Ugly describes her first love

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/11427437

Oh my.

n2doc (24,971 posts)    Fri Feb 22, 2013, 11:33 AM

When Brain Damage Unlocks The Genius Within

By Adam Piore Posted 02.19.2013 at 9:00 am

Derek Amato stood above the shallow end of the swimming pool and called for his buddy in the Jacuzzi to toss him the football. Then he launched himself through the air, head first, arms outstretched. He figured he could roll onto one shoulder as he snagged the ball, then slide across the water. It was a grave miscalculation. The tips of Amato’s fingers brushed the pigskin—then his head slammed into the pool’s concrete floor with such bone-jarring force that it felt like an explosion. He pushed to the surface, clapping his hands to his head, convinced that the water streaming down his cheeks was blood gushing from his ears.
 
At the edge of the pool, Amato collapsed into the arms of his friends, Bill Peterson and Rick Sturm. It was 2006, and the 39-year-old sales trainer was visiting his hometown of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, from Colorado, where he lived. As his two high-school buddies drove Amato to his mother’s home, he drifted in and out of consciousness, insisting that he was a professional baseball player late for spring training in Phoenix. Amato’s mother rushed him to the emergency room, where doctors diagnosed Amato with a severe concussion. They sent him home with instructions to be woken every few hours.
 
It would be weeks before the full impact of Amato’s head trauma became apparent: 35 percent hearing loss in one ear, headaches, memory loss. But the most dramatic consequence appeared just four days after his accident. Amato awoke hazy after near-continuous sleep and headed over to Sturm’s house. As the two pals sat chatting in Sturm’s makeshift music studio, Amato spotted a cheap electric keyboard.
 
Without thinking, he rose from his chair and sat in front of it. He had never played the piano—never had the slightest inclination to. Now his fingers seemed to find the keys by instinct and, to his astonishment, ripple across them. His right hand started low, climbing in lyrical chains of triads, skipping across melodic intervals and arpeggios, landing on the high notes, then starting low again and building back up. His left hand followed close behind, laying down bass, picking out harmony. Amato sped up, slowed down, let pensive tones hang in the air, then resolved them into rich chords as if he had been playing for years. When Amato finally looked up, Sturm’s eyes were filled with tears.
 
more

http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-02/when-brain-damage-unlocks-genius-within

Baitball Blogger (9,538 posts)    Fri Feb 22, 2013, 12:15 PM

1. There's still hope for many of us.

2naSalit (1,401 posts)    Fri Feb 22, 2013, 01:30 PM

2. But does that mean that we need a hard whack with a swimming pool or a baseball bat to get there?

formercia (17,836 posts)   Fri Feb 22, 2013, 01:50 PM

5. I can see the Dark Side to this as well when baser instincts are revealed.

Finally, Ugly, she with the face like Hindenburg's, shows up:

Warpy (67,332 posts)   Fri Feb 22, 2013, 06:36 PM

7. Our brain seems to stand in its own way some of the time.

I've seen this phenomenon quite a few times, usually with people who had survived really massive brain injury. A bus driver was suddenly genius level in math, a little old man suddenly started to speak Portuguese when he couldn't get a single word of English out. In the latter case, his family recalled that grandparents had spoken it but that no one else in the family had.
 
It's why neurology was my first love. The brain is an amazingly weird organ and we're in the infancy when it comes to figuring out how and why it does what it does.

[Mr Mannn]

Baitball Blogger (9,538 posts)    Fri Feb 22, 2013, 12:15 PM

1. There's still hope for many of us.

Drug induced brain damage doesn't count.

[franksolich]

Drug induced brain damage doesn't count.

That's what I was thinking too.

[98ZJUSMC]

I've seen this phenomenon quite a few times, usually with people who had survived really massive brain injury. A bus driver was suddenly genius level in math, a little old man suddenly started to speak Portuguese when he couldn't get a single word of English out. In the latter case, his family recalled that grandparents had spoken it but that no one else in the family had.

 
 

[Celtic Rose]

Considering that the last couple brain injuries that I saw ended with with the person's death, I'm not prone to romanticizing brain damage. 

[jtyangel]

When I read this title I thought for sure CalPeg had penned yet another poem..this one about her amorous younger years...............

[BlueStateSaint]

Considering that the last couple brain injuries that I saw ended with with the person's death, I'm not prone to romanticizing brain damage. 

Having survived one for 25 years, this April 23rd, neither am I.

One thing that I noticed, post-coma and TBI, was that my sense of humor got much more warped.

