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An overview of the early research and understanding of savant syndrome, a rare condition characterized by exceptional abilities in certain areas despite overall cognitive impairment. The article traces the first scientific descriptions of savants, including the cases of thomas fuller, a 'lightning calculator,' and jedediah buxton, who had an extraordinary memory. It also discusses the work of dr. J. Langdon down, who investigated the syndrome and found connections between savant characteristics and autistic traits, even though autism was not yet a recognized diagnosis at the time. The document highlights how savant syndrome has been a subject of fascination and study for centuries, with over a hundred cases described in the scientific literature by the present day. It offers insights into the early conceptualization and evolving understanding of this intriguing phenomenon.
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The term "savant" is derived from the French word "savoir," meaning "to know." These rare and extraordinarily talented individuals are sometimes referred to as "an island of genius."
One of the first scientists to describe the savant syndrome was Benjamin Rush, who in 1789 presented the case of Thomas Fuller, nicknamed "a lightning calculator." Rush described how Fuller could perform extraordinary calculations, such as determining the number of seconds a man had lived if he was 70 years, 17 days, and 12 hours old (the correct answer was 2,210,500,800 seconds, which Fuller provided in 90 seconds, even accounting for the 17 leap years).
The first scientific description of a savant case was published in the German psychology journal Gnothi Sauton in 1783. This case involved Jedediah Buxton, a lightning calculator with an extraordinary memory.
In 1887, Dr. J. Langdon Down investigated the syndrome, which at the time was referred to as "idiot savant." This term was used to describe someone with an IQ below 25 who still seemed to possess remarkable abilities. Dr. Down described several savant cases and found that the syndrome was characterized by "verbal adhesion," where some savants had memory without reckoning.
Dr. Down also noted the link between savant syndrome and autistic characteristics, although he did not recognize this connection at the time, as autism was not a known diagnosis. He described his patients as having "language [that] is one of gesture only; living in a world of their own, they are regardless of the ordinary circumstances around them and yield only to the counter-fascination of music."
Today, there is substantial knowledge about savant syndrome, and over the last century, about a hundred cases have been described in the scientific literature.