The seemingly superhuman abilities of savants ("like having photographic memory, playing music perfectly after hearing it just once, or doing complex mathematical calculations in one's head") is a fascinating study for many fields of science and human studies. For me it suggests how much further potential we possess as a whole and provides a tantalizing glimpse into the possibilities of the direction that our evolution may take us towards. Although, me personally, I'm still hoping to fall into a temporary coma for a hot second and then reawaken as a savant with the ability to talk to the fishes and other sea creatures. Neatorama takes a look at ten savant individuals with extraordinary abilities. I was particularly amazed by Stephen Wiltshire. He was born mute until the age of 9 where prior to he communicated by drawing. Tellingly, his first word spoken was supposedly "paper." Wiltshire has one particular unique ability where he can illustrate detailed drawings of a city after only seeing it once. For example, check out the mesmerizing video below of him drawing a 33ft long panorama of the city of Tokyo after one fly-over in a helicopter.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95L-zmIBGd4]
There's also Ellen Boudreaux, a blind autistic savant who in addition to being able to musical abilities, she avoid obstacles and obstruction by making chirping noises as sonar while she walks. However, it is this third ability she possesses that really blew my mind:
To help overcome her fear of the telephone, Ellen's mom coaxed her to listen to the automatic time recording (the "time lady") when she was 8. From then on, Ellen knows the exact hour and minute, any time of the day without ever having seen a clock nor have the concept of the passing of time explained to her.
So....what did YOU do today?
Read more here.