Child Prodigies

Came across this one one slashdot today. Eight year old boy going into uni to study physics.

You know, when I was young, all I ever wanted was to be a prodigy. It's a little secret of mine. I don't really know just exactly in what field I want to be a prodigy in, and by the looks of things I don't think my folks do either. I thought it'd be cool to be a prodigy in music, until I realise by the age of 9 I still haven't master having instrument to performance levels (my dad tried by "letting me" learn violin at the age of 4. Then again, I probbaly did ask for it. Knowing me.) I also thought it'd be cool to be a prodigy in poetry, Chinese poetry to be exact. I did memorise A LOT of poems by around 10, and know the stories and lives of quite a lot of different poets. What about art? I loved to draw... maybe I can be an artist! Or maths maybe? I was the top of the class afterall... When I was around 12 it hits me that I would never be a prodigy.

I was somewhat annoyed at the fact Mozart wrote a bloody symphony at the age of 14 (Or something like that. I never aimed to be a prodigy in the field of remembering historical details, or any details for that matter). And knowing that at the age of 16, my piano teacher still complained about my harmony exercise.

Over the years, I'm still somewhat obsessed with IQ tests, desperately trying to proof to myself I'm smarter than average. Right now, however, I think I got over that obsession. Purely because I disagree with the way how intelligence is measured.

Now I'm wondering whether it's because my brain isn't all crammed with some sort of special talent, which made me come up with that conclusion. But given the choice, maybe growing up and getting ridiculous philosophical might actually be better than being obsessed about one subject from a young age.

Maybe it's just me.