Human calculator is a term to describe a person with a prodigious ability in some area of

mental calculation Mental calculation consists of arithmetical calculations using only the human brain, with no help from any supplies (such as pencil and paper) or devices such as a calculator. People may use mental calculation when computing tools are not availab ...

(such as adding, subtracting, multiplying or dividing large numbers). The world's best mental calculators are invited every two years to compete for the

Mental Calculation World Cup The Mental Calculation World Cup (German: Weltmeisterschaften im Kopfrechnen, or World Championship in Mental Calculation) is an international competition for mental calculators, held every two years in Germany. Mental Calculation World Cup 2004 Th ...

. On July 17, 2022, at Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum in Paderborn city of Germany, 12-year-old Indian mental calculator Aaryan Nitin Shukla clinched the title to become the new World Champion. Aaryan ended the dominance of Japanese mental calculators who won the competitions during 2018-Tomohiro Iseda and 2016-Yuki Kimura. Tomohiro Iseda (2018) was the third Japanese person to win the Cup, after Naofumi Ogasawara (2012) and Yuki Kimura (2016).

Shakuntala Devi Shakuntala Devi (4 November 1929 – 21 April 2013) was an Indian mental calculator and writer, popularly known as the "Human Computer". Her talent earned her a place in the 1982 edition of ''The Guinness Book of World Records''. However, ...

from

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

has been often mentioned on the

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

. Neelakantha Bhanu Prakash from

has been often mentioned on the

Limca Book of Records The ''Limca Book of Records'' is an annual reference book published in India documenting world records held by Indians. The records are further categorized into education, literature, agriculture, medical science, business, sports, nature, advent ...

for racing past the speed of a calculator in addition. Srilankan-

Malaysian Malaysian may refer to: * Something from or related to Malaysia, a country in Southeast Asia * Malaysian Malay, a dialect of Malay language spoken mainly in Malaysia * Malaysian people, people who are identified with the country of Malaysia regard ...

performer Yaashwin Sarawanan was the runner-up in 2019 ''

Asia's Got Talent ''Asia's Got Talent'' is a televised Asian talent show competition, and part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. Produced and aired by AXN Asia, it was created in the wake of the successes of both '' America's Got Tal ...

''. In 2005, a group of researchers led by Michael W. O'Boyle, an American

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

previously working in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and now at

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...

, has used

MRI Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves ...

scanning of

blood flow Hemodynamics or haemodynamics are the dynamics of blood flow. The circulatory system is controlled by homeostatic mechanisms of autoregulation, just as hydraulic circuits are controlled by control systems. The hemodynamic response continuously m ...

during mental operation in computational prodigies. These math prodigies have shown increases in blood flow to parts of the

brain A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a v ...

responsible for mathematical operations during a mental rotation task that are greater than the typical increases. Mental calculators were in great demand in research centers such as

CERN The European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN (; ; ), is an intergovernmental organization that operates the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. Established in 1954, it is based in a northwestern suburb of Gene ...

before the advent of modern electronic calculators and computers. See, for instance, Steven B. Smith's 1983 book ''The Great Mental Calculators'', or the 2016 book ''

Hidden Figures ''Hidden Figures'' is a 2016 American biographical drama film directed by Theodore Melfi and written by Melfi and Allison Schroeder. It is loosely based on the 2016 non-fiction Hidden Figures (book), book of the same name by Margot Lee Shetterl ...

'' and the film adapted from it.

Champion mental calculators

Every two years the world's best mental calculators are invited to participate in The

, an international competition that attempts to find the world's best mental calculator, and also the best at specific types of mental calculation, such as multiplication or calendar reckoning. The top three final placings from each of the world cups that have been staged to date are shown below.

First Mental Calculation World Cup (Annaberg-Buchholz, 2004)

Second Mental Calculation World Cup (Gießen, 2006)

Third Mental Calculation World Cup (Leipzig, 2008)

Fourth Mental Calculation World Cup (Magdeburg, 2010)

Fifth Mental Calculation World Cup (Gießen, 2012)

Sixth Mental Calculation World Cup (Dresden, 2014)

Seventh Mental Calculation World Cup (Bielefeld, 2016)

Eighth Mental Calculation World Cup (Wolfsburg, 2018)

Ninth Mental Calculation World Cup (Paderborn, 2022)

The

Mind Sports Olympiad The Mind Sports Olympiad (MSO) is an annual international multi-disciplined competition and festival for games of mental skill and mind sports. The inaugural event was held in 1997 in London with £100,000 prize fund''Mind Sports Olympiad Su ...

has staged an annual world championships since 1998.

