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Struck By Genius: How a Brain Injury Made Me a Mathematical Marvel
The remarkable story of an ordinary man who was transformed when a traumatic injury left him with an extraordinary gift
No one sees the world as Jason Padgett does. Water pours from the faucet in crystalline patterns, numbers call to mind distinct geometric shapes, and intricate fractal patterns emerge from the movement of tree branches, revealing the intrinsic mathematical designs hidden in the objects around us. Yet Padgett wasn’t born this way. Twelve years ago, he had never made it past pre-algebra. But a violent mugging forever altered the way his brain works, giving him unique gifts. His ability to understand math and physics skyrocketed, and he developed the astonishing ability to draw the complex geometric shapes he saw everywhere. His stunning, mathematically precise artwork illustrates his intuitive understanding of complex mathematics. The first documented case of acquired savant syndrome with mathematical synesthesia, Padgett is a medical marvel. Struck by Genius recounts how he overcame huge setbacks and embraced his new mind. Along the way he fell in love, found joy in numbers, and spent plenty of time having his head examined. Like Born on a Blue Day and My Stroke of Insight , his singular story reveals the wondrous potential of the human brain.
No one sees the world as Jason Padgett does. Water pours from the faucet in crystalline patterns, numbers call to mind distinct geometric shapes, and intricate fractal patterns emerge from the movement of tree branches, revealing the intrinsic mathematical designs hidden in the objects around us. Yet Padgett wasn’t born this way. Twelve years ago, he had never made it past pre-algebra. But a violent mugging forever altered the way his brain works, giving him unique gifts. His ability to understand math and physics skyrocketed, and he developed the astonishing ability to draw the complex geometric shapes he saw everywhere. His stunning, mathematically precise artwork illustrates his intuitive understanding of complex mathematics. The first documented case of acquired savant syndrome with mathematical synesthesia, Padgett is a medical marvel. Struck by Genius recounts how he overcame huge setbacks and embraced his new mind. Along the way he fell in love, found joy in numbers, and spent plenty of time having his head examined. Like Born on a Blue Day and My Stroke of Insight , his singular story reveals the wondrous potential of the human brain.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2014
189 people are currently reading
3178 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 246 reviews
September 11, 2014
This book is awful and I don't think I have ever stated that on this site before. I was unable to finish it, which should disqualify me from writing a review, but I want to write one anyway to dissuade others from reading this self-aggrandizing mess because the premise is too enticing to pass up.
The idea is fascinating and drew me in immediately: an average Joe is badly beaten, has a traumatic brain injury (TBI), and comes out of it a "mathematical marvel." Sounds like a thoughtful piece and a bit of a character story about triumph, right?
Instead, what we get is a book that portrays Jason not as a marvel but as an arrogant, thoughtless, genius-in-his-own-mind man with a superiority complex.
When you "normal people" see water at a sink, he sees parallel lines falling from the spout that makes him think of mathematical theories only he can think of. No way a Nobel Prize winner could be as epically brilliant as him. HE'S A GENIUS, RIGHT!?? (Never mind the many math and physics geniuses who have said these ideas more intelligently and more coherently.) It doesn't help that the ghost writer/co-writer? seems infatuated with him based upon her comments.
Do I believe that the attack altered how he views things? Yes.
Do I believe in the psychological/biological phenomenon which occurs in him? Yes.
Do I want to read more about it? Yes.
Do I root for this guy in any way? No. I kind of want it to be a cartoon where another smack to the head would turn him back into a human being. I do not condone violence in any way, but I also do not condone wasting time on this book. This topic has to be better done elsewhere.
/end my first ever Goodreads rant
The idea is fascinating and drew me in immediately: an average Joe is badly beaten, has a traumatic brain injury (TBI), and comes out of it a "mathematical marvel." Sounds like a thoughtful piece and a bit of a character story about triumph, right?
Instead, what we get is a book that portrays Jason not as a marvel but as an arrogant, thoughtless, genius-in-his-own-mind man with a superiority complex.
When you "normal people" see water at a sink, he sees parallel lines falling from the spout that makes him think of mathematical theories only he can think of. No way a Nobel Prize winner could be as epically brilliant as him. HE'S A GENIUS, RIGHT!?? (Never mind the many math and physics geniuses who have said these ideas more intelligently and more coherently.) It doesn't help that the ghost writer/co-writer? seems infatuated with him based upon her comments.
Do I believe that the attack altered how he views things? Yes.
Do I believe in the psychological/biological phenomenon which occurs in him? Yes.
Do I want to read more about it? Yes.
Do I root for this guy in any way? No. I kind of want it to be a cartoon where another smack to the head would turn him back into a human being. I do not condone violence in any way, but I also do not condone wasting time on this book. This topic has to be better done elsewhere.
/end my first ever Goodreads rant
May 19, 2014
On a September night in 2002, Jason Padgett was brutally beaten outside a bar. He suffered a traumatic brain injury that literally turned him into a different person. Before the crime, he was a happy-go-lucky, 31-year-old bar-hopping player. Afterward, he became a "mathematical marvel," as the subtitle says, obsessed with the geometric fractal patterns he sees everywhere -- in a stream of running water, a line of trees, a ray of light glinting off a car hood.
The world becomes a fascinating place for Padgett. He obsessively draws precise pictures of what he sees and discovers their connection with math concepts he'd never known: sine and cosine, tangents, even particle fusion and relativity. Eventually, he is diagnosed as being the only known person in the world with having "acquired savant syndrome," an acute giftedness in a particular area (often math), and "acquired synesthesia," a condition in which one type of stimulation evokes the sensation of another; for example, seeing numbers as colors or shapes.
I was fully immersed in Padgett's story for a few chapters, but then I have to admit that it became repetitive. I can't imagine what he's seeing, no matter how many times he describes it. I don't see the point of the elaborate drawings he makes and can't make the math connection for myself. Not only that, but the more he reveals about his life, the sadder I became for him. Finding his place in the small community of people with his abilities assures him that he isn't mentally ill, and for that I'm glad. But although he is delighted with his new perceptions, they are accompanied by severe drawbacks: for years he is an agoraphobic hermit, venturing out only to grocery shop; he has obsessive compulsive disorder and practically bathes in antibacterial gel after touching someone; his sense of empathy is so keen he becomes physically ill when he hears the sad stories of others.
I also question some of the statements he makes. Can he really be the only person diagnosed with this acquired syndrome? The Department of Defense says that since 2000, close to 300,000 U.S. military members have sustained a TBI. Add to that the sports-acquired TBIs (and crime victims) and you have a cohort group of about 1.7 million sufferers a year. More importantly, I was put off by his statement that people with his heightened awareness alone are positioned to enjoy real spiritual insights. What a sad world it would be if only a few hundred people could lay claim to true spirituality.
