Some people’s level of intelligence might have many of us mere mortals in awe, a little envious, or maybe even feeling inspired to boost our own brain power. Then there are those who are so insanely bright that it’s actually creepy.
We’re not talking about well-read folk, or those who nail pub quiz every week. We are referring to that rare, off-the-charts, stop-everyone-in-their-tracks type of intelligence that is both a wonder and a ‘WTH?!’ to witness. They’re almost uncomfortably smart.
Someone recently asked, “What's the creepiest display of intelligence you've ever witnessed in real life?” and more than the square root of 12,250,000 answers came flooding in. That’s over 3,500 replies in case you were wondering. Our brilliant Bored Panda team has dissected all of them to bring you only the best in the listicle that follows.
Expect stories about eidetic memory, Aphantasia, polyglots, whiz kids and even animals wowing people with the way their brains operate. From a guy who struggled to read but taught himself college chemistry from a textbook in one evening, to a child with an intellectual disability who could put a 500-piece puzzle together with the pieces flipped to the blank side (no imagery to fit together), some of these tales could give Albert Einstein a run for his money.
#21
I grew up with a guy. one day we were after school finishing a biology project, we had a calculation for so random variables, 6 digit divided by two digit, like 179485/67 or some stuff. I typed it in the calculator, and before I said it to the team he gave me the answer. I knew this guy had a weird it smart brain, didn’t know the full extent until now, and I asked him hot the hell did you know that?? He told me he did the calculation once as an 9 year old, and also he remembered it because it was matching to his favorite ### for a specific car model, and it stuck with him. I grew up with this guy for 20 years and knew he was wicked smart but it always stuck in my mind.
He also told me that he studied his old sisters AP biology book before he took the class, for fun. Our teacher was a real hard as about consistent homework in that class, but if you passed the AP test you automatically got a passing grade in the class. He never turned in a single piece of homework and got a 5 on the test. Dude was wicked.
He also told me that he studied his old sisters AP biology book before he took the class, for fun. Our teacher was a real hard as about consistent homework in that class, but if you passed the AP test you automatically got a passing grade in the class. He never turned in a single piece of homework and got a 5 on the test. Dude was wicked.
14points
#22
Most intelligent person I've ever known was actually a huge ignorant. He had terrifying brainpower, but he had a caveman general knowledge and personality-wise he was absolutely the most average young adult jerk you can possibly imagine, one of those that can only speak about intercourse and football regardless of who they have in front.
He single-handedly made half my university course graduate. He would start studying two weeks before the exam. One week before he knew the whole program *by the word* and he would just act as a professor to a bunch of us. His final average grade was the highest possible grade. As in he scored maximum grades at every single exam he did. Yeah, I know what you're thinking: I've been with him for the whole process multiple times and unless he's also the best actor in the world he genuinely did this in a week.
After the university he went on to rake a load of money in various marketing agencies, to then quit everything and put up a pizza place. He's now the owner of a pizza place. Knowing him he probably acts as the whole management and keeps track of everything that isn't cooking and serving.
He single-handedly made half my university course graduate. He would start studying two weeks before the exam. One week before he knew the whole program *by the word* and he would just act as a professor to a bunch of us. His final average grade was the highest possible grade. As in he scored maximum grades at every single exam he did. Yeah, I know what you're thinking: I've been with him for the whole process multiple times and unless he's also the best actor in the world he genuinely did this in a week.
After the university he went on to rake a load of money in various marketing agencies, to then quit everything and put up a pizza place. He's now the owner of a pizza place. Knowing him he probably acts as the whole management and keeps track of everything that isn't cooking and serving.
14points
#23
We were studying and she recognized a young man from an anatomy textbook. She said it was from her 3rd grade math book. We didn't belive her and made fun of her, so one day she showed up with that book. Same young man, totally different pose and environment. Obviously some stock photos. She still works in medicine, but works with the police several times a year for super-recognizer screenings or whatever that's called.
When we would go out, she would see someone and just go: ah, this guy was at the lake 4 years ago when we were there. We all just stopped confirming with those people because she was always right and it was always creepy.
When we would go out, she would see someone and just go: ah, this guy was at the lake 4 years ago when we were there. We all just stopped confirming with those people because she was always right and it was always creepy.
13points
#24
My son has creeped me out a few times:
- Used to complete all his puzzles face down without using the pictures, just the shapes.
- Solves his Rubik's cube....wtih his feet.
- Helps put any ikea furniture or boxed furniture together by flipping through the instructions one time quickly and never referencing them again.
- Memorize lists and huge passages of books.
Just when you get excited that you're living with a genius you see him come in from school and notice his shirt is inside out and backwards. HOW DID YOU NOT ADDRESS THIS AT SOME POINT DURING THE DAY!
