Divergent Minds

[00:06] [ambient music playing] on YouTube? [Michael] Okay.

[00:20] that I'd love for you to listen to I would like to listen to it, Michael. All right. Just load this up here.

[00:33] [theme music playing] [playing piano]

[01:08] This is a tray of brains. Here is a sagittal slice I prepared earlier. Just looking at it, it would be impossible to know

[01:22] or that different parts did different things at all. you can often affect specific functions. that would be pretty bad.

[01:36] have just become cortically bind. and stabbing people's brains but they can study the behavior and abilities of people

[01:49] For instance, in rare cases, but who are blind due to damage to their visual cortex of blindsight

[02:03] to objects they cannot see. is consciously blind on his right side. he's able to sense the presence and motion

[02:18] [man] You're moving it up and down. no color, no depth, no form, no contrast. which is associated with conscious vision,

[02:32] that get information from the eyes unconsciously. because of blindsight. has revolutionized our understanding of the brain

[02:47] People who differ from the norm that we didn't even know were there. [ambient music playing]

[03:01] [upbeat music playing] is that of Derek Paravicini. [both] One,

[03:15] [Michael] Derek is both blind and autistic. Now for the live music you were promised. and social impairments,

[03:28] than what would be considered normal. for his latest album. [playing "Flight of the Bumblebees"]

[03:40] He's performed all over the world for other autistic individuals.

[03:57] Later, we'll take a deeper look into Derek's unique mind. [upbeat music playing]

[04:11] if different parts of the brain did different things. that we discovered that there are different modules

[04:23] The first major discovery was made by a doctor named Paul Broca in the 1800s. understanding language,

[04:38] The only thing the patient could say over and over. tan, tan, tan, tan, tan, tan, tan, tan, tan, tan, tan.

[04:50] and found that the patient's brain Broca concluded that this brain region, must be important for producing speech

[05:05] This language deficit called Broca's Aphasia who get strokes in the left side of their brain. but struggles to get the words out.

[05:21] Scott. Oh, no. And how old are you?

[05:38] -[woman] Try. -I can't. is Wernicke's Area Patients who damage this region

[05:52] or use it in a meaningful wa. Right at the moment a darn should-- a darn thing.

[06:04] [woman] With the iPad that we were doing. I'd like my change for me and change hands for me. We're all with them.

[06:18] I'm very happy with them. about the neural basis of language. based only on specific patients.

[06:32] and the brain can reorganize itself So to get a more precise picture of how changing the brain I went to UCLA

[06:46] But not permanently. Instead, I'm going to have part of my brain tissue by a technology called

[07:01] Here I go. by saying I'm glad to be here.

[07:14] I'm a little anxious about what's about to happen. a brain lesion, temporarily. Right.

[07:28] I like to be in control, especially of myself. Should I be worried?

[07:44] or TMS for short, such as Broca's Area. in the part of the brain that is stimulated.

[07:58] But as soon as the pulse is over, While it's not guaranteed that TMS Dr. Iacoboni has successfully stimulated

[08:12] Transcranial magnetic stimulation, -[clicking] -[indistinct speech] [Michael] Now it was time to have my speech disrupted.

[08:29] first, we had to find it Hopefully, we'll be able to find Broca's Area and shut me up.

[08:42] somebody tapping on your scalp, some superficial muscle stimulation. probably be a little bit uncomfortable.

[08:54] If it becomes too much, Okay. the first chapter of Pride and Prejudice

[09:07] and I'll just start reading, "'My dear Mr. Bennet,' said his lady to him one day, "Mr. Bennet replied that he had not.

[09:22] "'and she told me all about it." "cried his wife impatiently. This was invitation enough."

[09:36] but my Broca's Area seemed to be playing hard to get. New trajectory. "'You and the girls may go,

[09:49] 'which perhaps will be better still, 'Mr. Bingley may like you the best of the party. we were still unsuccessful at finding my Broca's Area

[10:03] "...married, its solace was visiting and news." I beat it.

[10:18] While neuromapping allows us to locate the brain is one of the most complex organs in our body TMS didn't work on me this time,

[10:34] but different test subjects produce different results. Is find out what.... [indistinct] [Michael] TMS is currently being evaluated

[10:49] One day, it may even be used to reduce the effects of traumatic brain injury. [upbeat music playing]

[11:02] who was using his divergent mind Derek, it's Michael. I'm fantastic. I would love to come in.

[11:16] I wanted to find out what Derek could teach us about all brains. Do you know psychology? Your brain is different than mine.

[11:31] -It's different than my brain, yes. -Yes. that this was going to be an atypical interview. about how spectacular your abilities are.

[11:47] when you first started to interact with a piano? when I first started to interact with a piano... a condition which causes him to repeat back words

[12:02] It's his way of trying to understand You can learn music just by listening to it. I can learn music by listening to it, Michael.

[12:15] he has no problem communicating through music. There are about seven million autistic savants worldwide

[12:29] but Derek is what's known as a prodigious savant... that they would be considered spectacular

[12:41] There are probably fewer than a hundred prodigious savants in the whole world. that I think any performer would envy.

[12:54] Uh, maybe pop music or... A bit of jazz, yeah. Derek has been mentored by Adam Ockelford.

[13:07] [Michael] Adam is a music psychologist, at the University of Roehampton. Go on.

[13:24] Twenty-six weeks, And they didn't have any equipment So they rushed him into the nearest hospital

[13:36] wasn't thought able to survive, and yet he did. Because of the circumstances of his birth his brain developed in a particular kind of way.

