At 1.5 years old, he could read newspapers, by five he spoke several languages, and at 11 he became the youngest student at Harvard University. The most famous prodigy of the early 20th century, William Sidis (Sidis), was predicted a bright future, dozens of discoveries, but he chose to hide from annoying reporters for half his life. How the press ruined the life of a little prodigy, further in our review.
On April 1, 1898, a son, William, was born into the family of Ukrainian Jewish immigrants Boris and Sarah Sidis. The boy's father taught psychopathology at Harvard University, so William became an object of research for him in some way. William's mother gave up her scientific career and devoted herself entirely to raising and educating her son.
Using innovative methods in psychology, Boris Sidis taught the boy to recognize letters in the first months of life. By the age of 1.5, William could already read the New York Times and type on a typewriter in English and French. Parents were proud of their son, and Boris Sidis did not miss the opportunity to write scientific reports on the effectiveness of his experiments.
Boris Sidis - the father of a genius boy
William Sidis's IQ was 100 points higher than that of Albert Einstein. When the boy was sent to school at the age of 6, he mastered the program of seven classes in a year and a half. The boy's father wanted him to be admitted to Harvard, but the then leaders refused the request, citing the boy's "emotional immaturity". William was admitted to the university at the age of 11.
Admission to Harvard brought the boy fame, for which he was not ready. Reporters accompanied him throughout the campus. A nervous breakdown happened to him in 1910. William was taken to a sanatorium. He returned from there very depressed.
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At the age of 5, William Sidis spoke 5 languages
Sidis's years at Harvard were not happy. It was he who had the imprudence to admit to one of his fellow students that he had never kissed. After that, William became the object of ridicule not only of students, but also of reporters "savoring" the details of the young genius's personal life. One day after graduating from Harvard, William Sidis told the assembled reporters that he had always hated the crowd and wanted to live in seclusion.
William Sidis became a Harvard student at age 11
But the reporters were not going to leave the young man alone. Articles appeared in newspapers about Sidis's scientific blunders, about his inability to behave in society, about gloom and clumsiness. After such pressure, Sidis moved from one city to another, changing his surnames, stopped all communication with his parents. The guy worked as an ordinary calculating machine operator, wrote novels, led a quiet life.
William Sidis - child prodigy
Sidis came to the attention of reporters in 1937. The newsmen sent a woman to him to make friends with Sidis and watch him. Soon, the New York Times published an article entitled "April Fool!", Calling for a laugh at the genius born, ironically, on April 1st.
William Sidis - a genius who was hiding from the public
William Sidis sued the publication for libel. The process lasted seven years, and after this time the court ruled in favor of Sidis. A few months later, the landlady found William unconscious in his small apartment. At the age of 47, the genius, hunted by reporters, died of a cerebral hemorrhage.
