Could you have come up with Einstein’s theory of relativity? If not – why not? This is what Marcus du Sautoy, professor of mathematics, wants to explore. Marcus readily admits that he is no genius, but wants to know if geniuses are just an extreme version of himself – or whether their brains are fundamentally different.
Marcus meets some remarkable individuals – Tommy, an obsessive artist who uses his whole house as his canvas; Derek: blind, autistic, and a pianist with apparently prodigious gifts; Claire who is also blind, but whose brain has learnt to see using sound.
Marcus is shown how babies have remarkable abilities which most of us lose as teenagers. He meets a neuroscientist who claims he has evidence of innate ability, a scientist who’s identified a gene for learning, and Dr. Paulus, who has discovered how to sharpen the brain… by electrically turbo-charging it.
February 25, 2011 at 5:08 am | James Aiken
I swear to god, every Horizon documentary is so interesting.
February 27, 2011 at 1:41 am | fuckgreece
Youtube sucks please try upload in fast loading streaming sites Megavideo and google video always the best. Pretty decent documentary
May 15, 2011 at 7:23 pm | fuckfuckgreece
how about you get a better internet provider or better laptop you cheap pig
February 28, 2011 at 5:39 am | Richard
It’s funny that they mention the gene responsible for learning.
Cause in the book Mozart’s Brain and The Fighter Pilot, there was a man that never forgot any thing. He could recall number sequences giving to him 20 years later to the last digit.
He had profound socialization problems, due to the fact people wouldn’t recall things 100% accurately.
Ultimately when this man died he felt like he was a failure, having never been able to fully utilize his memory.
The problem with intelligence is that the ability to solve problems is different in different people.
People solve problems with a combination of memorization and creativity .
May 24, 2011 at 6:09 pm | Hilary Groom
appretiated documentary but i wish motivation was also addressed as a factor towards genius determination. Perhaps a comparison between the necessity of learning to see via hearing and the choice to pursue a career as a master chess player.
May 24, 2011 at 6:09 pm | Hilary Groom
appretiated documentary but i wish motivation was also addressed as a factor towards genius determination. Perhaps a comparison between the necessity of learning to see via hearing and the choice to pursue a career as a master chess player.