https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc en-us 2017-01-04 14:10:16 UTC 2017-01-06 06:16:39 UTC hello@padlet.com zorniakj https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145255281 Dear parents,
       I really recommend the memoir "Born on a Blue Day" by Daniel Tammet. 
        Dad, I think you would really enjoy this book because of the discussion Tammet has about languages. I know you enjoy learning new languages as you can currently speak 3 fluently and 3 basically. I wonder if any of the patterns or ways in which Tammet learns languages applies to how you learned the languages you can speak. I think you would find it astonishing how Tammet was able to speak Icelandic fluently after only a week of studying the language and staying in Iceland for only 4 days, one of which was used for Tammet to go on Icelandic television to be interviewed in only Icelandic. 
      Mom, I think you would love this book because you are a psychiatrist, and you love to learn how different minds work. Tammet truly has one of the most (if not the most) incredible minds in the world. He is an autistic savant who has synesthesia, which allows him to see numbers and words as different shapes with unique colors and textures. This condition allows him to make rapid calculations and memorize things almost instantly. He overcame his autism to become independent. This also allows him to communicate clearly, so he is able to share what is happening inside his mind. He also describes many of his unusual habits as a child such as banging his head on a certain wall of his house. I think you would find these habits interesting as you study people's idiosyncrasies.
        I really think both of you should read this book for these different reasons. For you dad, you should should read it because of your love for learning new languages. For you mom, you should read it because you study how different minds work, and Tammet has one of the most extraordinary minds on this planet.
                                  Sincererly,
Your son]]> 2017-01-04 14:15:17 UTC https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145255281 zorniakj https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145627503      If Daniel Tammet had to choose three topics for a Capstone, I think he would choose his parents, Neil (his partner in the memoir), and language.
     I think Tammet would include his parents (pages 27-28) because they have always supported him no matter what. He admits to being an incredibly restless child and a problem for his parents. However his parents never saw him as a problem and always tried to ensure his well-being. They continued to support Tammet just as much as they had when he was a child after he revealed to them that he was homosexual. He met a man named Neil in an online chatroom who became his partner.
    I think Tammet would include Neil (pages 145 & 158) because he allowed Tammet to become more self aware and confident in his ability to interact with others. Neil accepted Tammet for who he was. He also took Tammet one step further in his independence, for he moved in with Neil soon after they met. Tammet could always count on Neil to calm him down and help him with certain things like shaving.
     Finally, I think Tammet would include language (pages 151-169) because he includes a whole chapter where he talks about learning languages and how he is able pick up new languages so easily. He can already speak 10.]]> 2017-01-06 04:29:06 UTC https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145627503 zorniakj https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145628756 I remember watching this video years ago, and I still find it remarkable to this day. I was even inspired enough by it to make a project in health about synesthesia. ]]> 2017-01-06 05:16:28 UTC https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145628756 zorniakj https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145629037       I think the word that describes Tammet best is self-aware. Although he may not have been very self-aware at the time of the anecdotes, he is certainly self-aware when he wrote this book. 
     His self-awareness is something he developes throughout the memoir. For example, Tammet writes, “I had eventually come to understand that friendship was a delicate, gradual process that mustn’t be rushed or seized upon but allowed and encouraged to take its course over time. I pictured it as a butterfly, simultaneously beautiful and fragile, that once afloat belonged to the air and any attempt to grab at it would only destroy it.” He can now understand how relationships between humans work and realizes that within himself.
     Another example of Tammet becoming more self-aware was when he met Neil. He wrote, “No relationship is without its difficulties and this is certainly true when one or both of the persons involved has an autistic spectrum disorder. Even so, I believe what is truly essential to the success of any relationship is not so much compatibility, but love. When you love someone, virtually anything is possible.” Again, being able to understand the situation he is in and learn various aspects to relationships that he had never known before meeting Neil.
Tammet even clearly states one of his realizations of self-awareness writing, "I was gradually becoming more and more aware of my loneliness and began to long for a friend." Even as a child, Tammet was self-aware. In this particular case, he realized that he needed to interact with others, which brought him one step closer to overcoming his autism.]]> 2017-01-06 05:30:41 UTC https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145629037 zorniakj https://padlet.com/zorniakj/b8qw7l5tprqc/wish/145629890       I don't necessarily think Tammet would enjoy this playlist as he does not enjoy pop. However I think these are 5 songs that relate to Tammet greatly. 
1) I Walk A Lonely Road - Green Day 
     I think this represents Tammet as a child when he found it very hard to interact with people and make friends.
2) De Otro Planeta - Esteman 
     This song is in Spanish, which represents Tammet's love for languages. It also represents how extraordinary his mind is as the title is "From Another Planet" in english.
3) Lovin' You - Minnie Riperton 
     This song simply represents Neil and how much he meant to Tammet.
4) Rap God - Eminem
     This song is what I imagine Tammet's mind to look like when he is making enormous calculations in an instant. I just imagine all the numbers flying by in his mind as quickly as Eminem is rapping in this song. Even though that isn't how Tammet's mind works, that is how I imagine it.
5) Eye of The Tiger - Survivor
I chose this song as the final song because I think Tammet is out to conquer the world now. Through his experiences he was able to become completely independent and even wrote his own book while being able to describe what is going on inside his mind.

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