I do commend Padgett's ghostwriter, Maureen Seaberg. She's done a terrific job of translating arcane mathematical concepts and fantastical visions into layman's terms. At times, though, I feel the scenes she and Padgett chose to depict showed only the upside of his injury. Padgett works at his family's futon store, and time and again he corners customers with convoluted math monologues, mostly about pi. Everyone is depicted as being enthralled. Honestly, if I were trapped by a salesperson with that agenda, I would escape at the first possible moment!
I would highly recommend two other books in this genre: the recent book, The Answer to the Riddle Is Me: A Memoir of Amnesia, a story of a man who suffered a psychotic break as the result of taking anti-malarial medication, and My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey, by a woman who suffered a stroke at a young age and discovers the joys of more fully engaging the intuitive, kinesthetic right side of the brain.
The world becomes a fascinating place for Padgett. He obsessively draws precise pictures of what he sees and discovers their connection with math concepts he'd never known: sine and cosine, tangents, even particle fusion and relativity. Eventually, he is diagnosed as being the only known person in the world with having "acquired savant syndrome," an acute giftedness in a particular area (often math), and "acquired synesthesia," a condition in which one type of stimulation evokes the sensation of another; for example, seeing numbers as colors or shapes.
I was fully immersed in Padgett's story for a few chapters, but then I have to admit that it became repetitive. I can't imagine what he's seeing, no matter how many times he describes it. I don't see the point of the elaborate drawings he makes and can't make the math connection for myself. Not only that, but the more he reveals about his life, the sadder I became for him. Finding his place in the small community of people with his abilities assures him that he isn't mentally ill, and for that I'm glad. But although he is delighted with his new perceptions, they are accompanied by severe drawbacks: for years he is an agoraphobic hermit, venturing out only to grocery shop; he has obsessive compulsive disorder and practically bathes in antibacterial gel after touching someone; his sense of empathy is so keen he becomes physically ill when he hears the sad stories of others.
I also question some of the statements he makes. Can he really be the only person diagnosed with this acquired syndrome? The Department of Defense says that since 2000, close to 300,000 U.S. military members have sustained a TBI. Add to that the sports-acquired TBIs (and crime victims) and you have a cohort group of about 1.7 million sufferers a year. More importantly, I was put off by his statement that people with his heightened awareness alone are positioned to enjoy real spiritual insights. What a sad world it would be if only a few hundred people could lay claim to true spirituality.
I do commend Padgett's ghostwriter, Maureen Seaberg. She's done a terrific job of translating arcane mathematical concepts and fantastical visions into layman's terms. At times, though, I feel the scenes she and Padgett chose to depict showed only the upside of his injury. Padgett works at his family's futon store, and time and again he corners customers with convoluted math monologues, mostly about pi. Everyone is depicted as being enthralled. Honestly, if I were trapped by a salesperson with that agenda, I would escape at the first possible moment!
I would highly recommend two other books in this genre: the recent book, The Answer to the Riddle Is Me: A Memoir of Amnesia, a story of a man who suffered a psychotic break as the result of taking anti-malarial medication, and My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey, by a woman who suffered a stroke at a young age and discovers the joys of more fully engaging the intuitive, kinesthetic right side of the brain.
May 9, 2014
I had to finish this book much faster than I wanted to, it was due back at the library and someone else was waiting for it. This young man has been through such a tremendous ordeal, from the initial beating to his recovery, PTSD and the new things of which his brain now seemed capable. I can't imagine at all waking up and finding out I was capable of grasping the most intricate math problems, as well as his new way of seeing in geometric forms, a form of synesthesia which he did not have prior to his injury.
Much information on the brain and its ability to adapt after an injury. Apparently we all have parts of our brain that we do not use, we are all capable of much more brain power than we show in our daily lives. Actually found parts of this and the discussions of math a little too much. Did appreciate the pictures showing exactly how he sees now, and the amount of time he spends drawing these is intimidation, but he wants people to understand how he looks at things.
Much information on the brain and its ability to adapt after an injury. Apparently we all have parts of our brain that we do not use, we are all capable of much more brain power than we show in our daily lives. Actually found parts of this and the discussions of math a little too much. Did appreciate the pictures showing exactly how he sees now, and the amount of time he spends drawing these is intimidation, but he wants people to understand how he looks at things.
August 8, 2014
This book is the story of a series of remarkable transformations. We meet Jason Bladgett as a bar-hopping gym rat with a rather messy family life. During one of those bar expeditions, he is violently mugged, suffering a traumatic brain injury. When he recovers, he is suddenly able to see beautiful and fascinating geometrical patterns in everything he sees : water swirling down a drain, sunlight bursting through leaves, the veins in his hand. He also become synesthetic.(Transformation 1). Unfortunately, the post-traumatic stress syndrome that he suffers also turns him into a germophobic recluse. For several years, he holes up at home, researching mathematics on the internet and obsessively drawing minutely detailed pictorial representations of pi and other mathematical concepts (Transformation 2). A chance encounter with a physicist gives him the impetus he needs to get out of the house and enroll in college, where he even meets the young woman he would later marry (Transformation 3). Unfortunately, this positive evolution experiences a setback when he develops a chronic back pain syndrome and opiate dependency (Transformation 4). In the final Transformation (5), Jason Padgett starts to engage with the world of synesthetes, is tested by specialists in the field of acquired savant syndrome, and even gives a speech at a congress.
The sad part is that this story, which could have been so informative and inspiring, falls flat because of the pedestrian writing. I was reminded of "what I did on my summer holiday" essays. First I did this. Then I did that. Then I did.... Even the last part of the book, where Jason emerges from his isolation and starts to interact with other synesthetes and with the academic community of neuroscientists who are interested in the acquired savant syndrome, is curiously devoid of real joy. It's not much more than a recital of email exchanges, meetings and tests, with some background information about neuroscience thrown in. The only time that I sensed any real emotion, any real enthusiasm in this book, was in the descriptions of the visual patterns that Jason Padgett sees, and his ruminations about the mathematical/geometric underpinnings of our world.
The sad part is that this story, which could have been so informative and inspiring, falls flat because of the pedestrian writing. I was reminded of "what I did on my summer holiday" essays. First I did this. Then I did that. Then I did.... Even the last part of the book, where Jason emerges from his isolation and starts to interact with other synesthetes and with the academic community of neuroscientists who are interested in the acquired savant syndrome, is curiously devoid of real joy. It's not much more than a recital of email exchanges, meetings and tests, with some background information about neuroscience thrown in. The only time that I sensed any real emotion, any real enthusiasm in this book, was in the descriptions of the visual patterns that Jason Padgett sees, and his ruminations about the mathematical/geometric underpinnings of our world.
May 7, 2014
If you are interested in the brain and how it works this is the book for you. A fascinating real life story about how a violent mugging shattered a man's life...or did it? For the author,Jason, this was a true life changing event. He may as well have died and been reborn because that's how different he was. An intriguing story watching him trying to understand his new world. We get to see how very differently he "sees". This book truly shows that life is much deeper than what meets the eye. It gets a bit mired in mathematics but then again we can see his new world unfolding and how he adjusts to it. I give him kudos for sharing his "insights" and it may well be helpful for others who have a similar ability.
