The genius is Simon Phillips Norton, a British mathematician born on February 28, 1952 of Jewish heritage—traced back to the Iraqi Jews of Babylon.
Written in simple, understandable language, The Genius in my Basement: The biography of a happy man (2011) follows two threads: (1) the upbringing, achievements, and day-to-day life of Simon P. Norton (accompanied by photographs and examples of Simon’s jottings and work); and (2) an illustrated basic introduction to the study of symmetry. While living in the author’s basement since 1981, Norton, schooled at Eton, is exploring the mathematical puzzle known as The Monster, working in the Department of Pure Mathematics at the University of Cambridge in London as an “independent researcher” on group theory, the study of symmetry.
It is a unique account of a unique man. Masters attempts to discover what factors contributed to establishing Norton as a mathematical genius. What does Masters reveal about the life of a genius? We know he has two older brothers: Michael and Francis. Michael Norton OBE studied chemistry and is the author of several books on fundraising, while Francis Norton manages the jewellery store that their great-grandfather established—he is the one that provides the family money. We know that he doted on his mother, and was significantly affected by her death in 2002.
At age one, Simon P. Norton was already exploring number patterns with his building blocks; at three years and eleven months he could do long multiplication; by five he had mastered percentages, square numbers, factors, and long division; and at age ten he had triumphed at music, even writing a sonata. We know that Norton has always liked the number 2, but worshipped number 7, and 45 was the number for his mother. We know he was obsessed with mathematics: “I used to worry at school that I was enjoying numbers when everyone else was made to do boring things, like swimming or the American Civil War. Why didn’t the teacher tell them about the cyclic permutations of 142857?” We know that he has an excellent memory and can solve puzzles with startling speed.
We know he likes kippers and Bombay mix; is a voracious reader; reads books in a single day; dislikes cars; prefers public transport; collects bus and train timetables; is bothered by small things (like knives pointing in his direction); is honest to a fault; and finds “correctness” beautiful. We know he is not modest, but not immodest; never boasts; is not vain; and believes his personal appearance is not important. In fact, he wears the same clothes, summer and winter.
What is the definition of genius? Genius is defined as an intelligent quotient (IQ) score above 140. At age three-and-a-half, Norton’s IQ was an “eerie” 178. Some would say Norton was brilliant: others would say “odd.” Masters believes that “for his genius to flourish, he needs liveliness and company.” He adds that, “to prodigies, talent doesn’t come from hard work, it comes from delight”—the fact that he genuinely enjoyed mathematics. Norton himself says he never was a great brain, just a very quick one. He doubts his own genius, not because he is modest, but because he is a purist about language. Norton believes he reached his peak in ten years and by the age of 20 his genius had leveled, after which time other people caught up with him. Masters concludes that, whatever people think of Simon P. Norton’s genius, he is a happy man.
Note: The Genius in my Basement: The biography of a happy man (2011) is now entitled, Simon: The Genius in my Basement (2012).
Martina Nicolls is the author of “Bardot’s Comet” (2011) about a different type of mathematical genius: fictional and female. Whereas it appears that Simon Phillips Norton’s genius was innate, the genius of Prudence Bari was influenced by her upbringing, contributing to the “nature versus nurture” debate.
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