The smartest children of history

At the age most of us were playing with sand and discovering our toes, child prodigies around the globe were learning complex languages and studying fields we've never heard of.

Many of these children went on to do great things. Others were crippled by emotional instability. Some have great potential and are just getting started.

 

 

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart—The six-year-old composer

At the age of three, Wolfgang Mozart played the harpsichord and by six, he had written his first musical composition. This was followed by the first symphony at the age of eight and opera at 12.The legendary composer’s musical talents were quickly discovered shortly after his birth in Salzburg, Austria in 1756.As a five-year-old, Mozart performed at the University of Salzburg with the piano and at the imperial court in Vienna the next year. At the age of 14, he set out to Italy to become an opera composer.

He died at the age of 35 and left behind more than 600 composed pieces.

William Rowan Hamilton—Multilingual by the age of five

Born in Dublin, Ireland in 1805, William Rowan Hamilton showed his intellectual abilities at an early age, mastering Latin, Greek and Hebrew by the age of five.

By the time he was 13, the future mathematician knew 13 different languages, including Sanscrit, Persian, Italian, Arabic, Syriac and Indian dialects.

At the age of 15, Hamilton found errors while studying the works of French mathematician Pierre-Simon, marquis de Laplace.He was appointed Professor of Astronomy, Director of  the Dunsink Observatory and the Royal Astronomer of Ireland while he was still studying as a university student. 

His greatest contributions includes a theory of dynamics and quaternions, a method used for three-dimensional space in mathematics.  

Ireland’s greatest mathematician was knighted in 1835 and died in 1865.

Pablo Picasso

Born in Spain in 1881, Pablo Picasso developed his skills early, producing complex pieces with the support of his artist father and by the age of 15, his first large oil painting The First Communion was displayed in Barcelona.The following year, his painting Science and Charity won a gold medal in Malaga and received honorable mention at a national exhibit for the fine arts in Madrid.His interest in modern art eventually caused a rift between him and his parents.
In the early 20th century, Picasso co-founded the Cubist movement. His technique and style would change often throughout his life.
The artist died in France in 1973.

Theodore Kaczynski—The Harvard graduate turned unabomber

Theodore Kaczynski, known by most as the “Unabomber,” started out as a child prodigy, receiving his acceptance to Harvard University at the age of 16.

He later went on to earn a doctorate in mathematics from the University of Michigan where his thesis paper was so complex, his professors at the time admitted not really being able to understand it.
At 25, Kaczynski became the youngest professor at the University of California, Berkeley but resigned two years later, moved in with his parents and eventually to a secluded cabin in the woods.
His mail bombing spree lasted twenty years, killed three people and injured 23. He is currently serving a life sentence.But before the Unabomber, there was a young boy who measured an IQ of 167 in the fifth grade.

Kim Ung-Yong—A guest physics student at age three

At the age of three, Kim Ung-Yong began taking courses as a guest physics student at Hanyang University in South Korea. By the age of eight, he was invited by NASA to study in the United States.Born in 1962, Kim Ung-Yong is listed as having the highest IQ at 210 in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The young prodigy began speaking at four months old and merely two years later, he was able to read in Japanese, Korean, German and English.As a 16-year-old, Kim left NASA and decided to attend college in Korea to earn a doctorate in civil engineering.Kim has been an adjunct professor at Chungbuk University since 2007 and has published approximately 90 papers on hydraulics in scientific journals.

Michael Kearney—The world's youngest university graduate

 

At age ten, Michael Kearney received a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Alabama and at 17, he received his second graduate degree from Vanderbilt University.Hawaiian-born, Kearney is listed as the world’s youngest university graduate in the Guinness Book of World Records.At 21, Kearney had collected four undergraduate degrees and a year later, he received his doctorate in chemistry.In 2006, Kearney won $1 million in AOL’s Gold Rush and $25,000 on Who Wants To Be a Millionaire in 2008.He has had early aspirations to be a game show host. At a young age, Kearney was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Gregory Smith—The four-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee

 

In 1999, at ten years old Gregory Smith received a four-year scholarship to Randolph-Macon College worth approximately $70,000. The young boy eventually graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and minors in History and Biology.Two years later, Smith added meeting with Bill Clinton and Mikhail Gorbachev, speaking in front of the United Nations, and being nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize to his list of life achievements.Smith has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize three times since then for his humanitarian work in East Timor, Sao Paolo, Rwanda and Kenya.

As a 16-year-old, Smith entered the University of Virginia to study for doctorates in mathematics, aerospace engineering, international relations and biomedical research.