August 9, 2016
Interesting when it stayed on the main topic of the change in his thinking, etc. However, a lot of specifics about his very narrow field of interest in fractal geometry. I took math up through calculus (and got an A in that), but I found it gobbledy-gook and skimmed through a lot of it. It could have been significantly shortened, with more focus on the human interest aspects, and been better for it.
February 8, 2017
Interesting, and the author runs a store in Tacoma.
July 14, 2014
Like Su Meck, Jason Padgett suffered a traumatic brain injury (both use the term “2.0” to describe their new persona) and has written a memoir with the help of a cowriter. The problem here is that I don’t believe I’m getting Padgett’s “real” voice. Somehow I fully believed I was encountering Su Meck and her personality when I read her very enjoyable I Forgot to Remember. Here, though, the voice is all Seaberg’s – I feel I can say that with certainty because the book opens with a note from her perspective, and then continues on in the same vein.
Seaberg was interested in Padgett’s story because she has synesthesia, too. But she sounds so patronizing, like she’s come across some quaint oddity and decided to document it: “He’s just a likable, salt-of-the earth, sweet fellow wrapped up in the most extraordinary of circumstances.” And then she wraps his story in awful, clichéd language like this: “If you could see the world through my eyes ... I’ve been to hell and back.” I didn’t make it very far here; I’d read a long newspaper profile about Padgett’s experiences, but not a whole book.
Seaberg was interested in Padgett’s story because she has synesthesia, too. But she sounds so patronizing, like she’s come across some quaint oddity and decided to document it: “He’s just a likable, salt-of-the earth, sweet fellow wrapped up in the most extraordinary of circumstances.” And then she wraps his story in awful, clichéd language like this: “If you could see the world through my eyes ... I’ve been to hell and back.” I didn’t make it very far here; I’d read a long newspaper profile about Padgett’s experiences, but not a whole book.
March 27, 2016
I love books about the workings of the human mind, and the true story of a party boy who becomes a mathematical genius after surviving a mugging seemed like it was right up my alley. Unfortunately his newly-discovered genius did not extend to writing, and even with a co-author, the writing was labored and repetitive. What would have been a fascinating article in the New Yorker was a dull slog through the self-absorbed ramblings of a Rain Man wanna-be. Do yourself a favor and skip this in favor of Born On A Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant by Daniel Tammet, a much more interesting memoir on a similar subject.
May 4, 2015
Jason Padgett is a very ordinary guy - he gets mugged outside a bar one night, and his head injuries result savant syndrome, coupled with synasthesia. Plenty of info about synesthesia, the workings of the brain, and so on. Interesting.
August 8, 2019
A VERY INTERESTING STORY FROM A UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE.
“IF YOU COULD see the world through my eyes, you would know how perfect it is, how much order runs through it, and how much structure is hidden in its tiniest parts.” p. 1).
Jason Paget is the first and only documented case of acquired savant syndrome with mathematical synesthesia. Co-author, Maureen Ann Seaberg, is, herself, also a synesthete; and very active in the community that studies these phenomena. Together they offer up an interesting inside look at a very strange world: the world of Genius.
The strangest fact I gleaned from this memoir is that there are only thirty recognized, documented people who are savants—the vast majority of those since birth. Acquired savant syndrome is extremely rare. And extremely interesting.
Included photos of Paget’s minutely detailed hand-drawings of mathematical concepts, such as pi, are completely fascinating.
Recommendation: If you’re a fan of folks like Carl Sagan, Neal deGrasse Tyson, and Richard Feynman (another synesthete, from birth) I’m sure you’ll find this memoir to your liking.
“Based on everything I’ve learned so far, I have to agree with Dr. Treffert’s and Dr. Snyder’s theory that the visions I (and my fellow synesthetes) see and the capabilities I (and my fellow savants) have are available to everyone. I believe I am living proof that these powers lie dormant in all of us. Given my anemic educational background prior to my attack, nothing in my life up to that point could account for these abilities. Not a thing was added; rather, the knowledge was uncovered from some deep and mysterious place.” (pp. 219-220).
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Kindle Edition. 245 pages.
“IF YOU COULD see the world through my eyes, you would know how perfect it is, how much order runs through it, and how much structure is hidden in its tiniest parts.” p. 1).
Jason Paget is the first and only documented case of acquired savant syndrome with mathematical synesthesia. Co-author, Maureen Ann Seaberg, is, herself, also a synesthete; and very active in the community that studies these phenomena. Together they offer up an interesting inside look at a very strange world: the world of Genius.
The strangest fact I gleaned from this memoir is that there are only thirty recognized, documented people who are savants—the vast majority of those since birth. Acquired savant syndrome is extremely rare. And extremely interesting.
Included photos of Paget’s minutely detailed hand-drawings of mathematical concepts, such as pi, are completely fascinating.
Recommendation: If you’re a fan of folks like Carl Sagan, Neal deGrasse Tyson, and Richard Feynman (another synesthete, from birth) I’m sure you’ll find this memoir to your liking.
“Based on everything I’ve learned so far, I have to agree with Dr. Treffert’s and Dr. Snyder’s theory that the visions I (and my fellow synesthetes) see and the capabilities I (and my fellow savants) have are available to everyone. I believe I am living proof that these powers lie dormant in all of us. Given my anemic educational background prior to my attack, nothing in my life up to that point could account for these abilities. Not a thing was added; rather, the knowledge was uncovered from some deep and mysterious place.” (pp. 219-220).
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Kindle Edition. 245 pages.
August 16, 2021
A memoir about Jason Padgett one night tragedy resulting to traumatic brain injury that change his whole life. He's been assault on that night and the sad part is none of his friends present at the moment including his girlfriend do anything to help him. He did suffers from trust issues after that.
Miracles happened when he's actually gained mathematical intelliegence after the accident and he gain new perpectives about life. The accident actually shift his paradigm 360°.
I love this book coz I've been wondering and curious about synesthesia. I learnt that there are two types of synesthetes; one born with it and another acquired it usually the by product of a tragedy.
Love to read a different point of view of these synesthetes. The one that intrigued me the most is those who have the ability to see sound and music in shapes and colours. I very much love that idea.
I also learnt that synesthesia is somewhat a dormant ability of the human brain which means you can acquire it by certain intervention. Many wouldn't want to have this but I hope that one day I'll gain that ability. To see musics in shapes and colours.
Miracles happened when he's actually gained mathematical intelliegence after the accident and he gain new perpectives about life. The accident actually shift his paradigm 360°.
I love this book coz I've been wondering and curious about synesthesia. I learnt that there are two types of synesthetes; one born with it and another acquired it usually the by product of a tragedy.
Love to read a different point of view of these synesthetes. The one that intrigued me the most is those who have the ability to see sound and music in shapes and colours. I very much love that idea.
I also learnt that synesthesia is somewhat a dormant ability of the human brain which means you can acquire it by certain intervention. Many wouldn't want to have this but I hope that one day I'll gain that ability. To see musics in shapes and colours.
