General > General Technical Chat
Belgian boy Laurent Simons heads off to university aged 8.
EEVblog:
--- Quote from: SiliconWizard on November 12, 2019, 10:09:52 pm ---Although Sheldon would laugh hysterically at him for choosing an engineering path. :-DD
--- End quote ---
The Oompa-Loompa's of the science world!
Gyro:
Maybe his thesis could be something like 'A practical method for global scale Carbon capture to reduce atmospheric CO2 concentration' with a possible follow up of 'A method for large scale Solar powered ice generation, with the aim of reduce sea levels'.
If he finishes those by the time he's 20 we may all be in with a chance. :D
TimNJ:
Dave, it's possible that you're right: He might not become the next Einstein or Musk.
But at the same time, I think a strong memory can be an important part of being successful in most technical professions. A good engineer must be able to connect lots of dots in order to design/troubleshoot a system. For me, troubleshooting is usually polling my memory banks for previous experiences, things I've read on forums or in books, things I learned in school, etc. If you can't pull in those memories, you'll probably have a hard time figuring out the issue.
My point is: I think a good memory can give you a strong advantage in the real-world. But of course, good memory alone is just part of the picture. He'll need creativity, passion, and things like that too.
Kjelt:
--- Quote from: EEVblog on November 12, 2019, 10:44:18 pm ---What did the previous record holder end up like, now 35yo:
....
Wiki has his occupation as Improv Comedian? :-//
--- End quote ---
When you are that smart you realize that life is a big joke ;)
On a serious note when he can graduate any study in two years time he can do math, physics, ee, me, informatics before he is 20.
One of the major advantages one thinks AI might contribute to the world is the ability to combine all sciences and hopefully gain new knowledge from that, which single educated humans are not capable of combining all that knowledge.
The advantage of an AI is that it never dies or looses any of its previous learnings if the backups are made properly. The disadvantage if the current AIs is that they are hard to teach and they are quite stupid compared to human brains.
This kid might well have a very bright future, but indeed also a chance not to.
EEVblog:
--- Quote from: TimNJ on November 12, 2019, 10:55:15 pm ---Dave, it's possible that you're right: He might not become the next Einstein or Musk.
But at the same time, I think a strong memory can be an important part of being successful in most technical professions.
--- End quote ---
Sure, no argument from me. And that's why I said he'll be smarter than most.
The issue with child prodigies like this is that people kinda expect they'll change the world or do something incredible with their life. The reality is they are most likely to just end up like everyone else, as there are other factors at play that determine if they'll be the next Einstein, Gary Kasparov, or Mozart.
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