George Widener patiently writes down the dates for every Monday in the next 500 years – all 26,000 of them. An autistic savant, George possesses an ‘island of genius’ that enables him to do things an ordinary person would find impossible. To help unlock this enigma, George volunteers to undergo a brain scan – something most savants are too disabled to endure. Incredibly, while George’s brain is structurally normal, it is mysteriously ablaze with activity in unexpected areas when he calculates dates. Why is George’s brain activity so different from the ordinary? While George was born with his genius, Tommy McHugh is mysteriously awakened in middle life to a talent he never knew he had. After suffering a near fatal brain aneurism, Tommy finds himself barely able to contain the emotions and words running around in his head. He begins writing poetry and painting – manically, unable to stop himself. His artistic mania now overtakes his surroundings, with the walls in his home painted over and over again with his designs.
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