Read
January 14, 2023never finished it. want to finish it tho.
April 3, 2025
“And I’ve concluded that no matter what you go through in life, in the end, there is a symmetry to it all—an order amid the seeming disorder. And if you could see what I see, you’d know that you’re an essential part of that order. If I could draw the world as I see it and show every last person how he or she is enmeshed in this fine and intricate and impossibly beautiful structure, perhaps people would stop getting lost in the hurt of things and be elevated by the wonder of it all.”
WHAT IS THIS BOOK ABOUT?
- The remarkable story of an ordinary man who was transformed when a traumatic injury left him with an extraordinary gift.
- No one sees the world as Jason Padgett does. Water pours from the faucet in crystalline patterns, numbers call to mind distinct geometric shapes, and intricate fractal patterns emerge from the movement of tree branches, revealing the intrinsic mathematical designs hidden in the objects around us.
- Yet Padgett wasn’t born this way. Twelve years ago, he had never made it past pre-algebra. But a violent mugging forever altered the way his brain works, giving him unique gifts. His ability to understand math and physics skyrocketed, and he developed the astonishing ability to draw the complex geometric shapes he saw everywhere. His stunning, mathematically precise artwork illustrates his intuitive understanding of complex mathematics.
HIS ABILITIES LAY DORMANT IN HIS BRAIN UNTIL HIS INJURY?
- Doctors tell me that nothing in my brain was newly created or added when I was injured. Rather, innate but dormant skills were released.
- all of us have extraordinary skills just beneath the surface…Why the brain suppresses these remarkable abilities is still a mystery, but sometimes, when the brain is diseased or damaged, it relents and unleashes the inner genius. This isn’t just my story. It’s the story of the potential secreted away in all of us.
- I believe I am living proof that these powers lie dormant in all of us.
WHAT IS ‘GENETIC MEMORY’?
- In writing about acquired, or sudden-onset, savant syndrome, Dr. Treffert said that the ability to know or remember things that had never been learned was due to what he called genetic memory. This is knowledge that is encoded in human DNA but that remains inaccessible to most people.
- In a 2010 interview with Psychology Today, Dr. Snyder said that savants “can tap into information that exists in all our brains.”
- Dr. Treffert contends that genetic memory was released as my brain rewired itself and healed…“Genetic memory is simply the biological transfer of knowledge, templates, and certain skills along with the myriad of other inherited physical characteristics, instincts, traits, and behaviors.” This genetic memory isn’t a Padgett family heirloom being passed from one generation to the next in my family tree, but rather a shared genetic memory among all of humankind. It’s as if we all come preloaded with this knowledge.
AFTER HIS INJURY, HE SAW GEOMETRIC PATTERNS LIKE FRACTALS
- I struggled to my feet. Not only was I in a lot of pain, but I was having trouble getting my bearings. The world looked different: off kilter, dreamlike. Everything that moved had trails of colored light following close behind it. There were triangles and squares in repeating patterns wherever I looked, from the windows to the lampposts to the street signs.
- All these visions—and every shape I encounter out in the world—correlate with fractals, the elemental geometric building blocks found in nature.
- The structures within the body reflect the never-ending repeating patterns found throughout the universe. The first time I noticed this, it struck me: everything and everyone is a reflection of this repeating structure.
- When I extended my hand and then withdrew it, it was like watching a slow-motion film.
WHAT ARE FRACTALS?
- Fractals are the fundamental, repetitive geometric building blocks of everything in the known universe, from seashells to the leaves and trees and mountains and even to lightning.
HE PREVIOUSLY HAD NO INTEREST IN STUDIES, MATH
- In fact, I was more than unaware; I was math-averse…Back then, nothing I was taught in school seemed relevant. I wasn’t motivated and I got terrible grades.
- I wasn’t sure why I now had such an aptitude for research. And for the first time, my interests didn’t lie in thrills or the rush of my social life. Was this some temporary side effect of the beating I took?
HE ALSO HAD SOME OTHER SIDE EFFECTS
- I was now afraid to leave the house.
- I continued to obsess over the accident and what might have happened if things had gone differently.
- I was becoming afraid to leave my home and afraid to be around people. I couldn’t explain it beyond the fact that people, even my friends, made me feel uncomfortable and suspicious.
- I was already starting to notice some of the more common cognitive consequences of TBI: impaired judgment and difficulty with decision-making.
- I felt more in touch with other people’s emotions after my injury than I ever had before. Just being around other people, on the rare occasions I was, was overwhelming for me because I felt everything I felt plus what they felt too.
- depression is one of the most common symptoms of TBI. In fact, some statistics show that more than half of all TBI survivors develop the mood disorder within the first year, and nearly two-thirds have it within seven years.
HE WAS ABLE TO DRAW WHAT HE SAW
- I had never been able to draw in the past, but I was now pretty adept…I was amazed by my sudden facility with a pencil.
- “Circles don’t exist,” I told her. The deceptively simple observation hijacked my thought process. I described the basics of the familiar concept to Megan: “When you see a circle on the television, the edges appear to be curved only because the pixels are so tiny relative to the scale of your perception. The smaller the pixels, the smoother the edge becomes, but it never becomes perfectly smooth because the pixels can be made smaller and smaller, on to infinity.”
IN LIFE, WE MUST TAKE THE GOOD WITH THE BAD
- Rinpoche sent a message to me and said that had I not suffered through the attack and all the subsequent pain involved, I might never have achieved the ability to meditate so effectively. And I certainly might not have the empathy for others that I now had. “Sickness is bad, but it made you focus and be strong. If something negative hadn’t happened, you wouldn’t have these positives. It is a gift.”
OUR BRAINS FILTER OUT MOST OF WHAT WE SEE
- if the human eye is equipped to see at the quantum level, why doesn’t everybody see what I see?…Experts have long believed that the brain filters out the vast majority of this incoming raw data. Did this mean that other people’s eyes were receiving the same visual input mine did, but their brains were just weeding it out like some sort of visual spam?
- One of Brit’s hypotheses was that people with savant syndrome had conscious access to parts of the brain that normal people didn’t. She explained that the brain did many calculations throughout the day—think of something as simple as reaching for a computer mouse and moving it around. While we can feel our movements, most people don’t have access to the inner calculations their brains are performing to make the movement possible…Most people have access to the output only, not the calculations.
HE ALSO DEVELOPED WHAT IS KNOWN AS ‘SYNESTHESIA’
- I learned that there are two types of synesthesia. The more common type, in which people see colors when they look at numbers or letters, is called perceptual, or lower, synesthesia. The type I suspected that I might have is less common and is known as conceptual, or higher, synesthesia. When I read or write a number, instead of seeing that number alone, in my mind’s eye, I see a shape superimposed over it.
- synesthesia affects only 4 percent of the population,
- One thing Dr. Theise told me that really surprised me was that some people think that all babies are synesthetic and that this innate blending of the senses is filtered out as the brain develops.
