Basic ideas in four pages. You may find useful for urgent educational reform in age of ChatGTP and other AI. Now in motion in some places. TGW
SOLITARY MEALS WITH EINSTEIN -- THOMAS G. WEST
For me, the turning point in my story is clear enough—my solitary meals in a grand hotel in Cairo in the summer of 1986. I was working for an international engineering and consulting firm and we were managing a large-scale energy project with the Egyptian Electricity Authority funded by USAID. The project director was on vacation, so I was doing his job in Cairo for three weeks while he was away. The hotel was full of mothers and children from Saudi Arabia, wanting to escape the greater heat of Riyadh. The young boys tried to play soccer in the patch of green around the swimming pool. I appeared to be the only Westerner in the entire hotel. I spent my mealtimes reading books about Albert Einstein, especially his own Autobiographical Notes, the slender volume in which he explains how his thinking had been shaped from boyhood on.
I had always been fascinated by Einstein—at once almost universally acknowledged as the genius of our age—but also known to be eccentric and to have had trouble in his early schooling and career. I did not know it at the time, but he was to become my main guide throughout my own book research—introducing me to his own heroes and intellectual mentors— especially James Clerk Maxwell and Michael Faraday. These were names I knew only vaguely. But as I learned more, I saw how these three showed great mutual respect and an extraordinary intellectual rapport across time— largely because they all relied heavily on their visual-spatial talents as the source of their remarkably original (and enduring) insights and discoveries.
Over time, these considerations became the core of my research as I dug through primary sources such as letters and diaries, with one insight leading to another as I reviewed a period of nearly two centuries. I found unfolding a distinctive pattern of thought, innovation and discovery— one that was useful to a small group long ago—but one that is becoming ever more common over recent years with the advent of new technologies along with new discoveries in physics, biology, mathematics, and other fields. Visual thinking—once so productive for a few—was now becoming more important for the many—partly because of new approaches to science and mathematics—and partly because of increasingly powerful new tools and technologies.
There is increasing evidence that many highly original and productive thinkers have clearly preferred visual over verbal modes of thought for many tasks. Some argue that visual-spatial abilities should in fact be seen as a special form of intelligence on par with verbal or logical-mathematical forms of intelligence. Historically, it is apparent that some of the most original and gifted thinkers in the physical sciences, engineering, mathematics, and other areas relied heavily on visual modes of thought, employing images instead of words or numbers. However, it is notable that some of these same gifted thinkers have shown evidence of a striking range of learning problems, including difficulties with reading, spelling, writing, calculation, speaking, and memory. What is of greatest interest here is not the difficulties themselves but their frequent and varied association with high visual and spatial talents.
In the life of Albert Einstein, the importance of visual learning and visual talents in conjunction with verbal difficulties has long been recognized. His poor memory for words and texts made him hate the rote learning methods of his early school years. However, he tended to thrive later at the progressive school in Switzerland, where he prepared to take his university examinations—no doubt, partly because the unconventional school was based largely on visually oriented educational principles. There is a debate among biographers and scholars as to whether the young Einstein was a brilliant student or whether he was a dullard. After some time looking at these conflicting points of view, I realized that to some extent he was both—a pattern that is typical of highly gifted visual thinkers with verbal difficulties. Einstein’s sister, Maja, recorded a number of details about his early life, commenting about his late development of speech; his slow answers but deep understanding in mathematics; and his frequent calculation errors even though he had a clear understanding of the main mathematical concepts involved.
In secondary school, he dropped out of school in Germany (contrary to plan) to follow his parents after they moved to Italy. His reason was that because of his “poor memory,” he preferred to endure all kinds of punishments rather than to have to learn to “gabble by rote.” After he failed his first set of university entrance examinations, Einstein went to a new and unconventional school—one that was based on the highly visually-oriented educational ideas of Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi. It was at this school that Einstein’s abilities began to blossom and the great theories later published in 1905 began to take their initial shape.
The coexistence in Einstein of visual talents along with verbal difficulties has been noted by several observers. Suggesting the recognition of a general pattern, the physicist and historian of science Gerald Holton has remarked: “An apparent defect in a particular person may merely indicate an imbalance of our normal expectations. A noted deficiency should alert us to look for a proficiency of a different kind in the exceptional person. The late use of language in childhood, the difficulty in learning foreign languages may indicate a polarization or displacement in some of the skill from the verbal to another area. That other, enhanced area is without a doubt, in Einstein’s case an extraordinary kind of visual imagery that penetrates his very thought processes.”
Later, in his own writing, Einstein made clear references to what he saw as two very different modes of thought, especially with regard to his own most creative and productive work. He pointed out that when he did really productive thinking, he always used “more or less clear images” and what he called “combinatory play,” as the “essential feature” in his “productive thought,” as well as of some “visual and some muscular type.” But he explains that if he wanted to communicate these thoughts to others, he had to go through a difficult and laborious translation process, proceeding from images to words and numbers that could be understood by others.
It is anticipated that modern visualization technologies and techniques may eventually permit many more ordinary people to do what Einstein did with mental models in his mind’s eye—and permit the communication of sophisticated visual ideas without having to resort to poorly suited verbal and mathematical substitutes. The great power of the visual approach is underscored in one rather surprising account of Albert Einstein’s development as a professional scientist.