- Used to complete all his puzzles face down without using the pictures, just the shapes.
- Solves his Rubik's cube....wtih his feet.
- Helps put any ikea furniture or boxed furniture together by flipping through the instructions one time quickly and never referencing them again.
- Memorize lists and huge passages of books.
Just when you get excited that you're living with a genius you see him come in from school and notice his shirt is inside out and backwards. HOW DID YOU NOT ADDRESS THIS AT SOME POINT DURING THE DAY!
13points
#25
I was 19, tutoring a little boy after school in my town. Super quiet, always watching. One day I joked, “You’re scary smart,” and he replied, completely calm, “You touch your necklace when you’re lying.”
I froze. I’d never noticed that. Then he added, “You won’t be here long anyway.”
Two weeks later I moved away for uni.
Still don’t know how he knew.
I froze. I’d never noticed that. Then he added, “You won’t be here long anyway.”
Two weeks later I moved away for uni.
Still don’t know how he knew.
11points
#26
My sister was getting perfect grades through elementary school. All 100s and A+. I kept telling her next year will be harder. Nope all the way through high-school literally perfect. Valedictorian senior year and 2330 out of 2400 on SATs. Accepted to all Ivy league schools and chose Princeton.
Guess I was wrong.
Guess I was wrong.
11points
#27
My cat appears to understand tools at a glance. She can open any door in the house by jumping and catching the knob, apparently learnt by watching us. She'll often inspect the door for locks before trying.
Then she realized she could apply this to the fridge (uses her paws and head to pull from the side until it opens). Then she realized it wasn't worth the effort because we reorganized it in a way she can't easily reach the good stuff. Immediately stopped doing it.
So in short she apparently can reason to some extent if the effort is worth it, learn from watching, and apply the knowledge to other areas. Luckily she lacks opposite thumbs.
Then she realized she could apply this to the fridge (uses her paws and head to pull from the side until it opens). Then she realized it wasn't worth the effort because we reorganized it in a way she can't easily reach the good stuff. Immediately stopped doing it.
So in short she apparently can reason to some extent if the effort is worth it, learn from watching, and apply the knowledge to other areas. Luckily she lacks opposite thumbs.
11points
#28
I went on a golf trip with a friend of a friend a couple of years ago. He mentioned casually that he was pretty good at remembering numbers. Gave him my credit card at dinner to test his ability and he took one look, gave my card back, and recited the number back to me perfectly including expiration date and security code. I thought that was pretty cool, but not overly impressive.
He turns up two years later at that same golf trip, and just for fun I ask if he remembers my credit card number. Without hesitation, he closed his eyes, thought for a second, and recited it perfectly except he flipped two of the security code numbers. Needless to say I'm trying to maintain a good relationship with this guy...
He turns up two years later at that same golf trip, and just for fun I ask if he remembers my credit card number. Without hesitation, he closed his eyes, thought for a second, and recited it perfectly except he flipped two of the security code numbers. Needless to say I'm trying to maintain a good relationship with this guy...
11points
#29
I worked with a guy who could look at a complex corner where sheets of drywall intersected, then cut a 3D piece of plastic moulding (without measuring/drawing anything) that would slide onto each piece, perfectly covering each corner.
Maybe it was a practiced skill, but he generally struck me as highly intelligent with off-the-charts spatial reasoning skills, which I feel like are underappreciated on the spectrum of human cognitive abilities.
Maybe it was a practiced skill, but he generally struck me as highly intelligent with off-the-charts spatial reasoning skills, which I feel like are underappreciated on the spectrum of human cognitive abilities.
11points
#30
I'm pretty sure the local crows all have a specific bird word for people. They make the same noise whenever they see a person, and its different from the noises they make when seagulls of hawks turn up.
11points
#31
My three year old reciting the alphabet backwards just a few days after finally figuring it out for the first time the whole way through in the normal direction. Terrifying.
10points
#32
Working for a city in traffic engineering, we had a large map on a wall where we would place pins with colored heads to represent types of accidents from police accident reports, for example pedestrian related, property damage only, death, etc. Instead of bringing the stack of reports and working out each pin and exact location individually, one legendary lady would go in and stick the pins from memory. This was not a small city!
One engineer was incredulous and asked how she could remember so many. She became offended when he checked her work and found she got every one right.
I didn't witness it but I believe him, and i can't imagine how she did it!
One engineer was incredulous and asked how she could remember so many. She became offended when he checked her work and found she got every one right.
I didn't witness it but I believe him, and i can't imagine how she did it!
9points
#33
My son, frustrated nearly all of his teachers & his martial arts instructor. One teacher said he had a photographic memory, did no homework for 5 years (he didn’t even mind going to detention every day & hung out with the teachers) no revision, and walked away with top grades in everything.