THE POWER OF MEDITATION
- According to Bushell’s extensive research, people who meditate regularly may be able to enhance the way their visual systems work, which might allow them to see things in nature that are hidden from nonmeditators.
- Compared to the nonmeditators, the meditators showed up to 50 percent less activity in areas of the brain associated with pain response.
- Equally exciting to me was learning that the practice also reduced symptoms associated with PTSD.
HE ENDED UP GETTING HIS LIFE BACK TOGETHER AND WAS ABLE TO ADDRESS CROWDS
- I opened with the story of my mugging a decade ago. The audience grew silent. I noticed a number of them nodding at me, offering encouragement. The rest of the panel members on the stage were also nodding. I can do this!
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE GUYS WHO BEAT HIM UP?
- I wonder if my assailants still carry the guilt and shame of what they did to me. It is my understanding they were never jailed, only arrested, held briefly, and then released.
*** *** *** *** ***
FACTOIDS
- I was just one of an estimated 1.7 million Americans annually who suffered TBIs. I was shocked to learn that about fifty thousand people died each year from brain injuries, and as many as ninety thousand developed some sort of lifelong disability. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of death and permanent disability for Americans under forty-five.
- Bone is, ounce for ounce, stronger than steel. Even though the eight bones that make up the human skull average only about a quarter of an inch in thickness, some parts of the skull are estimated to be able to withstand a force of twelve hundred to fourteen hundred pounds.
- The Nobel Prize–winning physicist and professor Richard Feynman was a synesthete; he saw colored letters.
- savant came from the French word savoir, “to know.”
- adrenaline is another name for the hormone epinephrine,
*** *** *** *** ***
BONUS
- Kim Peek (the real-life ‘Rain Man’): https://youtu.be/9UVXEavtwvs?si=mbuko...
- Synesthesia (combining 2 or more senses): https://youtu.be/rkRbebvoYqI?si=JnNnf...
- Short documentary about the author, Jason Padgett: https://youtu.be/7H6doOmS-eM?si=WHPrR...
- Incredible story of Phineas Gage: https://youtu.be/oOkISlxST38?si=Q81eZ...
- Fractals and the universe: https://youtu.be/w_MNQBWQ5DI?si=EIoDR...
- Can we inherit memories from our ancestors?: https://youtu.be/bz7ApvE89LE?si=USmKs...
- Man struck by lightning and turned into a musical prodigy: https://youtu.be/5R_GuVcYcPs?si=aRpKx...
WHAT IS THIS BOOK ABOUT?
- The remarkable story of an ordinary man who was transformed when a traumatic injury left him with an extraordinary gift.
- No one sees the world as Jason Padgett does. Water pours from the faucet in crystalline patterns, numbers call to mind distinct geometric shapes, and intricate fractal patterns emerge from the movement of tree branches, revealing the intrinsic mathematical designs hidden in the objects around us.
- Yet Padgett wasn’t born this way. Twelve years ago, he had never made it past pre-algebra. But a violent mugging forever altered the way his brain works, giving him unique gifts. His ability to understand math and physics skyrocketed, and he developed the astonishing ability to draw the complex geometric shapes he saw everywhere. His stunning, mathematically precise artwork illustrates his intuitive understanding of complex mathematics.
HIS ABILITIES LAY DORMANT IN HIS BRAIN UNTIL HIS INJURY?
- Doctors tell me that nothing in my brain was newly created or added when I was injured. Rather, innate but dormant skills were released.
- all of us have extraordinary skills just beneath the surface…Why the brain suppresses these remarkable abilities is still a mystery, but sometimes, when the brain is diseased or damaged, it relents and unleashes the inner genius. This isn’t just my story. It’s the story of the potential secreted away in all of us.
- I believe I am living proof that these powers lie dormant in all of us.
WHAT IS ‘GENETIC MEMORY’?
- In writing about acquired, or sudden-onset, savant syndrome, Dr. Treffert said that the ability to know or remember things that had never been learned was due to what he called genetic memory. This is knowledge that is encoded in human DNA but that remains inaccessible to most people.
- In a 2010 interview with Psychology Today, Dr. Snyder said that savants “can tap into information that exists in all our brains.”
- Dr. Treffert contends that genetic memory was released as my brain rewired itself and healed…“Genetic memory is simply the biological transfer of knowledge, templates, and certain skills along with the myriad of other inherited physical characteristics, instincts, traits, and behaviors.” This genetic memory isn’t a Padgett family heirloom being passed from one generation to the next in my family tree, but rather a shared genetic memory among all of humankind. It’s as if we all come preloaded with this knowledge.
AFTER HIS INJURY, HE SAW GEOMETRIC PATTERNS LIKE FRACTALS
- I struggled to my feet. Not only was I in a lot of pain, but I was having trouble getting my bearings. The world looked different: off kilter, dreamlike. Everything that moved had trails of colored light following close behind it. There were triangles and squares in repeating patterns wherever I looked, from the windows to the lampposts to the street signs.
- All these visions—and every shape I encounter out in the world—correlate with fractals, the elemental geometric building blocks found in nature.
- The structures within the body reflect the never-ending repeating patterns found throughout the universe. The first time I noticed this, it struck me: everything and everyone is a reflection of this repeating structure.
- When I extended my hand and then withdrew it, it was like watching a slow-motion film.
WHAT ARE FRACTALS?
- Fractals are the fundamental, repetitive geometric building blocks of everything in the known universe, from seashells to the leaves and trees and mountains and even to lightning.
HE PREVIOUSLY HAD NO INTEREST IN STUDIES, MATH
- In fact, I was more than unaware; I was math-averse…Back then, nothing I was taught in school seemed relevant. I wasn’t motivated and I got terrible grades.
- I wasn’t sure why I now had such an aptitude for research. And for the first time, my interests didn’t lie in thrills or the rush of my social life. Was this some temporary side effect of the beating I took?
HE ALSO HAD SOME OTHER SIDE EFFECTS
- I was now afraid to leave the house.
- I continued to obsess over the accident and what might have happened if things had gone differently.
- I was becoming afraid to leave my home and afraid to be around people. I couldn’t explain it beyond the fact that people, even my friends, made me feel uncomfortable and suspicious.
- I was already starting to notice some of the more common cognitive consequences of TBI: impaired judgment and difficulty with decision-making.
- I felt more in touch with other people’s emotions after my injury than I ever had before. Just being around other people, on the rare occasions I was, was overwhelming for me because I felt everything I felt plus what they felt too.
- depression is one of the most common symptoms of TBI. In fact, some statistics show that more than half of all TBI survivors develop the mood disorder within the first year, and nearly two-thirds have it within seven years.
HE WAS ABLE TO DRAW WHAT HE SAW
- I had never been able to draw in the past, but I was now pretty adept…I was amazed by my sudden facility with a pencil.
- “Circles don’t exist,” I told her. The deceptively simple observation hijacked my thought process. I described the basics of the familiar concept to Megan: “When you see a circle on the television, the edges appear to be curved only because the pixels are so tiny relative to the scale of your perception. The smaller the pixels, the smoother the edge becomes, but it never becomes perfectly smooth because the pixels can be made smaller and smaller, on to infinity.”
