Savant skills may be widespread in people with autism

Savant-like skills, such as astounding memory, perfect pitch or the ability to multiply very high numbers together, may be much more common among people with autism than previously thought.

A new study of about 100 adults with autism shows that one third have skills that stand out, both in comparison with their other abilities and with the skills of the general population. Previous studies put the prevalence of savantism in autistic people as around 1 in 10.

"People often focus on the things people with autism can't do," says Patricia Howlin of the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College in London, who led the study. "One of the things our study illustrates is that these are people who do have special skills but they are not being used."