Monday, March 28, 2011

Move over, Einstein!...12 Year Has New theory of Relativity

It's a scene out of "A Beautiful Mind." A mathematical genius scrawls his equations on the glass pane of a window. This genius, however, happens to be only 12 years old. And he's about to disprove Einstein's theory of relativity. Diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome at a very young age, Jacob Barnett astonished family and teachers alike with his advanced intellect; he taught himself calculus and completed high school at the age of 8.
Jacob has an IQ of 170. He currently attends college-level advanced astrophysics classes. He can recite the first 200 digits of pi. And he's likely to make mathematical history before he's of legal age. "Whenever I try talking about math with anyone in my family they just stare blankly," he told The Indianapolis Star.

Jacob's mother, Kristine, was unsure if her son's ideas were nonsense or genius; she sent a video of his theory, a "new expanded theory of relativity," to the Institute for Advanced Study near Princeton. The Barnett's heard back from a professor. Diagnosis: math wizard. "I'm impressed by his interest in physics and the amount that he has learned so far," astrophysics Professor Scott Tremaine wrote in an email, shared by the family. "The theory that he's working on involves several of the toughest problems in astrophysics and theoretical physics. Anyone who solves these will be in line for a Nobel Prize."

Jacob, who, in many ways is your typical 12-year-old kid who loves basketball, video games and the Disney Channel, stays awake at night with numbers and equations swimming in his head.His mathematical sights are set on disproving the big bang theory, something Jacob claims doesn't make scientific sense. "I'm still working on that," he said. "I have an idea, but… I'm still working out the details.Einstein published his theory at the age of 26; Jacob is just weeks shy of being half that age. Justin's currently being recruited for a paid research position at Indiana University. Watch Justin teach Calculus 2 below.
 Warning: Very smart kid at work




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