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Some autistics are known as "autistic savants" because they develop a genius in one subject, such as mathematics or art. New research shows this syndrome can be induced by tinkering with one protein in the brain which is responsible for building synapses, the brain structures that help neurons talk to each other. Neuroscientists at MIT (pictured) bred rats that lacked this protein, known as Shank1, and discovered the creatures could do spacial learning an extremely rapid clip, though they showed other signs of severe autism. These neuroscientists' work could go in two directions: curing some kinds of autism, and inducing selective superintelligence. More »
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