[miskie]

I've seen this phenomenon quite a few times, usually with people who had survived really massive brain injury. A bus driver was suddenly genius level in math, a little old man suddenly started to speak Portuguese when he couldn't get a single word of English out. In the latter case, his family recalled that grandparents had spoken it but that no one else in the family had.

No, you haven't - unless what you mean by 'seen' is 'on television', 'in books', or 'read on DU' - The odds of someone ending up with an increased ability because of a traumatic brain injury are slim to none.

I think you have read too many comic books. In the real world, traumatic accidents do not make superheros.

Edit:

I read the linked article - There are about 30 known cases of this phenomenon. And Warpy knows 'quite a few' ?

She must be the TiT of brain damage.    

[jtyangel]

Considering that the last couple brain injuries that I saw ended with with the person's death, I'm not prone to romanticizing brain damage. 

Libs like to do this kind of thing all the time. I remember when my beau's ex tried to romanticize my son's autism. It made me livid for some reason; probably because I live with this and it affects my entire family including my other children. We've had some very difficult moments and my life revolves around making sure he always has care to the point I am going to put intermittent FMLA in just in the instance I need to prioritize his safety and psychological needs over work if they come into conflict. I hate it--who likes being at odds like that since I always feel like I'm getting the stinkeye for impositioning someone with it. Anyway, I digress...she just pissed me off when she sent something to me that painted it like some rainman situation. She did the same with her own mother's dimentia too. Brain and neurological issues flat out suck! There is nothing romantic about it. Can I and do I need to find humor in it sometimes? Yes, but it's not quaint by any stretch and it puts you in difficult situations all the time where you could potentially clash with the needs of your boss, spouse, friends etc beause your child's needs (have to)take priority because their safety is in danger if not.

[jtyangel]

No, you haven't - unless what you mean by 'seen' is 'on television', 'in books', or 'read on DU' - The odds of someone ending up with an increased ability because of a traumatic brain injury are slim to none.

I think you have read too many comic books. In the real world, traumatic accidents do not make superheros.

Edit:

I read the linked article - There are about 30 known cases of this phenomenon. And Warpy knows 'quite a few' ?

She must be the TiT of brain damage.    

This is the same romanticized notions they have about autistic people all being savants. They are not. Some are both autistic and probably suffer from mental retardation or another severe learning disability.

[BEG]

Having survived one for 25 years, this April 23rd, neither am I.

One thing that I noticed, post-coma and TBI, was that my sense of humor got much more warped.

Make me laugh funny boy.

[zeitgeist]

Earlier this week I was culling out a couple of similar threads where DUmmies dive deep into the pool of urban legend and get  a serving of butt cheek for their trouble but I never had the time to get back around to putting them together.  For anyone with the time and inclination may I offer up the following Liberal Legends aka "Fractured Fairy Tales":



So step into the way back machine and take a peek if you have the time because there are some great comments at the links.

Here the good doctor, and really bad mole / troll launches the concept of the merits of Norway and the virtues of socialism only to be thawarted by Norwegians of all people.  Geeze Louise.

http://upload.democraticunderground.com/111631305

preventivePhD (53 posts)
Norway highest wages, best standard of living, best economy, biggest government & tiny CEO salaries

From this article which really kind of sums up what's wrong in the U.S. and why raising the minimun wage is a good idea. Seems to me Norway is a much better model for the U.S. than Germany.
 

{sniP}

and then there is this one:



http://upload.democraticunderground.com/10022421767

MrScorpio (54,092 posts)

"Before our white brothers arrived to make us civilized men…"

"Before our white brothers arrived to make us civilized men, we didn't have any kind of prison.
 
Because of this, we had no delinquents. Without a prison, there can be no delinquents.
 
We had no locks nor keys and therefore among us there were no thieves. When someone was so poor that he couldn't afford a horse, a tent or a blanket, he would, in that case, receive it all as a gift.
 
We were too uncivilized to give great importance to private property. We didn't know any kind of money and consequently, the value of a human being was not determined by his wealth.
 
We had no written laws laid down, no lawyers, no politicians, therefore we were not able to cheat and swindle one another.
 
We were really in bad shape before the white men arrived and I don't know how to explain how we were able to manage without these fundamental things that (so they tell us) are so necessary for a civilized society."
 

Poor Mr. Scorpio was also served a heeping helping of rump roast.   

[wasp69]

Considering that the last couple brain injuries that I saw ended with with the person's death, I'm not prone to romanticizing brain damage. 

Nah, think of the upside:  If we can convince these morons to go full Wile E Coyote, we would have hours of entertainment.