“I remember everything I have ever done. Is it what songs were playing on the radio exactly 10 years ago or what I had for dinner the 22th May 2007”. Orlando Serrell (49 years) possesses an extraordinary autobiographical memory which enables him to recall the events of any given date. But how does he do this?

His story begins at the age of 10 while he was playing baseball with his friends on the 15th January 1979. Before, he was an ordinary kid, however this day made his life turn upside down without him even noticing at first. As he was playing, the ball hit the left side of his head, so hard he fell to the ground. Though the impact of the ball was strong, he managed to keep playing.

The next days he suffered from a headache but did not seek medical help. When the headache was gradually disappearing, he began to explore an extraordinary ability, apparently caused by his accident:

He was suddenly capable of performing calendar calculations, giving him the ability to assign the correct day of the week to any given date. Orlando can tell you instantly that, for example, the 25th September 1993 was a Saturday or that the 6th June 1984 fell on a Wednesday. What makes this even more impressive is the fact that he has not memorized the days of the week for these specific dates nor does he perform those calculations using algorithms whatsoever. He can “see the answer in front of him”.

Though his ability has already left researchers baffled, another feat should not be forgotten. Not only can Orlando tell you instantly the correct day of the week, but he is also able to recall events that have happened to him after his accident for that specific day.

To test this, researchers gave him a list of dates where he was asked to describe what the day was like for him. Take for example the 11th February 1983: “Ok Orlando, tell us about that day. How was it like and what did you do?”

“It was a Friday. It rained that day and we had Pizza from Dominos, Pepperoni Sausage.”

Without thinking, Orlando was able to respond and though they were not able to verify if he ate Pizza at Dominos, that day was indeed a Friday.

“Ok Orlando, and the 13th December 1991? Do you recall any events that come to your mind?”

“It was a Friday and I didn’t go to work that day.”

“So Orlando, how do you do this? Do you write your events down or do you have a calendar at all?”

“If you ask me, I couldn’t be bothered to look at calendars and memorize the days of the week for each date for all these years. Neither do I write down every tiny detail which is not relevant, such as the colour of a car driving by the morning of 21st June 1987. It is just in my head and I have no idea why I remember all these things.”

Scientists consider people like Orlando, who have suddenly achieved an extraordinary skill, acquired savants. Only a handful of acquired savants exist with a wide range of abilities.

I picked this case because I was surprised by the fact that a baseball can produce not a detrimental but a positive effect. According to Allan Snyder, one of the world’s most remarkable scientists of human cognition, every individual has the potential to become like Orlando Serrell. He argues that deep inside our brain everyone has extraordinary abilities, however as we grow up, these skills are buried inside our brain. “Our job is to bring those abilities back to the surface, and Orlando is an example in which this process took place”.

If you want to see Orlando demonstrating his ability, click on the video at the end of this post.

Next time I will present you with a case about a famous savant showing superhuman abilities when it comes to obtaining and retaining knowledge in an extremely efficient manner. An ability I am sure everyone would like to possess.

Until then.

Patrick

Homepage of Orlando Serrell

Darold A. Treffert, MD on the possibility that everyone could be a savant