In his later career, Einstein did become increasingly sophisticated in higher mathematics. However, some have argued that this increased sophistication may have been more of a hindrance than a help in his later creative work. The mathematician David Hilbert made clear, with some exaggeration, that Einstein’s creative scientific accomplishments came from elsewhere than through his mathematical skill. . . . Hilbert was not alone. Indeed, Abraham Pais, the author of a scientific biography of Einstein, observed that “Einstein’s increasing reliance on mathematics over time also involved a reduced dependency on the visual methods that he used so heavily and so productively in his earlier work.” (Adapted from Seeing What Others Cannot See: The Hidden Advantages of Visual Thinkers and Differently Wired Brains, Prometheus Books, 2017, Thomas G. West, pages 54-61.)
Visual Thinking and Dyslexic Strengths -- Publications and Presentations
West is the author of three books. The first book, In the Mind’s Eye, published in 1991 was recently released in a Third Edition, by a new publisher (which had bought the old publisher‘s holdings with its many titles). It has been in print continuously now over 30 years -- what they call in the trade an “evergreen” -- a book that never ages and never stops selling.
More recently, an article by West was published in a Singapore journal, “Dyslexic Strengths in Times of Adversity” (Asia Pacific Journal of Developmental Differences). In addition, he was asked to prepare a short chapter “Visual Thinker and Medical Visionary” for a comprehensive book (IOS Press, Amsterdam) about the career of the late Donald A.B. Lindberg, MD, former director of the US National Library of Medicine, NIH. Among many innovations, Dr. Lindberg was a major force in helping to make medical information available within the US and eventually to the world via the then new Internet.
West has given hundreds of invited talks in many parts of the US and 14 foreign countries. After some 30 years of travel and talks in these countries, West says he has been happy to be active lately mainly via the Internet -- with groups interested in the talents of dyslexics and other different thinkers. During and after the pandemic, talks have been given via Zoom to audiences in The Netherlands, Egypt, Singapore and more recently, Zimbabwe.
West notes that now, more than ever, dyslexia is increasingly seen as an advantage in many technical, entrepreneurial business and scientific fields. Business management consulting firms like EY have produced reports documenting that many employers are looking to hire creative and innovative dyslexics. LinkedIn now has a check box for “dyslexic thinking” as a positive trait for job hunting -- and it is said that more than 10,000 checked the box in early years.
In recent years, West has been meeting regularly via Zoom with an international group interested in the strengths and talents of dyslexics. Based in Stockholm, Sweden, the group includes researchers from Oxford, Cambridge and Sheffield universities in the UK as well as researchers and advocates from the Netherlands, France, Canada/China, Iran, and Singapore. West is also a board member for two dyslexia-related organizations, a high school near Washington, DC, and a consultancy, in the Seattle, Washington, area.
All this may seem quite improbable considering West’s own personal history -- a student who could hardly read at all until he was about 9 or 10 years old. A late bloomer who continued to struggle with academic work but slowly began to see strengths in other areas -- like visual thinking and eventually, remarkably, original innovative research, book authorship and public speaking. However, in many ways his is a typical dyslexic story (and may be helpful in seeing the hidden potential in many young students).
His dyslexia was not recognized until he was tested at 41 years of age, after his two sons – a common pattern. It may be difficult for many to understand, but those with dyslexia (and other different thinkers) we now know can be full of paradoxes – successful authors who cannot spell; high-level mathematicians who do not know their math facts; architects who cannot draw; Nobel Prize winning scientists who have trouble with exams based on old knowledge but who can create new knowledge based on seeing patterns that no one has ever seen before.
West’s invited talks have varied, depending on the main interests of the audience, one element leading to another. They have usually focused initially on dyslexic strengths along with visual thinking in 3D space -- including the rapidly emerging powerful visual computer graphic technologies -- more recently providing the technical basis for today’s quickly advancing ChatGPT bots and other AI systems. Indeed, many may not be aware that the specialized chips now used in these advanced AI systems were originally designed and manufactured mainly for computer video games as well as complex computer graphics and scientific simulations.
While giving talks in many different countries, West has noted varied levels of interest in these ideas and concepts related to visual thinking, the strengths of dyslexics and other different thinkers. Remarkably, he has found that high-level, creative scientists are often the most interested in these observations -- while many conventionally trained educators and school psychologists are usually not interested. Some of the groups that have shown the highest interest in these talks have been: the NASA Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley; the 50 Max Planck Institutes in Germany; Oxford and Cambridge University researchers in England; the U.S. National Library of Medicine, NIH; the Dyslexia Association of Singapore; Hong Kong pediatricians and the master spies and code breakers at GCHQ in the UK. These are practitioners, innovators, discoverers, practical users -- who see evidence of these special capabilities every day.
Accordingly, based on his invited talks to many different groups, West has observed that the higher up he would go -- among Nobel Prize winning scientists, award-winning molecular biologists, physicians and surgeons, for example -- the more likely he would find those who readily understand these patterns in unexpected weaknesses along with very high-level strengths. Gradually, he realized that a lot of low-level scientists (and other professionals) mainly know what they have been taught (at a certain time) -- while for very high-level scientists, it is a great advantage to think differently and to see patterns that others do not see. Of course, this is also true for many entrepreneurs, designers and inventors.
After reading Tom’s first book, years ago, a highly respected molecular biologist at Caltech and a top prize-winning pediatric surgeon, contacted him, separately, with the same general message: “I have read your book. It explains how I think; no one else understands. Please visit, I want to tell you my story.” In 2023, West received a similar letter from Bob Ballard, the deep ocean explorer who discovered the Titanic, deep ocean techtonic plates and previously unknown life forms. He recently came to understand how his own dyslexia contributed to his academic difficulties as well as his major accomplishments as explorer and scientist.
Blog: inthemindseyedyslexicrenaissance.blogspot.com
Email: thomasgwest@gmail.com