During martial arts classes he would do the bare minimum, instructor used to get really annoyed & tell him he’d fail his next grading but lo & behold, every grading passed perfectly !!!
Has qualifications in all sorts of coding & is practically a maths genius. Never loses at any logic game he plays, even first time playing.
He scares me sometimes with how intelligent he is !!
During martial arts classes he would do the bare minimum, instructor used to get really annoyed & tell him he’d fail his next grading but lo & behold, every grading passed perfectly !!!
Has qualifications in all sorts of coding & is practically a maths genius. Never loses at any logic game he plays, even first time playing.
He scares me sometimes with how intelligent he is !!
9points
#34
A pet parrot, specifically a blue & gold Macaw. My then girlfriend and I fostered him, he lived with us for about a year. There were three days over the xmas holidays when we would both be out of town. One of my friends from university agreed to take care of him. He was late coming over the first day so he gave the bird some treats, putting them in a small stainless steel dish on top of the cage. He climbs up, grabs the dish and throws all the treats on the floor. My buddy gets down on his hands and knees to pick them up and the bird throws the dish, which hits him on the head. He says "ow!" and the bird laughed.
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9points
#35
My wife has a photographic memory. Many years ago when we were dating, we were traveling with my parents and a few hours later while we were all staying at a hotel. My dad casually remarked that he wished he could remember the phone number on a pizza truck that had driven by us in traffic earlier because it would be nice to order a pizza. My wife instantly remembered the number and he called and got us a pizza.
She said that when she was younger and took tests at school, she would just visualize the book in her mind and read it to find the answers.
Unfortunately, I’m the complete opposite. I have two wallet finders in my wallet in case one dies) and a tether with a clip that I attached to my pants because, as my second grade teacher said “if his head wasn’t attached he he’d forget it.“ Oddly, I’m not stupid and ranked second in the nation as far as a test regarding creativity. It just shows me that we all have different types and styles of intelligence. Mine clearly is not a photographic memory.
She said that when she was younger and took tests at school, she would just visualize the book in her mind and read it to find the answers.
Unfortunately, I’m the complete opposite. I have two wallet finders in my wallet in case one dies) and a tether with a clip that I attached to my pants because, as my second grade teacher said “if his head wasn’t attached he he’d forget it.“ Oddly, I’m not stupid and ranked second in the nation as far as a test regarding creativity. It just shows me that we all have different types and styles of intelligence. Mine clearly is not a photographic memory.
9points
#36
When I was a teen, was babysitting for special needs group of my church.
Kid was drawing what seemed like random lines on a piece of paper with random numbers attached at each line. And a random red dot/circle in the middle.
She gave it to me at the end of church. Thought it was cute. Had no idea what it was.
A few weeks later I realized it was a map of the surrounding area with all the street and ave numbers.
She was 5.
Kid was drawing what seemed like random lines on a piece of paper with random numbers attached at each line. And a random red dot/circle in the middle.
She gave it to me at the end of church. Thought it was cute. Had no idea what it was.
A few weeks later I realized it was a map of the surrounding area with all the street and ave numbers.
She was 5.
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8points
#37
I've mentioned this on another post but - Autism.
I believe neuroscience is just scratching the surface of what this 'condition' actually is.
My personal experience is my own nephew. Written off through secondary school for being socially reclusive and diagnosed autism, wasn't expected to achieve much for his GCSE's. Something switched in year 10 going into year 11 and he aced his core GCSE subjects A* across the board. Got into a good college to study Applied Maths, Physics, Chemistry and Biology - again 4 A*. Headhunted by a very prestigious university to study Advanced mathematics, 2 yrs into that they had him teaching robotics and mathematics at the same uni. His condition has deteriorated over the past 24 months where he finds it very difficult to physically speak. Completed his degree 1st class with distinction and is now one of a very limited set of people doing r&d into advanced algorithms/robotics/Ai.
Oh yeah, he also built and programmed a robotic 'friend' at uni that learned how to do basic tasks similar to what Boston Dynamics is doing. This kid scares the life out of me with his intelligence but I feel desperately sad that he is losing his ability to speak.
Quick story. We were at a family wedding where another distant relative was also in attendance who seemed to have a similar condition to my nephew. They instantly connected and started an absolutely mind blowing conversation. It was like watching 2 computers going up against each other. They were literally talking over each other whilst digesting what the other was saying and responding at the same time. It was a conversation about statistics and probability and I noped out after about 60 seconds and just sat there completely in awe of these two brains. (BTW, other relative is working with .gov.uk 😬)
Edit:WOW!! I was just throwing thoughts at the screen, didn't expect this much interaction. From the bottom of my heart thank you all for the kind messages of encouragement and advice for my nephew. I will be certain to pass them on and somehow explain that it came from thoughtful strangers on the internet from around the world.
