FWIT, it’s Asperger, not Asberger

As a poet, I’m curious if Mr. Tammet writes poetry, considering his gift for metaphor. At the very least, I’m hopeful that he reads it, and if so, who might be his favorite poets.

Repeated body movement patterns are off-loaded by the cerebrum to the cerebellum, a region of the brain designed for high speed processing. Do you think the same could happen with a pattern that,
instead of directing movement, calculates the digits of pi?

How was Daniel diagnosed with Asperger’s and at what age?

Hi Daniel,

My son was diagnosed with Asperger. Can you describe how you were to interact with at 10 or 11 and what stages you went through while growing up?

Thanks

Val

Music?

I am a 54 year old architect. I have always been an excellent speller. I remember, as a child, knowing the correct spelling of words because each word was a pleasing wordshape of letters – rather like Tammet’s description of a beautiful landscape of numbers. I also saw numbers as having colors – I think of Charles Demuth’s painting, Number 5.

Since then, through years of education, I no longer perceive words as shapes because I was taught to pay attention to word roots. I find it a bit sad that I’ve lost that visual/conceptual ability. Do you think that, as children, we have this ability and perhaps lose it through traditional education? And should we be doing more research on how children learn, in this respect?

My 10 year old autistic son has savant-like qualities. He loves the calendar and can calculate in seconds the day of the week a person’s birthday will be on in a given year — even if it’s 20-30 years before or after today’s date.

I loved reading Mr. Tammet’s Born on a Blue Day and thank him very much for writing it. It helped me understand how my son might be thinking of various things — and also gave me hope for my son’s future since it is so wonderful to see how successful Mr. Tammet has been in so many areas of his life — professionally and personally.

My question for Mr. Tammet would be what advice he would give to parents of autistic children on how to raise our children — in terms of therapies, what works/doesn’t, what our children might want us to know but can’t express etc. Thank you.

Daniel’s description of navigating a landscape of numbers reminds me of how people relate to music. I certainly could not remember or recite the lyrics to songs when asked, but when the music begins, the lyrics and melody are revealed one-by-one as if traveling a landscape as Daniel describes in “Blue Day”. What do you think about this comparison? Has Daniel’s brain pattern when reciting numbers resembled “normal” peoples singing or musical composition in any way?

In hearing Mr. Tammet speak about the vastness of the mind, as a bodyworker I wonder about the interconectedness between the nervous system and the rest of the body. The times my mind has felt most expanded is when I have been aware of my body. I was wondering what Mr. Tammet’s opinon or experiences of physicals manifestation of the mind.

Hello,
My comment is on the beauty of the number(s) 1248. If you double 1, you get 2. If you double 2, you get 4. If you double 4, you get 8. If you double 12, you get 24, and if you double 24, you get 48. What beauty! Thank you.

Does Mr. Tammet read the digits of pi as he computes them in his mind or does he recite from a list he was previously exposed to?

Could he resume reciting digits of pi from where he left off at no. 22514?

Thanks

This is not a cynical question, but how does Daniel know that his digits anywhere in the 22,000+ long sequence in the pi decimal portion are correct?

Daniel Tammet speaks frequently about one of the most creative acts of the human mind — crafting scientific theories.

Umberto Eco says, “Whereof we cannot make a theory, we must tell a story instead.”

Indeed most people prefer stories to abstract theories.

Those of us on the Aspergers Spectrum, who are drawn to abstract and symbolic thought, are often characterized as being out of touch with emotions, not unlike the character of Mr. Spock on Star Trek. But Spock, being the Science Officer, was fascinated by perplexing challenges when others around him were in a state of alarm.

For someone who relates to Spock, the study of emotions is also a fascinating subject. And notwithstanding the common view that human emotions are often unfathomably irrational (like pi), they actually reveal a remarkable underlying mathematical structure.

I don’t know much about autism. But I had bought into the notion of autists being out of touch with emotions.

Now I still don’t know much about that, but I perceived Daniel speaking with beauty, depth and empathy. Just by speak he opened up new windows in my mind.

For first 45 minutes Daniel and Tom had almost like a dancelike synergy.