IN LIFE, WE MUST TAKE THE GOOD WITH THE BAD
- Rinpoche sent a message to me and said that had I not suffered through the attack and all the subsequent pain involved, I might never have achieved the ability to meditate so effectively. And I certainly might not have the empathy for others that I now had. “Sickness is bad, but it made you focus and be strong. If something negative hadn’t happened, you wouldn’t have these positives. It is a gift.”
OUR BRAINS FILTER OUT MOST OF WHAT WE SEE
- if the human eye is equipped to see at the quantum level, why doesn’t everybody see what I see?…Experts have long believed that the brain filters out the vast majority of this incoming raw data. Did this mean that other people’s eyes were receiving the same visual input mine did, but their brains were just weeding it out like some sort of visual spam?
- One of Brit’s hypotheses was that people with savant syndrome had conscious access to parts of the brain that normal people didn’t. She explained that the brain did many calculations throughout the day—think of something as simple as reaching for a computer mouse and moving it around. While we can feel our movements, most people don’t have access to the inner calculations their brains are performing to make the movement possible…Most people have access to the output only, not the calculations.
HE ALSO DEVELOPED WHAT IS KNOWN AS ‘SYNESTHESIA’
- I learned that there are two types of synesthesia. The more common type, in which people see colors when they look at numbers or letters, is called perceptual, or lower, synesthesia. The type I suspected that I might have is less common and is known as conceptual, or higher, synesthesia. When I read or write a number, instead of seeing that number alone, in my mind’s eye, I see a shape superimposed over it.
- synesthesia affects only 4 percent of the population,
- One thing Dr. Theise told me that really surprised me was that some people think that all babies are synesthetic and that this innate blending of the senses is filtered out as the brain develops.
THE POWER OF MEDITATION
- According to Bushell’s extensive research, people who meditate regularly may be able to enhance the way their visual systems work, which might allow them to see things in nature that are hidden from nonmeditators.
- Compared to the nonmeditators, the meditators showed up to 50 percent less activity in areas of the brain associated with pain response.
- Equally exciting to me was learning that the practice also reduced symptoms associated with PTSD.
HE ENDED UP GETTING HIS LIFE BACK TOGETHER AND WAS ABLE TO ADDRESS CROWDS
- I opened with the story of my mugging a decade ago. The audience grew silent. I noticed a number of them nodding at me, offering encouragement. The rest of the panel members on the stage were also nodding. I can do this!
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE GUYS WHO BEAT HIM UP?
- I wonder if my assailants still carry the guilt and shame of what they did to me. It is my understanding they were never jailed, only arrested, held briefly, and then released.
*** *** *** *** ***
FACTOIDS
- I was just one of an estimated 1.7 million Americans annually who suffered TBIs. I was shocked to learn that about fifty thousand people died each year from brain injuries, and as many as ninety thousand developed some sort of lifelong disability. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of death and permanent disability for Americans under forty-five.
- Bone is, ounce for ounce, stronger than steel. Even though the eight bones that make up the human skull average only about a quarter of an inch in thickness, some parts of the skull are estimated to be able to withstand a force of twelve hundred to fourteen hundred pounds.
- The Nobel Prize–winning physicist and professor Richard Feynman was a synesthete; he saw colored letters.
- savant came from the French word savoir, “to know.”
- adrenaline is another name for the hormone epinephrine,
*** *** *** *** ***
BONUS
- Kim Peek (the real-life ‘Rain Man’): https://youtu.be/9UVXEavtwvs?si=mbuko...
- Synesthesia (combining 2 or more senses): https://youtu.be/rkRbebvoYqI?si=JnNnf...
- Short documentary about the author, Jason Padgett: https://youtu.be/7H6doOmS-eM?si=WHPrR...
- Incredible story of Phineas Gage: https://youtu.be/oOkISlxST38?si=Q81eZ...
- Fractals and the universe: https://youtu.be/w_MNQBWQ5DI?si=EIoDR...
- Can we inherit memories from our ancestors?: https://youtu.be/bz7ApvE89LE?si=USmKs...
- Man struck by lightning and turned into a musical prodigy: https://youtu.be/5R_GuVcYcPs?si=aRpKx...
April 18, 2020
The one job this book does remarkably is convincing its readers that the human mind has incredible potential. Of course, we all know that, but more like a fact, but the book tells how Savants and synesthetic are evidence of it.
However, a significant portion of the book felt like a filler to me. And in some sense gave a feeling that the story fits better as a long blog than an entire book. In making its reader understand what if feels like to be an acquired savant and a synesthetic the authors mentions many known cases. And as an afterthought, I felt intrigued to know about how they would have felt when they first realised it and how similar or different it was from Jason's. And such a case analysis would have made the book complete for me.
Nonetheless, it was an informative read. And no matter how restrictive I felt the book was, it surely piqued my curiosity to know more on this subject.
However, a significant portion of the book felt like a filler to me. And in some sense gave a feeling that the story fits better as a long blog than an entire book. In making its reader understand what if feels like to be an acquired savant and a synesthetic the authors mentions many known cases. And as an afterthought, I felt intrigued to know about how they would have felt when they first realised it and how similar or different it was from Jason's. And such a case analysis would have made the book complete for me.
Nonetheless, it was an informative read. And no matter how restrictive I felt the book was, it surely piqued my curiosity to know more on this subject.
July 22, 2015
As someone who studies physics (and therefore lots of maths!) and is also interested in the brain and how it works, this book should have been totally perfect for me. I found out about it through an interview with the authors on an episode of "Science For The People". I wasn't planning to seek it out, but I happened across it in the library and, after picking it up and putting it down at least once, decided to give it a go.
One thing I feel like this book got really right was the balance between the positive and negative effects of Padgett's traumatic brain injury: his new-found mathematical ability and passion versus the PTSD and OCD he develops. You get a lot of insight into his condition through the descriptive writing. However, I feel like overall the writing style let Padgett's story down. While Seaberg obviously tried to keep the voice authentic to Padgett's, you can tell that she's enamoured of him and that has influenced the text. (Could so many people hoping to buy a futon really react so positively to a salesman regaling them with mathematical tales, no matter how marvellous they may be?)
Also, I may be alone in thinking this, but I wanted more maths! While obviously the story itself was also very important, I felt like the maths side of things wasn't that well articulated and ended up being a bit repetitive. I would be interested to hear an update from Jason a few years down the line, when his technical mathematical ability has caught up with his more conceptual understanding, and how his learning process differed from a more traditional student's. It would be fascinating to see what could be learned about how to teach maths and heavily mathematical subjects from his insights.
This book was okay, and I quite enjoyed it, but I feel like it could have been so much better. I think Seaberg had a little too much of a hand in it, but not enough to make it a biography rather than an autobiography, so it ends up as an odd combination of both. It was interesting in parts, but reading articles about Padgett's case and looking up his portfolio could probably give you the same information without the other annoying parts.