MSO mental calculation gold medal winners

The

Mind Sports Organisation The Mind Sports Organisation (MSO) is an association for promoting mind sports including Contract Bridge, Chess, Go, Mastermind, and Scrabble. Since 1997 it has annually organised in England a multi-sport competition, the Mind Sports Olympiad. ...

recognizes five grandmasters of mental calculation: Robert Fountain (1999), George Lane (2001),

Gert Mittring Gert Mittring (born May 26, 1966 in Stuttgart) is a German mental calculator. He was inspired by the late Wim Klein. He has competed in the MSO mental calculation event every year since 2004, failing to win the gold medal outright on only four ...

(2005), Chris Bryant (2017) and Wenzel Grüß (2019), and one international master, Andy Robertshaw (2008). In 2021, Aaryan Nitin Shukla became the youngest champion ever at an age of just 11 years.

Mental calculators (deceased)

* Aitken, Alexander Craig (1895–1967), New Zealand mathematician * Ampère, André-Marie (1775–1836) * Bidder, George Parker (1806–1878) * Buxton, Jedediah (1707–1772) * Colburn, Zerah (1804–1839) * Dase, Johann Zacharias (1824–1861) * Devi, Shakuntala (1929–2013) * Dysart, Willis (1923–2011), a.k.a. Willie the Wizard * Eberstark, Hans (1929–2001) * Euler, Leonhard (1707–1783) * Finkelstein, Salo (born –unknown) * Fuller, Thomas (1710–1790) * Gauss, Carl Friedrich (1777–1855), German mathematician and physicist * Griffith, Arthur F. (1880–1911) * Hamilton, William Rowan (1805–1865) * Inaudi, Jacques (1867–1950) * Klein, Wim (1912–1986), a.k.a.

Willem Klein Willem Klein (4 December 1912 – 1 August 1986), also known as Wim Klein or under his stage names Pascal and Willy Wortel, was a Dutch mathematician of Jewish ancestry, famous for being able to carry out very complicated calculations in his hea ...

* McCartney, Daniel (1817–1887) * Neumann, John von (1903–1957) * Ramanujan, Srinivasa (1887–1920) * Riemann, Bernhard (1826–1866) * Safford, Truman Henry (1836–1901) * Shelushkov, Igor (born – ?) * Wallis, John (1616–1703)

Mental calculators in fiction

Dune

Frank Herbert Franklin Patrick Herbert Jr. (October 8, 1920February 11, 1986) was an American science fiction author best known for the 1965 novel '' Dune'' and its five sequels. Though he became famous for his novels, he also wrote short stories and worked a ...

's novel ''

Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

'', specially trained mental calculators known as

Mentat Multiple organizations of the ''Dune'' universe dominate the political, religious, and social arena of the setting of Frank Herbert's Dune (franchise), ''Dune'' series of science fiction novels, and derivative works. Set tens of thousands of year ...

s have replaced mechanical computers completely. Several important supporting characters in the novel, namely

Piter De Vries Piter De Vries is a fictional character from the ''Dune'' universe created by Frank Herbert. He is primarily featured in the 1965 novel ''Dune'', but also appears in the ''Prelude to Dune'' prequel trilogy (1999–2001) by Brian Herbert and K ...

and

Thufir Hawat The following is a list of secondary fictional characters from the science fiction media franchise ''Dune'' created by Frank Herbert. The characters listed originate in Herbert's novel series (1965–1985), but some also appear in the ''Prelude to ...

, are Mentats.

Paul Atreides Paul Atreides (; later known as Paul Muad'Dib, and later still as The Preacher) is a fictional character in the ''Dune'' universe created by Frank Herbert. Paul is the primary protagonist in the first two novels in the series, ''Dune'' (1965) ...

was originally trained as one without his knowledge. However, these Mentats do not specialize in mathematical calculations, but in total recall of many different kinds of data. For example, Thufir Hawat is able to recite various details of a mining operation, including the number of various pieces of equipment, the people to work them, the profits and costs involved, etc. In the novel he is never depicted as doing actual academic mathematical calculations. Mentats were valued for their capacity as humans to store data, because "thinking machines" are outlawed.

