difficult life for them, if they don't have the support and guidance. If they can find their niche, they can thrive, but it's definitely not easy for them. The anxiety and being socially inept can bring them down to a low level. Everyone wants to be accepted for who they are. I know the fears my son harbors and the obsessions. Luckily, my son is better off than others I've read about. Some have the meltdowns and can't adjust to most public schools.

I've been very interested watching James Durbin on American Idol. He's exceptional even with tourettes and Asperger's Syndrome. And he's married!

Originally posted by maskfan

which, correct me if I am wrong, is pretty much having a good memory, can;t learn if ya can;t remember.

You're wrong. I have similar level IQ (not quite as high but pretty close) and one of the side effects is I can't retain information fully if the information in question isn't within one of my areas of interest.

A high IQ is simply the ability to process information in a different (possibly more complex) way than most people, this is a trait which can be taught (kind of - as someone needs to identify the type of process first - which means a 'natural' genius had to show the way). 'Natural Geniuses' being those (like this child) whose brains are naturally set up to function along such routes.

I thought "genius" was the ability to connect with the unconnected to see relationships where
others cannot.
------------------------------------------------
Albert Einstein - Imagination is more important than knowledge.

I do have a genius in my family and he can talk on any subject. Unfortunately, he didn't have the guidance and support growing up and dropped out of school. I wonder how many of them fall through the cracks, because they couldn't thrive in a public school setting. His spelling was atrocious, but what he wrote was beyond his years. He also had to put up with bullying on a daily basis.

With Aspergers the focus can be limited to one or two areas and some of their obsessions are...different, lol. I knew of one little boy that knew all the names of the presidents wives. Of course that will change over time.

I have Asperger's syndrome as well. I hope someday people understand this disorder more. People with Asperger's typically have a higher IQ than the general population, but where that IQ is applied varies. For example, I don't know what the # this kid is talking about in his videos, but there may be a subject I know that he wouldn't have any idea what I'm talking about. It is an odd and crazy disorder. I am happy that his parents did not have him medicated. It's not a disorder that needs to be medicated; it's a disorder that needs to be treated with care and approached in a different way than we approach just about every other mental "issue".

Seriously this boy should work out the equations Stan Romanek penned down! Then we'll have our own UFOs

He is precocious. Even though it was just reciting the equations, other videos let me see he understands the material more than most. He reminds me a lot of myself when I was twelve. I would obsessively draw physics equations in the sand at the beach and scribble the definition of differentiation on a napkin.

I didn't talk until I was two as well, and I have been diagnosed with high functioning autism. Yet my family wasn't very supportive of what I was doing and requested I stopped "being weird".

I am so happy he has a family that understands and supports him. I am also glad he is not in the public school system that holds people like us back. It gives me hope.

I wish Jacob the best. I am nineteen and at university right now and if I saw him I would be very welcoming because I know EXACTLY how he feels.

My 12 year old son is consumed with getting girls to give him their phone number and breaking his bones on his skateboard. I guess there has to be some kind of balance in the cosmos.

I was born a genius, but health problems and depression severely disabled my learning abilities during high school, making me less of who I was. Have been working on it for a while, getting my health back in order, and I've found that I am returning to my former abilities to imagine complex concepts and do ridiculously meticulous things extremely well. The problem that I face is that I am in college, and the time I have to spend on actually doing something which might benefit the world is extremely limited.

It's actually really weird lol, remembering being able to remember every single thing I ever learned and understanding really advanced concepts, and then later having months where my memory was so bad that I only have bits and pieces of entire weeks. Would be nice to be able to be who I once was. ^^

Edit: Right, and this kid, seems pretty smart, but may be overwhelming himself a bit. I hope all goes well and he meets a nice girl

Poor kid, he doesnt make sence, mother is very angry becouse of the dirty window and the dog freezed to death outside. He should play pc games or playstation 3