Einstein, Newton displayed autistic traits

Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton displayed symptoms of psychiatric
disorders that may have been a key to their genius, a Dublin
psychiatrist said.

Michael Fitzgerald, Professor of Psychiatry at Trinity College,
Dublin, said characteristics linked to autism spectrum disorders such
as Asperger's syndrome are the same as those associated with creative
genius, The Daily Telegraph said.

Fitzgerald, author of the book, "Genius Genes: How Asperger Talents
Changed the World," said Enoch Powell and Charles de Gaulle both
appear to have had Asperger's syndrome.

Speaking at a meeting of the Royal College of Psychiatrists' Academic
Psychiatry, Fitzgerald said De Gaulle's Asperger's syndrome was
critical to his success. He was aloof, had a massive memory, lacked
empathy with other people, and was extremely controlling and dominating.

Isaac Newton was known to work non-stop for days and Einstein worked
in a patent office because he was too disruptive to get a university
job, the newspaper said.

"Psychiatry tends to focus almost exclusively on the negative side of
different forms of mental illness," Fitzgerald said in statement. "I
want to show that psychiatric disorders can also have positive
dimensions."

Source: http://www.physorg.com/news123084642.html