I believe neuroscience is just scratching the surface of what this 'condition' actually is.
My personal experience is my own nephew. Written off through secondary school for being socially reclusive and diagnosed autism, wasn't expected to achieve much for his GCSE's. Something switched in year 10 going into year 11 and he aced his core GCSE subjects A* across the board. Got into a good college to study Applied Maths, Physics, Chemistry and Biology - again 4 A*. Headhunted by a very prestigious university to study Advanced mathematics, 2 yrs into that they had him teaching robotics and mathematics at the same uni. His condition has deteriorated over the past 24 months where he finds it very difficult to physically speak. Completed his degree 1st class with distinction and is now one of a very limited set of people doing r&d into advanced algorithms/robotics/Ai.
Oh yeah, he also built and programmed a robotic 'friend' at uni that learned how to do basic tasks similar to what Boston Dynamics is doing. This kid scares the life out of me with his intelligence but I feel desperately sad that he is losing his ability to speak.
Quick story. We were at a family wedding where another distant relative was also in attendance who seemed to have a similar condition to my nephew. They instantly connected and started an absolutely mind blowing conversation. It was like watching 2 computers going up against each other. They were literally talking over each other whilst digesting what the other was saying and responding at the same time. It was a conversation about statistics and probability and I noped out after about 60 seconds and just sat there completely in awe of these two brains. (BTW, other relative is working with .gov.uk 😬)
Edit:WOW!! I was just throwing thoughts at the screen, didn't expect this much interaction. From the bottom of my heart thank you all for the kind messages of encouragement and advice for my nephew. I will be certain to pass them on and somehow explain that it came from thoughtful strangers on the internet from around the world.
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8points
#38
My doberman, DeSoto, rest his soul. Was probably the smartest dog I've ever seen. Probably doesn't seem like much but it was a truly incredible site that I didn't think dogs did.
I was waking up on the couch of my in laws right before the sun was up and just laid there in the silence. My boy DeSoto didn't know anyone was awake at the time so he slowly gets up, walks over to one of the windows, props two feet up onto the window seal and watches the sunrise. He didn't move. He didn't make a sound. He just stood there watching the sunrise.
Without a doubt one of the most profound moments of my life. I could really see the intelligence in this creature.
I was waking up on the couch of my in laws right before the sun was up and just laid there in the silence. My boy DeSoto didn't know anyone was awake at the time so he slowly gets up, walks over to one of the windows, props two feet up onto the window seal and watches the sunrise. He didn't move. He didn't make a sound. He just stood there watching the sunrise.
Without a doubt one of the most profound moments of my life. I could really see the intelligence in this creature.
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8points
#39
Not terribly creepy, but I don’t have a lot of opportunities to talk about this. My old roommate and I were once doing something in the kitchen and one of us dropped something, which then rolled a bit under the oven. Her cat happened to be in the kitchen with us. We said “olive, go get it!” And pointed to the spot under the oven. Olive looked at the spot for about three seconds, then proceeded to walk up and swipe her paw under the oven. My roommate and I immediately looked at each other like , did that actually just happen? Both our jaws were on the floor. Olive did not succeed in retrieving the item but I still can’t believe she did that.
8points
#40
I do work a lot with IBM servers (that run AIX as OS).
We followed courses about that AIX to enhance our knowledge about it.
During one of those courses, we had an instructor **who could read hexadecimal code** off the top of his head as if it were a natural language.
For those of you who do not know what hexadecimal code is, it is a language format for software executables (like Word or Excel) produced by compilers. **It is machine code not meant to be read by humans** but intended for the (AIX or Windows OS for example) and/or the computer it runs on.
We all had a jaw-dropping moment, and then he told us that it was nothing compared to what a colleague of his at IBM was capable of.
The person he referred to was responsible for **writing the very first machine code** to bootstrap the AIX OS on brand new hardware that had never run code before.
He did that for each new type of machine/hardware within a couple of hours!
Truly rocket science to write code for a machine that no one had ever written code for before.
We followed courses about that AIX to enhance our knowledge about it.
During one of those courses, we had an instructor **who could read hexadecimal code** off the top of his head as if it were a natural language.
For those of you who do not know what hexadecimal code is, it is a language format for software executables (like Word or Excel) produced by compilers. **It is machine code not meant to be read by humans** but intended for the (AIX or Windows OS for example) and/or the computer it runs on.
We all had a jaw-dropping moment, and then he told us that it was nothing compared to what a colleague of his at IBM was capable of.
The person he referred to was responsible for **writing the very first machine code** to bootstrap the AIX OS on brand new hardware that had never run code before.
He did that for each new type of machine/hardware within a couple of hours!
Truly rocket science to write code for a machine that no one had ever written code for before.
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8points
