Mathematical manifestations are seen in many areas of our lives – examples include L.A.G.S. (Love, Art, Genius, and Savantism). I wish to bring to light some fantastic examples of these manifestations through real-world examples.
Firstly, we have to study the work of Dr. Hannah Fry (Ph.D. in Mathematics), a Professor and famous speaker in T.E.D. (Technology, Entertainment, and Design) forums. She is considered as a genius in the field of Mathematics, by all her peers and colleagues. Dr. Fry was born on February-21-1984. She has a famous and humorous T.E.D. talk titled “The mathematics of love”, in which she goes through some important formulas covering love, dating, and marriage. She has also covered arranged marriages across various cultures around the world.
Secondly, there are Mathematical manifestations in Art and Genius, with savants exhibiting profound skills that only a small percentage of the world’s population have exhibited in all of history. The great example of Jason D. Padget – an American artist diagnosed with acquired savant syndrome – is covered all over the Internet. Jason was born on March-24-1970. On September-13-2002, he went to a local karaoke bar with some friends in Tacoma, Washington. As he was leaving the bar, he was hit on the back of the head. He saw a white light, felt dizzy, fell down, and lost consciousness. He is known for his unique story of becoming a Mathematical savant after a traumatic brain injury, which led him to develop extraordinary abilities in Mathematics and visualization. He began sketching circles made of overlapping triangles, which helped him understand the concept of π (“pi”). These drawings helped others see the art form of Mathematical entities, equations, and solutions, all in color!
Thirdly, one more marvelous example of a savant is that of Daniel Tammet. Tammet was born Daniel Paul Corney on January-31-1979. He was part of a family of nine children and was raised in East London. As a young child, Tammet had epileptic seizures, which remitted following medical treatment. Tammet can reel off the value of π (“pi”) up to more than several thousands of digits without making a single mistake. He is one of fewer than a hundred “prodigious savants” according to Darold Treffert, the world’s leading researcher in the study of savant syndrome. Tammet was the subject of a documentary film titled “Extraordinary People: The Boy with the Incredible Brain”, and this film is worth watching!
There are only a few hundred people on our planet having special gifts, and they are of different age groups. However, one thing is a common thread among all of them – the skills they possess are beyond human comprehension! Let us honor all these people for their extraordinary abilities and skills. May be we can learn a few things from them.