Why are child genuis only revealed to the world once they are older? Why are their earlier extraodinary developments never really recorded eg child started talking age 4months etc?
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zookeeny (
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December 25th, 2009
Surely a 6 month old baby saying to a doctor that he has a middle ear infection would make the news or something or be recorded somewhere before the baby even reaches university at the age of 8 etc. The baby example is given on this website http://www.oddee.com/item_96629.aspx it always strikes me as interesting that there is no record of ‘proof’ of children speaking this clearly this early it is always what is said later on. If a baby is speaking this clearly surely it is a genius for that in that moment not only because they later go on to do a uni degree before most kids are even out of primary school.
It just kind of bugged me when I read that about the baby telling the doctor that because I wonder if it is true. Do you think it is possible a 6 month old could actually really say that – even a genius one?
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I wouldnt say a child COULDN’T talk at 6 months old, but it’s unlikely (in my opinion) that any 6 month old would be able to tell the doc they had an inner infection. Would the even know what an inner ear or infection was? I’m not saying it’s impossible though…...... I’d believe a child could talk at 6 months – even if it’s rudementary words and phrases but not sure if they would have that level of vocabulary and understanding. BUT after saying that, maybe there are kids out there who have the intelligence and woids to do just about anything. I hope so.
BB
Maybe
1) because I parents like me don’t like being famous so someone else gotta notice
2) you really need a pattern first and 1 isn’t a pattern
I don’t know why, but my mother said I was born talking. I’m not sure it’s true, though.
I dont think so. Childrens vocal chords and parts of the brain need to develop significantly for that to happen. If it does happen, well people are probably afraid that the gov might perform tests on them or something.
Cause highly unusual or extraordinary early activities do not always make for a sign of genius.
One of my boys was only about 16 months old when he etirely vaccumed his grandmother’s carpet for 20 mins, including the moving of chairs etc which he had seen her do.
Now, sure, he is a very clever young fellow at 13, but could could not really pitch ‘genius’ into it!!
I don’t know if it is physically possible to speak at that early an age. Many parents would conceal a childs genius from the world to prevent them being treated as a freak. Just look at the later lives of people who were displayed that way as small children. Very few of them had normal or happy lives.Parents of children with extraordinary talents would do well to help the child develop the talent but avoid publicity.
Most evidence of babies being brilliant is anecdotal – that is, not officially documented. A lot of parents consider their children geniuses. I remember my daughter correctly spelling the word “immigration ” at age 3, but believe me it was an accident. She couldn’t repeat it or correctly spell other words. You need a documented pattern of evidence, and truly it needs to come from an outside, objective source. Parents can’t really be objective.
Remember too, that it’s only been recent in human history that people had the means to document those family moments at home. Perhaps with Youtube and other similar tools, we’ll know geniuses as soon as they climb out of the womb wearing a pocket protector!
But imagine too the terrible expectations placed on babies identified as geniuses. As a parent, I’m not sure I’d want the world to know until my child was old enough to manage it emotionally. And maybe that’s why we don’t know until they are a bit older.
I don’t know about other kids but my sister, brother and I were all practically born talking. We were speaking full sentences by 3–4 months of age. My little sister was speaking I know for a fact at three months, and she spoke so fast that you had to tell her to repeat what she was saying sometimes.We were able to speak and say what “didn’t feel good” but we didn’t diagnose it.
There are undoubtedly many genii who are not known to the general public. I have a relative who is in his 50’s who taught himself to read before he was 3. He did well in school but aside from skipping a grade he was not a super student, His father and his siblings IQ scores clustered around 140 and he scored 146–147. He chose not to go to college but preferred to focus on things that interested him. He taught himself to play several instruments. He became a self-taught master in several trades. He was an excellent father and husband. Although he makes a very comfortable income his wife felt he wasn’t “ambitious” enough to seek executive positions. (This also broke up his father’s marriage)
According to statistics 0.5% of people fall into the genius range. That means of the 5 bil on earth, there are 25 mil genii out there who just live their lives unrecognized except by those who are closest to them.
@galileogirl True that! I was reading around 3 myself, was an average student and all except for certain areas where I actually had an interest in learning. Both my roommate and I are skilled at several trades and would technically qualify as genii by many definitions (including just raw IQ scores) but neither of us is particularly well known despite being eligible for Mensa.
@lynfromnm Yes, and that is why I play dumb sometimes. I didn’t like the attention I got. And the high expectations others had for me really stressed me out when I was young. Then I felt that I wasn’t going to burn myself out, decided to slack off considerably (disappointing more than a few people along the way) and focused on just being me. Sure, I may have lost a few brain cells since attending Nuke school, but I’m a hell of a lot happier and less anxiety-prone.
Was there a video of the baby in the link? I didn’t see one….
I don’t think precocity in and of itself is news. It only becomes significant once the person has done something noteworthy enough for others to take an interest in their history. Until then it’s just something for adoring family members to exclaim over and brag about.
@jerv – agreed, placing kids in the spotlight and telling them to perform isn’t really the healthiest choice for the kid. Let them do things in their own time.
Doubtful. I was under the impression that the vocal chords weren’t even strong enough to maintain speech at that age. Not to mention, how on earth would they learn about what an infection is by 6 months old?
Incredible brain power is one thing. Unexplained knowledge and understanding of infections 6 months after birth is another.
The reason that they don’t reveal genius till an age of 5 or 6 is because it is not known if the babies smarts are just temporary, or will stay for life
It is my job to provide my kids with a broad, enriching, interesting childhood. Calling the news when they reach an early marker is not something I would ever do. Nor would I videotape it and post it on YouTube.
Children are little bundles of potential. They need protecting and not exploitation as they learn and grow. And believe me, when you have a child that learns at a blindingly fast pace, it takes all your time and effort just to parent.
That cancelled Fox show, “Our Little Genius” was very, very wrong.
I agree that there are plenty of genius or near genius types living in obscurity.
Not every thoroughbred is put on the track, doesn’t mean that the horse in the field isn’t a racehorse just because it’s never won a race.
I don’t think I’d go so far as to call myself a ‘genius’..but..I am a very bright star that lives in obscurity by choice. ;-)
@tranquilsea Many would argue that Fox is very, very wrong. Q.E.D.
Because nobody appreciates my overwhelming intellect. But they’ll see.
They’ll all see.
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