Extraordinary People: The Rainman Twins

Extraordinary People: The Rainman Twins

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Ratings: 6.86/10 from 84 users.

Extraordinary People: The Rainman TwinsThe story of Flo and Kay, the worlds only female autistic savant twins. Savantism is a rare condition in which sufferers of developmental disorders, often autism, are capable of acts of genius that far outstrip their expected levels of ability. In Flo and Kays case, they each have extraordinary memories for facts and dates.

Among their many special talents is an ability to compute the day of the week for any date – past or future. For any given day of their lives, they can remember what the weather was like and even what they had for breakfast.

According to psychologist Dr David Holmes, Flo and Kay’s well ordered minds are also reflected in their well ordered lives. The more that they can create order, the more secure they feel, he says.

At 52 years of age, the twins are bubbly and sociable. They are passionate about music, enjoy going to gigs and love to laugh. This means that they do not fit the classic stereotype of autism sufferers.

At the New Jersey Neuroscience Institute, Dr Nancy Isenberg uses the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) to perform her assessment. She asks Flo and Kay a series of questions about friendships and emotions. As well as listening to their answers, she observes the sisters’ body language.

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Joan
Joan
1 year ago

I enjoyed this article. I'm an identical twin, we were born in 1954

Stewart Law
Stewart Law
3 years ago

It's not accurate to talk about autism "sufferers" . People with Autism are wired differently but they are no more suffering than you or I. If they do suffer, then it will be through our reaction to them.

Elaine
Elaine
3 years ago

What a honor it would be to meet these beautiful ladies. They are very inspiring.

Celeste Rose
Celeste Rose
3 years ago

My brother is an autistic savant. He is 58 years old. He is just like these twins. Was going 10th grade math when he was 6. Can repeat peoples names and phone numbers from a phone book he has read, knows all dates and the history of that date. Tons. He is a genius.

Mo Peep
Mo Peep
7 years ago

Guest, vaccinations don't cause Autism. The brains of Autistic people is wired differently from people who don't have Autism. Your brain gets wired a certain way in the womb before birth.

AlreadyInUse
AlreadyInUse
11 years ago

I taught myself how to compute the day of the week for any date many years ago. After some memorization of single digit numbers between 0 and 6 for each month (January = 0, February = 3, and so on) and each day of the week (Sunday = 0, Monday = 1, Tuesday = 2, etc.) and the method for finding this number for each year, it becomes a fairly simple calculation. Whether these two are even conscious of the underlying formula, they and any other autistic are performing the same mental math in doing this.

His Forever
His Forever
11 years ago

When I saw that Dick Clark died yesterday, the first thought that ran through my mind wasn't American Bandstand or Rockin' New Year's Eve will never be the same . . . . it was "I wonder how these two dear hearts are handling the news? They must be devistated!" I'm truly sorry, ladies. You have my condolences. Sincerely.

lazoon
lazoon
12 years ago

I've been suddenly cut off in the middle of this fascinating documentary for so called " copyright" reasons..Annoying and frustrating....Bo**ocks to the anal retentive, small minded, commercially oriented powers that be!

Morsie
Morsie
12 years ago

It's great how they have each other for friendship through their lives. Let's hope that when the time comes, they will go together, but I wonder if this would be possible?

Gary V
Gary V
12 years ago

A great doc, I would really like to meet them one day. A remarkable pair of Human beings.

Dailst Richardson
Dailst Richardson
12 years ago

what sweethearts! a great documentary!
i feel sad that they have to remember the horrors of their childhood in such detail.

Violet Haller
Violet Haller
12 years ago

God bless these two ladies. They are wonderful and loving human beings, I am so happy they shared their story with America.
A lady with the same autism worked in my office for over 20 years.
I a few years ago when cuts were made, her job was eliminated and she was sent to a job that did not have any skills she had, as a result it gave the employer leverage to get rid of her. She was only 50 years old so that meant that she would not be eligible for retirement. She was extremely scared as she shared with me that she needed her job and how could she live and pay her bills. She lived alone; her job was all she had.
Our society needs to stop being embarrassed by the differences in the handicapped people we live and work around. The handicapped have more to give than most rude normal nuts working in so called professional offices.

Winston Smith
Winston Smith
12 years ago

We all should look very carefully at what this implies about the rest of us.

Joseph Carl Ruger
Joseph Carl Ruger
12 years ago

Inspiring to say the least

His Forever
His Forever
12 years ago

Is autism becoming more common percentage wise or are more people just being correctly diagnosed with it? It seems like an autistic explosion has been happening for the past few decades.

Extraordinary people indeed, but sadly, the savants are few even among the autistic.

medusa1963
medusa1963
12 years ago

I loved this doc.. these girls brought a smile to my face..

medusa1963
medusa1963
12 years ago

I watched these girls and they brought a smile to my face..
Despite the heart ship and tribes and tribulations they've had during their lives these two are truly an inspiration for the likes of us...

Guest
Guest
12 years ago

One says: i think a micro chip was implanted in our brain.
Not a bad thought! If it was, we quite possibly wouldn't be told about it.
Quite interesting to see them cataloguing the Pyramid show, they are two being one, or one being two
az

Irishkev
Irishkev
12 years ago

It's hard to soar with eagles when you live with turkeys. Good doc. It's cool how they're unique even though they're identical twins.

NAND Gate
NAND Gate
12 years ago

I have mild autism, and I wouldnt change a thing ;)

Robert M
Robert M
12 years ago

Touching, I have often thought autism is more a gift for some, not a dis-ease but an enhancement

pulunco
pulunco
12 years ago

These amazing ladies show more devotion and loyalty to Dick Clark than most religious people do towards thier gods.

I was going to start worshipping Joe Pesci but screw it; Dick Clark is as good as anyone else.