Discover the Amazing Achievements of a 12-Year-Old Astrophysics Prodigy

[Delong]

check this out. Is this even possible?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110329/ts_yblog_thelookout/for-12-year-old-astrophysics-prodigy-the-skys-the-limit

 

[trentt]

Yep, he's a savant.

 

[hadsed]

Lev Landau got his Ph.D when he was around 17. It's definitely possible, though very rare. Definitely shouldn't put yourself up against these people since they're basically just 'blessings' of nature.

 

[eri]

Someone posted a longer interview with him on another site, and it was obvious that while he's interested in the field, he still doesn't know much more about it than most other astrophysics majors. He was not aware of much of the recent research in the field. Not uncommon for people at his state of education, but it sounds like they're letting him think he's a bit ahead of where he is. It's great that he wants to work on the big questions, no matter what his age is, but knowing the basics is good too.

 

[flyingpig]

That woman is NOT smart enough to interview him

 

[twofish-quant]

check this out. Is this even possible?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110329/ts_yblog_thelookout/for-12-year-old-astrophysics-prodigy-the-skys-the-limit

There are a lot of people with a lot of math talent, but math talent is only one part (and curiously not an important part) of being an astrophysicist.

 

[Delong]

Lev Landau got his Ph.D when he was around 17. It's definitely possible, though very rare. Definitely shouldn't put yourself up against these people since they're basically just 'blessings' of nature.

Seriously.
But the more I think about it the more I think i shouldn't try to be someone big. I just want to understand. Popularity aside, that's what really matters I think.

 

[ahsanxr]

This is extremely impressive but it made me wonder one thing. Is their a difference between a child prodigy and someone who was a normal kid but "gained" his intelligence overtime, once both of them grow up? Will the prodigy still be at an advantage at age 30 or was his only gift that he was able to make use of his ability exceptionally early?

 

[Nabeshin]

Someone posted a longer interview with him on another site, and it was obvious that while he's interested in the field, he still doesn't know much more about it than most other astrophysics majors. He was not aware of much of the recent research in the field. Not uncommon for people at his state of education, but it sounds like they're letting him think he's a bit ahead of where he is. It's great that he wants to work on the big questions, no matter what his age is, but knowing the basics is good too.

Agreed. While the article certainly makes it out to be impressive, I've read enough posts by crackpots here on PF to be wary. I mean, watch the video. I feel like I've probably seen that question asked somewhere here on the forums and we redirected it by stating the poster should learn special relativity instead of trying to create his own theory.

Would be more impressive (to me) if there was more substance in the article, but I suppose you can't accept that from a popular article!

 

[twofish-quant]

This is extremely impressive but it made me wonder one thing. Is their a difference between a child prodigy and someone who was a normal kid but "gained" his intelligence overtime, once both of them grow up?

I think a lot depends on the environment that the child prodigy grows up in. Educating a child prodigy so they end up being productive can be quite difficult.

Will the prodigy still be at an advantage at age 30 or was his only gift that he was able to make use of his ability exceptionally early?

Innate mathematical ability helps in doing science, but it's not the most important trait.

 

[twofish-quant]

Agreed. While the article certainly makes it out to be impressive, I've read enough posts by crackpots here on PF to be wary. I mean, watch the video. I feel like I've probably seen that question asked somewhere here on the forums and we redirected it by stating the poster should learn special relativity instead of trying to create his own theory.

And that worries me a bit. Put that kid in the right environment in which he learns how science works, and he could end up quite productive. Put him in the wrong environment, and he'll spend his life coming up with crackpot theories that really don't have any usefulness.

 

[eri]

I remember a story a few years back about a girl in the UK finishing a PhD in physics at 18. She was hired by a university in South Korea, but they made it clear it was a novelty hire based on her age, not her research. She was another prodigy, but hadn't really produced any very impressive research - had she finished at 25 instead, she wouldn't have gotten the job offers. I wonder how much of the prodigy is simply the basics picked up faster; being great at math doesn't mean you can think of something original. And challenging the major theories out there, while it can sometimes prove useful, isn't original. In the other interview, he was completely ignorant of the work of another top Princeton professor.

 

[Simfish]

There are a lot more people who actually have these abilities - it's just that the public school system holds them back. The people you see in the news are lucky - many of them either had unusually flexible school systems, or parents who were willing to fight the school system.

 

[Borek]

I think it better fits General Discussion - and there is a similar thread there:

https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=485618