The savant syndrome is a rare psychological phenomenon in which people manifest extraordinary skills beyond their usual abilities (Rudzinski et al., 2023). Here, we will discuss possible causes of this phenomenon, as well as how savant abilities might be elicited.

There are three recognized types of this syndrome:

Congenital. Affected individuals typically have an associated developmental mental disability, and approximately half of these have a diagnosis of autism. In 2015, there were 287 known cases of this type (Treffert & Rebedew, 2015).

Acquired. In 2015, there were 32 known cases of neurotypical individuals who developed savant abilities following a head injury, stroke, onset of dementia, or other central nervous system disorder (Treffert & Rebedew, 2015).

Sudden onset. In 2021 there were 11 reports of neurotypical individuals without developmental disabilities or a central nervous system disorder who suddenly developed transient or permanent savant abilities (Treffert & Ries, 2021).

Savant abilities usually relate to five general areas (Rudzinski et al., 2023; Treffert, 2009):

Art. This has usually involved drawing, painting, or sculpting.

Calendar computation. Savants can quickly calculate the day of the week of any date in history.

Mathematics. Involves lightning calculation or the ability to compute prime numbers, sometimes in the absence of simple mathematical abilities.

Music. Usually, this has involved the performance of music, most often with the piano. Some have developed perfect pitch, and some have composed music........

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