Link - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Wiltshire

There has to be a more fitting and less insulting label for this condition than a "disorder".

Truly astonishing.

stephen wiltshire is included in an oliver sacks book:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0679756973?v=glance

It is a disorder, for all the seeming benefits savant or autistic sufferes show they also have negative impacts on their lives specifically when it comes to social interactions and things we take for granted such as telling human emotional states from cold reading.

I feel sorry for Stephen. Though I am glad he has made the best of his life and I appluad him for that.

Still, things like this make you wonder, what other potential benefits have we not unlocked from the human mind?

Check out Stephen's gallery at http://www.stephenwiltshire.co.uk/gallery.aspx?page=1

amazing i was on his website and i found an amazingly acuret drawing of plastiquemonkey,s mum

amazing... i have trouble with names of people I met 30 seconds ago

I wonder...why do we judge a person's life as a compasison to our own? Yes, he is autistic...but why feel sorry for him? I think he has done more in his life than most people ever will...and has seen more beautiful things than all of us put together.

I envy him.

*promote genius

Promoting this video back to the front page; last published Monday, September 4th, 2006 6:14pm PDT - promote requested by laura.

I'd say *documentaries *art and
*genius (hint hint to new channel seekers)

Adding video to channels (Art, Documentaries) - requested by laura.

>> ^daphne:
I wonder...why do we judge a person's life as a compasison to our own? Yes, he is autistic...but why feel sorry for him? I think he has done more in his life than most people ever will...and has seen more beautiful things than all of us put together.
I envy him.


Right, but the problem with some forms of autism is the lack of the ability to socialize "normally". The feelings of isolation or the lack of interest in forming social bonds makes it so they either feel alone, or don't care for human contact. In that, they are trapped in their own mind unable or unwilling to share life with others. A gift and a curse I would say. Like all things it has some good and some bad; with the good and bad being on the far end of both sides of the spectrum.

The same would go for someone dying of cancer. At least they know the how and more likely the when they will die. Why pity them? Well it is for the same reasons, we weight the negative of dying soon more heavily than the safety of knowing the what and when. More over, they will experience pain that most of us will not. The comparison is not perfect as they (an autistic) won't experience any physical pain per say. And it is by no means a sickness like cancer either, it is just a social disorder brought about by a chemical or biological impairment of certain parts of the brain. In certain cases the impairment introduces new abilities, but it still makes doing other tasks that you and I take for granted impossible.

He is worthy of both pity and envy in other words.

*promote it again, this is gonna be a yearly thing...

Promoting this video back to the front page; last published Saturday, September 6th, 2008 6:06pm PDT - promote requested by laura.

Tags for this video have been changed from 'savant, autistic spectrum disorder' to 'savant, autism, autistic spectrum disorder' - edited by kronosposeidon