One thing I feel like this book got really right was the balance between the positive and negative effects of Padgett's traumatic brain injury: his new-found mathematical ability and passion versus the PTSD and OCD he develops. You get a lot of insight into his condition through the descriptive writing. However, I feel like overall the writing style let Padgett's story down. While Seaberg obviously tried to keep the voice authentic to Padgett's, you can tell that she's enamoured of him and that has influenced the text. (Could so many people hoping to buy a futon really react so positively to a salesman regaling them with mathematical tales, no matter how marvellous they may be?)
Also, I may be alone in thinking this, but I wanted more maths! While obviously the story itself was also very important, I felt like the maths side of things wasn't that well articulated and ended up being a bit repetitive. I would be interested to hear an update from Jason a few years down the line, when his technical mathematical ability has caught up with his more conceptual understanding, and how his learning process differed from a more traditional student's. It would be fascinating to see what could be learned about how to teach maths and heavily mathematical subjects from his insights.
This book was okay, and I quite enjoyed it, but I feel like it could have been so much better. I think Seaberg had a little too much of a hand in it, but not enough to make it a biography rather than an autobiography, so it ends up as an odd combination of both. It was interesting in parts, but reading articles about Padgett's case and looking up his portfolio could probably give you the same information without the other annoying parts.
July 21, 2017
I give this book a 3.5 star rating. I really liked the content, it's one of the most fascinating memoirs that I've read, but somehow some parts were a little draggy and so I can't say I enjoyed all of it, so I couldn't give it 4 stars. That it was written by another author who wasn't the protagonist also made the book lose its voice somewhat.
The human brain contains vast potential. Jason discovered this when he suffered brain damage and suddenly unlocked certain parts of the brain - he started to see geometrical patterns on everyday things, and his personality also changes from a partying, mundane type to someone who is withdrawn but intellectual. He spent 4 years in a hermit state trying to figure out what was wrong with him, and eventually gets back out into the world to go back to school, to learn how to express all his newfound mathematical abilities and theories. This book roughly covers 10 years of his life from after his mugging, to the recent years when he started to rouse interest of researchers and the synesthesia community. This is because he is one of the 30 savants known in the world who was not born one - his genius was accidentally unleashed through bodily harm.
There are certain points that I found very interesting with the book. He talks about meditation, and how it can unlock the brain's potential. This is because the brain normally filters out a lot of what it perceives to be noise, to focus on the signals to help us function. (His brain injury impaired this ability.) What I took out of this is that modern life with its all sorts of entertainment and high pace work stress is distracting us from what the brain can actually do. He covers a fair bit on synesthesia and now I get a better idea of what it is - and he also divulges his depression and panic attacks, compounded by PTSD, which I thought gave a good insight on how people survive after trauma.
I feel that the other ratings that say that the author is self-aggrandising seem to be projecting somewhat. I didn't find his tone to be annoying at all - a little dull and like a laundry list when he talked about other synesthetes, but he is not full of himself.
The human brain contains vast potential. Jason discovered this when he suffered brain damage and suddenly unlocked certain parts of the brain - he started to see geometrical patterns on everyday things, and his personality also changes from a partying, mundane type to someone who is withdrawn but intellectual. He spent 4 years in a hermit state trying to figure out what was wrong with him, and eventually gets back out into the world to go back to school, to learn how to express all his newfound mathematical abilities and theories. This book roughly covers 10 years of his life from after his mugging, to the recent years when he started to rouse interest of researchers and the synesthesia community. This is because he is one of the 30 savants known in the world who was not born one - his genius was accidentally unleashed through bodily harm.
There are certain points that I found very interesting with the book. He talks about meditation, and how it can unlock the brain's potential. This is because the brain normally filters out a lot of what it perceives to be noise, to focus on the signals to help us function. (His brain injury impaired this ability.) What I took out of this is that modern life with its all sorts of entertainment and high pace work stress is distracting us from what the brain can actually do. He covers a fair bit on synesthesia and now I get a better idea of what it is - and he also divulges his depression and panic attacks, compounded by PTSD, which I thought gave a good insight on how people survive after trauma.
I feel that the other ratings that say that the author is self-aggrandising seem to be projecting somewhat. I didn't find his tone to be annoying at all - a little dull and like a laundry list when he talked about other synesthetes, but he is not full of himself.
October 6, 2016
My other half found this book in the library and checked it out for me, as he had a feeling I would like it. I'm not sure how some arrive at the idea that he is talking down to anyone or lifting himself up. That didn't strike me as being the case at all. Instead, it's a look at how dramatically his life has changed since his brain injury. He does explain mathematical concepts and how he sees the world, but I found that interesting as well. Or maybe it's just that psychology and mathematics are both topics I am fascinated with. At any rate, I loved the story and I'm glad that things are turning out well for Jason.
When I got to the end of the book where he was at the conference and they discussed mnemonics, I suddenly had a memory and paused. When I was in the third grade, I was part of some experimental math thing where we had flashcards and every number represented a letter. Then there were flash cards with the numbers and letters and pictures. The point was we were supposed to use this method to learn our multiplication tables. This is where my early trouble with math began (just so you know, I managed to recover -- I can proudly say I got 100% on my final exam for College Algebra). Instead of just learning 9 x 9 = 81, I had to learn MoM = PIE, and I have to think about a mom with a pie in her face. It was the most ridiculous thing. After reading about the synesthetes who see colors or characters in letters and numbers, I began to wonder... were we part of an unethical study? I remember my parents being furious about the flash cards and I know that this method of teaching math didn't continue after that year. Some scientists believe we all have synesthetic abilities, we just haven't tapped into them. However, from reading the book and others on the topic, it is clear that while A may be one color for one person, it is a completely different color for someone else. Therefore, trying to teach people a system that makes no sense to them does more harm than good. But I'm off on a rabbit trail so.
Anyway, interesting story.
When I got to the end of the book where he was at the conference and they discussed mnemonics, I suddenly had a memory and paused. When I was in the third grade, I was part of some experimental math thing where we had flashcards and every number represented a letter. Then there were flash cards with the numbers and letters and pictures. The point was we were supposed to use this method to learn our multiplication tables. This is where my early trouble with math began (just so you know, I managed to recover -- I can proudly say I got 100% on my final exam for College Algebra). Instead of just learning 9 x 9 = 81, I had to learn MoM = PIE, and I have to think about a mom with a pie in her face. It was the most ridiculous thing. After reading about the synesthetes who see colors or characters in letters and numbers, I began to wonder... were we part of an unethical study? I remember my parents being furious about the flash cards and I know that this method of teaching math didn't continue after that year. Some scientists believe we all have synesthetic abilities, we just haven't tapped into them. However, from reading the book and others on the topic, it is clear that while A may be one color for one person, it is a completely different color for someone else. Therefore, trying to teach people a system that makes no sense to them does more harm than good. But I'm off on a rabbit trail so.
Anyway, interesting story.
