World's Cleverest Child on C4

[jnm23]

Did anyone see this? Mark Dolan travels the world meeting child prodigies and their parents.

The American girl with a gift for languages - personable and seemed well adjusted.

The Singaporean/English chemistry prodigy - an 8 year old kid who can recite Pi to 55 decimal places, but is unable to muster up a hello for a visitor.
Dad trying to get him into Uni already!

Do these parents realise there is more to education than getting an O-level at age 9. Like development of social skills, meeting other kids, hobbies.

Edited by jnm23 on Thursday 29th January 00:58

[GingerWizard]

Valentine was a tw@t.

[Plotloss]

jnm23 said:

Do these parents realise there is more to education than getting an O-level at age 9. Like development of social skills, meting other kids, hobbies.

No.

In short.

[RupertTheFridge]

jnm23 said:

Do these parents realise there is more to education than getting an O-level at age 9. Like development of social skills, meting other kids, hobbies.

I'm praying that you meant "meeting" other kids & not "melting" ?

Edited by RupertTheFridge on Thursday 29th January 00:54

Edited by RupertTheFridge on Thursday 29th January 02:17

[AJS-]

First one seemed very bright.

Second and third I thought were scamming it a bit. As you said, the lad in Singapore had memorised a lot of numbers to satisfy his pushy Dad.

The next one had just been told everything "in a dream" by someone who wanted to sell T shirts. A bright kid but didn't see anything to suggest a prodigy. He was an arrogant little fecker too.

[Mr Fenix]

fkin' hell If I hear one more parent say "oh, he/she's so advanced for his age!, we think he might be a "gifted" child!" I'll have a seizure. Many of our friends have kids and they dribble constant praise at the wee ste bags and keep telling me n the weef that their kids are the smartest in school (mean while said child is rooting through the kitty litter...)

You can take the smartest kid on the planet and if they have no social skills you can expect them to be the most wedgeed, swirle-ed, child at school. Hopefully all the kids will be smart enough to avoid too many beatings in life.

[Mr Trophy]

I thought that dad at the end was a complete cock pushing his son like that. That boy is going to grow up with no childhood. Instead of playing football and ringing door bells and running away (we have all been there ) he's doing Uni Chemistry!

[Jasandjules]

Deliberately avoided it.... Knew it would wind me up.

[glazbagun]

Didnt see it, but hearing about it reminded me of this guy:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_James_Sidis

Sort of makes me feel a bit unproductive

[dirty boy]

If it's any consolation, my kids are as stoopid as their parents

[Vlad.]

RupertTheFridge said:

jnm23 said:

Do these parents realise there is more to education than getting an O-level at age 9. Like development of social skills, meting other kids, hobbies.

I'm praying that you meant "meeting" other kids & not "melting" ?

Edited by RupertTheFridge on Thursday 29th January 00:54

Edited by RupertTheFridge on Thursday 29th January 02:17

Or meating!

As in "When Rocco Meats Kelly"

[Vlad.]

Does anyone remember that English boy from about 15 years ago who had big curly hair like Bamber Gascoigne and knew all about Antiques? He was on Wogan once. Turned out to be a total fake and is now a woman.

[JuniorD]

May the story of Sufiah Yusof who at 13 years of age went to Oxford to study mathematics be a warning to them all.

The Telgraph headline said:

"Child maths prodigy 'working as a prostitute'"
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1583313/Chi...

News Of The World headline said:

"Being a hooker is summing I love"
http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/article3216.e... (with flesh photos)

[Evil Jack]

glazbagun said:

Didnt see it, but hearing about it reminded me of this guy:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_James_Sidis

Yeah. Or this guy:

[Simpo Two]

Plotloss said:

jnm23 said:

Do these parents realise there is more to education than getting an O-level at age 9. Like development of social skills, meting other kids, hobbies.

No.

In short.

If the children are savants or autistic, they are not going to waste their brainpower listening to pop songs or downloading ringtones, however 'normal' you tell them to be. Some children are born with gifts; grow them.

[Asterix]

Evil Jack said:

glazbagun said:

Didnt see it, but hearing about it reminded me of this guy:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_James_Sidis

Yeah. Or this guy:

I could see a bit of face/shovel interactivity if I met anyone that look like that.

[AJS-]

JuniorD said:

May the story of Sufiah Yusof who at 13 years of age went to Oxford to study mathematics be a warning to them all.

The Telgraph headline said:

"Child maths prodigy 'working as a prostitute'"
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1583313/Chi...

News Of The World headline said:

"Being a hooker is summing I love"
http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/article3216.e... (with flesh photos)

To be fair, a woman of 23 from an ethnic minority background earning 130 pounds an hour is doing pretty well for herself.

I was still at university when I was 23 and earning about 6 quid an hour delivering pizzas.

[Simpo Two]

Asterix said:

I could see a bit of face/shovel interactivity if I met anyone that look like that.

I find these claims astonishing. You want to smash a shovel into a child's face because you don't like the look of him, or because he might be cleverer than you? Or was it just a joke?

Dear me.

[Asterix]

Simpo Two said:

Asterix said:

I could see a bit of face/shovel interactivity if I met anyone that look like that.

I find these claims astonishing. You want to smash a shovel into a child's face because you don't like the look of him, or because he might be cleverer than you? Or was it just a joke?

Dear me.

Jeez - lighten up.

[Plotloss]

Simpo Two said:

Plotloss said:

jnm23 said:

Do these parents realise there is more to education than getting an O-level at age 9. Like development of social skills, meting other kids, hobbies.

No.

In short.

If the children are savants or autistic, they are not going to waste their brainpower listening to pop songs or downloading ringtones, however 'normal' you tell them to be. Some children are born with gifts; grow them.

None of the children featured were autistic though.

All children benefit from social interaction, its in our genetic makeup.

We're apes, there is no amount of book learning that is going to change that.