This is the story of a guy with high level Asperger, that I liked particularly.
Account
This is an instance of what happens to me so often, that It could be everyday.
When I was young and taking a degree in computer science as a programmer, I had about thirty people involved in the same specialty than me.
As we were almost through the last part of the training, I was rated second in my section. The guy who was rated first had had already four years of previous experience.
So here I was, doing my job, as good as I could; but not melting much with the other students. I have never been this kind of person. Not that I am ugly, or having some social disability (I have always had a good relationship with women - and some fair, but aloof friendship with men).
It is just that I am the opposite of the “facebook guy”.
So I was not getting involved with the “social jig” around; particularly when there was some problem to solve; and I kept doing my stuff on the side.
I never understood how a group could move towards a certain person, bootlick that person, because he or she had the solution; and then move away slily from him or her, once they got it; and most of the time disparage that person covertly.
It felt to me like they didn’t even notice how pitiful this was.
So this social game was not for me; and the group, without hating me, did not like me much.
A sort of shrouded jealousy was covering our relationship. I did not belong to the “social jig”; but I got the job done pretty easily; always at the last minute, but with much concentration in the task.
So one day, at the end of the training, some conundrum came along, and no one could solve it. I did not notice it right away, until the “social jig” got so hectic.
That was enough for me to concentrate quickly on the matter, and in a couple of minutes, I figured out the solution and gave it to everyone, without asking people to polish my apple.
They did not understand. And those social muttons got back at me harshly.
The following day, the dean of the university himself, rushed through the door asking: “who said that?”.
So everyone turned towards me and disparagingly said (thirty fingers pointed at me): “HIM!”.
The dean looked at them slightingly in return and said to them: “he is right”. And he looked at me like if I was god on earth and left.
They hated me after that.
That’s the story of my life.
I suppose that a bit of asocial behavior helps to seclude from the social jig, and the rather muttony attitude attached.
It surely looks like it helps concentrate fully on the matter at stake, and see things from a different angle - often the good one.
Seems to me like the Facebook guy is a bit high spectrum Asperger. That’s what they say anyway. The way he despised publicly the “morons” who subscibe to his social application, as he put it once, looks a bit like the reaction of the guy of the story.
This been said, he made twice as much subscriptions after that. Maybe was he right.
Here is Peter Thiel view on the “missing the imitation, socialization gene” (aka muttony disposition).
And a FT article.
In other words, high IQ and a pinch of Asperger, might be where the truth is.