At age nine or ten my son was adding two 3-digit numbers in his head, with carrying. This would have amazed me except that, being what is commonly now referred to as an unschooled child, he had never been shown a procedure for adding numbers on paper. Left to his own devices, he simply played until mission accomplished.

And then I, well-schooled in the art of “put down the one, carry the 3,” started playing too, in my own mind. I was amazed at how facile I soon became with doing long division in my head…

Some years ago I saw and was amazed by a Nova program on the Mandelbrot set, whereby a very simple formula creates an infinite picture. Hearing the discussion today brought this to mind as a good representation of the continuum we find ourselves on, from the simple and direct to the vastly possible.

Several lines from Matthew Arnold’s poem “A Summer Night” come to mind. Speaking of the heavens, he writes:

“But I will rather say that you remain
A world above man’s head, to let him see
How boundless might his soul’s horizons be,
How vast, yet of what clear transparency!
How it were good to abide there, and breathe free;
How fair a lot to fill
Is left to each man still!”

Great show – thanks!

I was listening to Daniel Tammet as I have a son on the spectrum, not as high functioning but he sees days of the week as colors too. Daniel’s book is a window on my son’s world, to a degree. While listening to one of the callers, Richard, the mathematician, I realized I know this voice, my long lost friend from the U of C I house! Richard, if you read this, you can find me in the Ipswich phonebook under the name you know me by. Call me!

Hi- I just wanted to comment that I am enjoying listening to Mr. Tammet speak about his life. He has the most calming voice and is able to speak so intelligently and interestingly about his abilities. I am fascinated and look forward to reading his books.
Thanks

I wonder if Mr. Tammet has ever read “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”.

I am curious because it was a useful novel for my wife and I to discuss. The mind of the main character is very similar to mine in several ways. By discussing the novel, we were able to expand our ability to understand each of our thinking processes.

Thank you,
Curtis

what is his thouts on people that are smarterthan thay know and show signsof mental problums and on savant exsperances and latter was lerned that with out realizing it the persons brain or mind was just mimicing said conditions?

Daniel Tammet, I enjoyed the vibrations in your voice on the radio so it could be fair to say that the brain is wider and louder any any sound in the universe?

Hesh Goldstein, a radio host an “basketball Jones” 71 year old Vegan has asked me to put together a few minds to discuss the cellular matrix and we are short on math guy, savant had not even crossed our mind. Was it Pythagrus who gave the math to count music.
The guy who understands the harmony of the spheres as it can be poetically described with music.

We study sulfur. We have had Autistic children return
to making eye contact after taking organic sulfur, but
bridging the communication gap especially if these healthy, vocal two year old twins can relearn communication through music.

The mind of man is not quite as wide and broad and deep of the mind of God, but we are made in the image of God both male and female.

If possible we would like you to participate on this radio program about the cellular matrix. The math of the very same harmony of the spheres, as the Greeks
could only do.

You can call from England, 17 Jan 09 8:00am Hawaii time, 1080 am or on line if Michelle has the web site done.
I may not be a genius but I did have the pleasure of owning and racing Morgans, the motor car.

Please call 801-290-2013 before Friday to allow Mr.
Goldstein to gain some individual input regarding
sulfur and the the crystalline matrix.

Patrick McGean
Director
Live Blood and Cellular Matrix Study
Body Human Project
organicsulfur@sisna.com

[...] read more | digg story [...]

For those of you who are interested in the phenomenon of seeing numbers as colors, you might be interested in finding out about a neurological condition called “synesthesia.”

[...] this interview from On Point, Tammet talks about the feat of knowing 22,000 digits of pi, but also a larger concept that [...]

By 5th grade I had a natural writing/storytelling style. Then over the years as well meaning people showed me the “right way” I lost that natural ability. I still write but something has been lost in translation. I remember painting surrealistic color images as a young child and looked forward to painting reproductions of them as I grew older. I now paint and do sculpture but have never been able to catch the quality of those childhood images. My brother John, who was dyslexic, was damaged by adults who condemned him for being lazy, though he was very creative. He became alcoholic as an adult and died young.

…to answer a reader’s question, at what age was daniel diagnosed with asperger’s?

he was diagnosed at age 3.1415

(apologies to daniel…whom i adore)