Are you a savant of any type?

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Music savants actually practice. Or maybe it's not called practice when it's fun.

Anyway, I have zero savant skills, I used to be good at drawing, remembering music, I'm a sponge with information... talented in several areas. Savant in none.

When I was younger I could meow really well to the point I fooled cats but I think this single skill isn't being a savant, LOL.

I have been accused of being an artistic savant but I think it's just from years of practice. Others think my ability to know everything there is to know about meerkats, bearded dragons and animals and memorise them is savantism but I that's like saying every autistic person who knows a lot about their special intrest is a savant in that area. I didn't speak until I was three or four and my parents say as a little kid I was low functning autistic but now I am so "high functning" some phycatrist claim my diagnosis needs to be changed. I think in order to be a savant I would have to be low functning and be able to draw or paint pictures that looked like photographs. I don't think I am a savant.

82-82-82
246
Definitely 246
There's 4 left in the box...

nope, i don't have any savant abilities that i'm aware of.
though my aspie GF can play music by ear if that counts for her as a savant thing.

I have dyscalculea and stutter when counting small parties of people..for example, at a resturaunt I will think that my parents and myself are a part of 4 when there are just 3 of us, because I guess I count myself twice...but uh....

I used to be able to uncannily kick anyones ass at dominoes..I don't recall ever losing a game...

I'm good with numbers but NOWHERE near the level that even approaches Savant skills (and I really do mean NOWHERE near)

Seeing someone performing Savant Math is a thing of beauty for me; like a perfect sunset, Mount Fuji or the Aurora Borealis, all of which have and are innate beauty.

Last edited by Blindspot149 on 08 Aug 2010, 2:26 am, edited 1 time in total.

Here's one definition of an autistic savant that I like because of its conciseness [http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Autistic_savant]:

A lot of examples that have been quoted in this thread are probably more in the realm of a skilled individual but without necessarily being in the "savant" range, perhaps with the exception of the person with the flash counting ability.

Personally I have some skills that are stronger than others but I'm by no means a savant.

A friend of mine actually stated that he thought I was an idiot savant when we first met. I believe this was due to my very proficient skills in zoology being coupled with my piss poor social skills.

LabPet, can you describe the process? or does it just come to you mysteriously? if so, how is it that you know the number is correct (before checking)

"Psychic Savant" but it's an extremely controversial genre of savantism.

I scored bizzarely high in abstract reasoning...which I guess is predicting hard to find patterns. The tester at a major clinic said she never seen anyone score that high. You would think this would spill over in my math skills, but it does not. My math levels are horrible I am in my 30's and haven't learned much beyond 4th grade in math. If I do understand it...I will forget it very quickly.

Now what am I supposed to do with this gift in abstract reasoning?? Be a detective??? Idunno.

I am also very creative. I learned to paint with very little instruction, but drawing was much harder, but most creative things come much easier to me than most people. It took me 4 days of lessons to learn how to spin fiber on a wheel, but it takes most people many months of practicing everyday. Same thing with pottery, I learned very quickly, but I dont do the pottery wheel very well because of a lack of strength in my hands. I have alot of flexability in my hands but not strength.
As far as savant goes...not in the traditional sense...although I am quick to learn most creative things.
Poetry is the only thing that I picked up without any instruction and did very well in....maybe thats were my abstract reasoning went to.

as far as a savant in poetry...I know I met a savant in painting...a boy about 6 years old could paint realism like the old masters...so savants can be creative as well look at bethoveen (sp).
I dont consider myself a true savant because my skills are not without some instruction...and I have a belief that anyone could be a creative as me if they freed themselves from the idea that only creative people can create.

I do not find the process mysterious but instead quite natural. When I was little I thought, erroneously, that flash counting was 'normal.' Maybe like if anyone glances and sees four cars parked - no one really 'counts' those cars; they just exist as four. Same thing, but flash counting really is like a flash! Yes, it is numerically accurate.

In previous lab there was a drying rack with 51 pegs; one was cracked. When I entered one morning there were 50 pegs and I noticed right away...and somewhat taken aback! My professor had taken down the cracked one the night before - didn't bother to mention it, of course, and it was immediately apparent to me. Often I 'know' if a piece is missing. I do think flash counting is a visual process, like taking a picture.

As has been stated here, savant skills are innate as opposed to learned/practiced. I must say, some savant skills are almost bizarre. For example: Knowing calendar dates by heart for any given year, even B.C.! Speculative, but some savantism is correlated to seizure-like activity and epilepsy. (I am not an epileptic).

I think what is odd (?), maybe sort-of disturbing (?) about this is that I am high-functioning, of course, and certainly an Aspie. But I have common denominators with those "low-functioning" classic Autistics in this respect - unknown why. I have a high genetic predisposition to Autism.

Generally, savant skills are relegated to more classic Autism with some notable exceptions. Ex: Daniel Tammet is an exception! Although plenty of us Aspies can be really gifted with those 'splinter skills' in a unique area, true savantism in Asperger's Syndrome is fairly rare. I am good at math, but flash counting is probably a separate realm.

I can learn a language in about a month. And I remember words because I saw pages with them on them and the structure is just a pattern. Does that count? I have no idea.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bVVQ0FZeys[/youtube]

* On a separate note....Apparently the Wrong Planet is now underwritten by Autism Speaks. 'K, but the Wrong Planet officially owes youtube our highest regards - what would we all do without youtube???

That's what I was thinking. For savants, an "outstanding skill" is an understatement.

Perhaps "do you have any above-average skills?" would have been a better question.

Nah, I don't think my exceptional spelling ability comes under the savant label. Apart from that, I dun hav no skilz