[13:51] not being able to see. and that was like a eureka moment for him processing ability.

[14:05] perhaps understanding how people feel, And yet his music is way above average. -I have, yes. -If I go like...

[14:21] or... [Michael] That's impressive, Derek. Yeah, no, the response to pitch that you make, Derek,

[14:34] We've measured the time between playing even a big chord, say like this one. to an eight-note chord within about 0.4 of a second.

[14:48] -Wow. -Derek's sense of pitch is very unusual. Something like 40% of babies have perfect pitch as opposed to

[15:01] So you can see that has a massive effect on the way the brain develops. Well, autism is an added factor.

[15:16] And in Derek's case, of course, And what autism tends to do is to give children whether it's a sound or a--

[15:30] That's the quality that we all have as babies, that we experience the world in this sheer perception. Now most babies very quickly come out of that

[15:42] They're starting to categorize things So you're born, and your body is, like, -Yeah. -[Michael] And then it learns that's crazy.

[15:56] We only need to understand what's important [Adam] It's called categorical perception, that's why the brain does it.

[16:09] absolute qualities for longer. got those fantastically vivid absolute memories, but it's built on this-- on this foundation of perceptual

[16:26] vividness that we can only grasp at. to identify all of the individual notes Derek is able to do this with ease,

[16:42] than he can play at once with two hands. -We could combine. -Yes, yes, yeah. -[Michael] Yup. -And those two with that hand.

[16:58] And we'll count for it, okay? One, two, three, four. [Adam] Well, the fiddling was to make it--

[17:10] [Michael] He's just playing-- but they were all-- But as amazing as his musical ear is, Derek's cognitive abilities are less than rudimentary.

[17:25] -So can you play this for me? -[Derek] Yes, Adam. Good. And do you know how many notes there are, Derek? -Is it one? -[Adam] Yeah, a bit more than one.

[17:41] four, five, six. [Adam] Good. Now try this one then, Derek.

[17:53] [Derek] Is it one note, Adam? [Derek] One, two, three, four, five. It is one, two, three, four, five, Adam.

[18:06] Derek's everyday abilities are. that you or I do without thinking really difficult. getting washed in the morning are tricky for him.

[18:22] he finds really difficult. [Derek] Could you clean my mouth now, Cynthia? [Derek] I can come to the sink.

[18:35] "Well, does it really matter if Derek And-- and yet when he touches the piano, So things that we would find inconceivably difficult,

[18:50] And if you ask him, "Derek, how'd you do that?" how we breathe or how we speak or... [playing ragtime]

[19:13] with his remarkable abilities, to scientists who study the mind. about this thing in our head?

[19:26] is the almost infinite capacity of the human brain but thrive in incredibly difficult circumstances. really was no different from anyone else's.

[19:41] So in a sense, you could say that we all have But fortunately, of course, we don't have his disadvantages and what gave Derek his massive advantage

[19:55] [upbeat music playing] One of the many theories for the cause

[20:08] is that it's at least partially due to an abnormality permitting a vast amount of sensory details Neurotypical brains may receive all the same sensory details

[20:25] but block them from awareness. that all of us have savant skills And they may be on to something,

[20:39] people can actually acquire savant skills. Acquired Savant Syndrome. as adults and their brain damage

[20:54] that weren't there before. After a brain injury left him with damage Jason started seeing precise geometric patterns

[21:08] which led to an intuitive perception of math How did you get a brain injury? these two guys that were in there singing

[21:21] Well, I just heard this deep thud, bouncing on the inside of my skull. [Michael] So now you have Akinetopsia,

[21:35] meaning you see the world now in frames. When I say discreetly, I mean seeing one picture watching TV right now, they can hit pause

[21:48] It's just like that, but in real time. So boundaries of objects don't look curved little straight line edges.

[22:02] Yes. So like, if you're not moving, so it's not nearly as profound, So after the injury,

[22:15] What makes you decide that you need to start drawing? what I was seeing in any terms with triangles and straight lines.

[22:30] Geometry is-- to me is the one thing everything has, It just seemed obvious. [Michael] Are these thoughts that you would've had before the injury?

[22:43] this type of stuff and now I can't stop thinking about it and I'm drawing, and this guy next to me, And I started telling him, you know, my ideas.

[22:58] space, time, and limits." "and I've never heard anybody try to do that before." What I was doing was integrals and calculus.

[23:12] -[Jason] Yes. -So would you say that you're still the same person or did you become a different individual?

[23:24] Before the injury, I didn't have any background in math. All I did was party and chase girls. almost blissfully ignorant life.

[23:40] were always in your brain or did the injury give you something new? I 100% believe that we all have this in us.

[23:53] but a lot of it is your brain gets damaged and by seeing the world differently, [Michael] We can learn so much from divergent minds,

[24:06] who developed his divergent mind [Ashleigh] Hello, Derek. whose divergence came

[24:18] with other disabled people and disabled children. They love him. Derek is a hero,

[24:33] For anyone with severe learning difficulties, to meet hundreds of people, on the internet is--

[24:47] He's a trailblazer, but we should never forget and tends to be hidden away from society. [upbeat music playing]

[25:05] about the diversity of minds. are not alien; they're human minds feel, and behave.

[25:19] for all kinds of minds and brains. so too will all minds. And as always, thanks for watching.

[25:36] [theme music playing] [theme music playing]

[25:50] [humming]