J. a. Howe

In Genius Explained Michael J. A. Howe addresses the commonly held belief that genius is born not made. Controversially he suggests that genius is not a mysterious and mystical gift but the product of a combination of environment, personality and sheer hard work. The exceptional talents of those we call geniuses are the result of a unique set of circumstances and opportunities, but in every case they are pursued and exploited with a characteristic drive, determination and focus which the rest of us rarely show. Michael J. A. Howe develops these ideas through a series of case studies focusing on famous figures such as Charles Darwin, George Eliot, George Stevenson, the Brontë sisters, Michael Faraday and Albert Einstein in this fascinating and accessible book which will be of interest to academics, students and the interested lay reader.

This book is about human abilities and the ways in which people acquire and extend them. It contains many useful facts about people's learning and the mental processes that make it possible. Chapter o

`In this remarkably economical, clear and informed book, Mike Howe... sets about unravelling the formidable semantic, logical and empirical knots into which IQ testers and their supporters have tied t