Morley Safer, on the television program 60 minutes, met savant Daniel Tammet, who is called ‘Brain Man’ in Britain. Unlike most savants, he has no apparent mental disability and, most important to scientists; he can describe his thought process. He may very well be a scientific Rosetta stone — a key to understanding the brain.

In March 2004, Daniel set a European record when he recited the famous mathematical constant Pi from memory to 22,514 decimal places in a time of 5 hours. Scientists have extensively studied him at California’s Center for Brain Studies and the Cambridge Autism Research Centre U.K.

"So when I see a long sequence, I see numbers in my head as colors and shapes and textures. The sequence forms landscapes in my mind," Tammet explains. "Every number up to 10,000, I can visualize in this way, has its color, has its shape, has its texture."

For example, when Daniel says he sees Pi, he does those instant computations. He is not calculating but says the answer appears to him like a landscape of colorful shapes. “The shapes aren’t static. They’re full of color. They’re full of texture. In a sense, they’re full of life,” he says. Asked if they’re beautiful, Tammet says, “Not all of them. Some of them are ugly. 289 is an ugly number. I don’t like it very much. Whereas 333, for example, is beautiful to me. It’s round. It’s "Chubby,” Safer remarks. "It’s—yes. It’s chubby," Tammet agrees.

See the full story at CBS News or learn more about Daniel, visit Optimnem.co.uk, or read his book Born on a Blue Day, which is now available in the U.S.

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Feature Image Credit: Photo by Sergei Akulich on Unsplash

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Kate Smith
Kate Smith is an optimistic, expressive, artist, designer, writer and color fanatic. With her warm and witty style, Kate teaches you to clearly see, understand and be inspired by color. Then she guides you step-by-step to develop your own unique color sense-ability and achieve results you never dreamed possible.
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