Kim Peek vs Jacob Barnett
Two savants, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
The record, side by side
| Kim Peek | Jacob Barnett | |
| Field | Science | Science |
| Sub-field | Biology | Physics |
| Born | 1951 | 1998 |
| Died | 2009 | living / not documented |
| Country of birth | - | - |
| Star sign | Scorpio | Gemini |
Who they are
Kim Peek
Kim Peek is a savant from United States. American 'megasavant' who was the inspiration for the main character Raymond Babbitt in the 1988 film Rain Man.
Jacob Barnett
At two, Jacob Barnett stopped talking. He had been an unusually attentive infant — staring at patterns of light, fixated by repeating shapes — but the verbal regression that followed his second birthday was severe enough that his parents were told he might never speak again. The diagnosis was autism. He was eventually evaluated as having moderate to severe autism with associated learning impairment. By eleven, he was an undergraduate at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis. By thirteen, he had completed a master's thesis in theoretical physics. By nineteen, he was a doctoral student at the…
Full biography of Jacob Barnett →
What they share
- Both are held here under Science.
- Their lifetimes overlap.
Where they part
- 47 years separate their births (1951 and 1998).
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Kim Peek or Jacob Barnett?
- Kim Peek. Kim Peek was born in 1951, Jacob Barnett in 1998.
- What field is each of them in?
- Kim Peek is filed under Science (Biology). Jacob Barnett is filed under Science (Physics).
- Were they contemporaries?
- Yes - their lifetimes overlap.