August 19, 2017
I give "Struck by Genius" only a so-so rating. The main character, Jason Padgett, randomly becomes a mathematical genius after a mugging. I admire his life story and it certainly is an example of how amazing stuff can happen to anyone. The book goes fast and is written well. However, it wasn't as good as I hoped it would be.
After the backstory, the mugging, and the aftermath, I especially lost interest in the last part of the book, when it focuses on his diagnosis and new life opportunities. Maybe there will be lots of wonderful and interesting things Mr. Padgett does later in life, but so far he is just beginning to use his mind and the story seems incomplete. The other thing I had a hard time being interested about were all of the descriptions of how magical geometry is. I am sure that it is incredible to see things the way he does, but it seemed like the descriptions of these were constant and it was tough for me to appreciate it (other than the initial interested reaction).
I would recommend watching his TED talk, but other than that unless if you are really into mathematics or brain studies, I would not recommend this one. I wish Jason Padgett all the best and regardless of the rating it seems like he is destined to do great things in life.
After the backstory, the mugging, and the aftermath, I especially lost interest in the last part of the book, when it focuses on his diagnosis and new life opportunities. Maybe there will be lots of wonderful and interesting things Mr. Padgett does later in life, but so far he is just beginning to use his mind and the story seems incomplete. The other thing I had a hard time being interested about were all of the descriptions of how magical geometry is. I am sure that it is incredible to see things the way he does, but it seemed like the descriptions of these were constant and it was tough for me to appreciate it (other than the initial interested reaction).
I would recommend watching his TED talk, but other than that unless if you are really into mathematics or brain studies, I would not recommend this one. I wish Jason Padgett all the best and regardless of the rating it seems like he is destined to do great things in life.
August 16, 2023
After a brutal attack in 2002, Jason Padgett became the only known person to-date with both acquired synesthesia and savant syndrome. He never even lost consciousness nor was he kept in the hospital, but he did have a profound concussion that affected him at the cellular level. Unfortunately, the attack also left him with crippling PTSD, OCD, depression, and pain that kept him hiding in his house for four years. It was never explained how exactly he managed to be off work for four years, but I imagine it’s because he was managing futon stores for his father and perhaps his father just continued to pay him.
Padgett compulsively draws fractals, which are beautiful, but his work is shown at art shows, not in math or physics settings. His “theories” (I could never quite figure out whether he was having any original insights or not) are studied by neurologists, not mathematicians. His occupation is “artist,” not mathematician or physicist. So did he become a math genius, or a highly skilled artist who is good at math? At any rate, it’s an interesting life story. A couple years ago, after spending all his life in Alaska or Washington state, he moved to Carmel, Indiana of all places.
Padgett compulsively draws fractals, which are beautiful, but his work is shown at art shows, not in math or physics settings. His “theories” (I could never quite figure out whether he was having any original insights or not) are studied by neurologists, not mathematicians. His occupation is “artist,” not mathematician or physicist. So did he become a math genius, or a highly skilled artist who is good at math? At any rate, it’s an interesting life story. A couple years ago, after spending all his life in Alaska or Washington state, he moved to Carmel, Indiana of all places.
October 15, 2014
This is a non-fiction account of a man who became a genius after a head injury. The main problem with this was the writing style; one of the things Jason says he lost after the injury was the ability to concentrate on reading and writing. So this book is a joint venture between him and Maureen Seaberg but is told from first person all the way through. The inner workings of the brain are a complete mystery and the science bits trying to explain what happened are interesting. However the chapters around the rest of his life, though somewhat saddening, left me struggling through the pages. Then about half way through it started to hit the hard mathematics and I was lost. I wanted to know about the miracle that happened in his brain, not the work he did afterwards. I skipped ahead and did read some of the later chapters, including where he finally gets a diagnosis. So possibly more interesting to those with an interest in maths AND brains.
Review copy provided by publisher.
Review copy provided by publisher.
August 5, 2015
Disclaimer: I received this book through the Goodreads First Reads program.
Jason Padgett was living a rather meandering life, working during the day and partying at night. One night, while leaving a bar, he is mugged and severely beaten, suffering brain trauma. While recovering, he begins to see the world in fractal, geometric patterns (though he doesn't know this at the time). Thus begins his journey to acquire the vocabulary needed to explain what he's seeing and to understand his synesthesia and acquired adult savant syndrome. This is a very interesting story, easy to read and very uplifting. I highly recommend it.
Jason Padgett was living a rather meandering life, working during the day and partying at night. One night, while leaving a bar, he is mugged and severely beaten, suffering brain trauma. While recovering, he begins to see the world in fractal, geometric patterns (though he doesn't know this at the time). Thus begins his journey to acquire the vocabulary needed to explain what he's seeing and to understand his synesthesia and acquired adult savant syndrome. This is a very interesting story, easy to read and very uplifting. I highly recommend it.
January 12, 2017
I found the telling of Jason's story a bit repetitive. There were, however, a lot of upsides to the book. One of the things I came to appreciate was how, as his story unfolded, he inadvertently exposed the extent of ableism that people are exposed to. One especially moving story was of his encounter with two persons with Cerebral Palsy. He frequently refers to how fortunate he was in his journey, and I agree. I am certain many people who undergo similar injuries end up homeless because they do not have resources to fall back on for a four year hermitage. Overall it was a quick read and worthwhile, just not five stars.
April 13, 2014
This is a riveting story about a man who was severely beaten in a robbery, but due to his injuries, acquired synthesthesia abilities (where numbers invoked shapes, and flowing water became web-like). Today, Jason Padgett sees fractals when he looks at trees, has acquired math and drawing skills that are nothing short of phenomenal, and sees light in an entirely new way. His unusual trauma induced abilities are being studied by brain experts and may lead to changes in the way we think of latent abilities in all of us.
August 2, 2014
I was excited to read this story, both for the crime, psychology and human interest elements, and for the math and physics aspects. I was a bit apprehensive, though, due to some early reviews. But I find Jason and his story extremely interesting and curious. I find myself liking him more as the story progresses. I'm enjoying this book very much.
May 15, 2014
Wonderful read. I've read a few biographies on "regular" people who have experienced savant-like abilities after a brain injury. It's so fascinating. This book made me want to get knocked over the head ;-)
January 24, 2015
I never knew that a circle isn't round until I read this book. It was worth it just for that insight into pi.
And then there's a lot of other cool stuff to think about, besides the interesting story of Jason Padgett and his brain injury.
Highly recommended.
And then there's a lot of other cool stuff to think about, besides the interesting story of Jason Padgett and his brain injury.
Highly recommended.
October 3, 2016
an interesting book about a math savant synesthete as a result from brain injury - especially interesting when you yourself have some similar issues (tbi, synesthesia).
i wonder what the pictures in this book look like
i wonder what the pictures in this book look like
May 4, 2014
Really fascinating and inspiring book...what an amazing journey!
June 16, 2014
Wow! The beauty and the mystery of the mind! This is a fascinating and worthwhile read!!!
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