Matilda

Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter ace of Norwegian descent. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. Dahl has be ...

's novel ''

Matilda Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Matilda (horse) (1824–1846), British Thoroughbred racehorse * Matilda, a dog of the professional wrestling tag-team The ...

'', the lead character is portrayed having exceptional computational skills as she computes her father's profit without the need for paper computations. During class (she is a first-year elementary school student), she does large-number multiplication problems in her head almost instantly.

Other

In the 1988 movie ''

Rain Man ''Rain Man'' is a 1988 American road movie, road Drama (film and television), drama film directed by Barry Levinson and written by Barry Morrow and Ronald Bass. It tells the story of abrasive, selfish young wikt:wheeler-dealer, wheeler-dealer C ...

'', Raymond Babbitt, who has

savant syndrome Savant syndrome () is a rare condition in which someone with significant mental disabilities demonstrates certain abilities far in excess of average. The skills that savants excel at are generally related to memory. This may include rapid calcu ...

, can mentally calculate large numbers, amongst other abilities. Andrew Jackson "Slipstick" Libby is a calculating prodigy in

Robert A. Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein (; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific accu ...

Sci-Fi Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel universe ...

story ''

Methuselah's Children ''Methuselah's Children'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein. Originally serialized in ''Astounding Science Fiction'' in the July, August, and September 1941 issues, it was expanded into a full-length novel in 1958. ...

''. In the

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...

legal drama '' Suits'', the main character, Mike Ross, is asked to multiply considerably large numbers in his head to impress two girls, and subsequently does so. In

Haruki Murakami is a Japanese writer. His novels, essays, and short stories have been bestsellers in Japan and internationally, with his work translated into 50 languages and having sold millions of copies outside Japan. He has received numerous awards for his ...

's novel ''

Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World is a 1985 novel by Japanese author Haruki Murakami. It was awarded the Tanizaki Prize in 1985. The English translation by Alfred Birnbaum was released in 1991. A strange and dreamlike novel, its chapters alternate between two narratives—"Hard ...

'', a class of mental calculators known as ''Calcutecs'' perform

cryptography Cryptography, or cryptology (from grc, , translit=kryptós "hidden, secret"; and ''graphein'', "to write", or ''-logia'', "study", respectively), is the practice and study of techniques for secure communication in the presence of adver ...

in a sealed-off portion of their brains, the results of which they are unable to access from their normal waking consciousness. In the Fox television show ''

Malcolm in the Middle ''Malcolm in the Middle'' is an American family television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for Fox. The series premiered on January 9, 2000, and ended on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons and 151 episodes. The series follows a dysfunctional ...

'', Malcolm Wilkerson displays astounding feats of automatic mental calculation, which causes him to fear his family will see him as a "freak", and causes his brother to ask, "Is Malcolm a robot?". In the 1991 movie ''

Little Man Tate ''Little Man Tate'' is a 1991 American drama film directed by Jodie Foster (in her directorial debut) from a screenplay written by Scott Frank. The film stars Adam Hann-Byrd as Fred Tate, a seven-year-old child prodigy who struggles to self-act ...

'', Fred Tate in the audience blurts out the answer during a mental calculation contest. In the 1990s NBC TV sitcom ''

NewsRadio ''NewsRadio'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC from March 21, 1995 to May 4, 1999, focusing on the work lives of the staff of a New York City AM news radio station. It had an ensemble cast featuring Dave Foley, Stephen ...

'', reporter/producer Lisa Miller can mentally calculate products, quotients, and square roots effortlessly and almost instantly, on demand. In the 1997 Sci-Fi thriller ''

Cube In geometry, a cube is a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex. Viewed from a corner it is a hexagon and its net is usually depicted as a cross. The cube is the only r ...

'', one of the prisoners, Kazan, appears to be mentally disabled, but is revealed later in the film to be an autistic savant who is able to calculate prime factors in his head. In 1998

Darren Aronofsky Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. His films are noted for their surrealistic, melodramatic, and sometimes disturbing elements, often in the form of psychological fiction. Aronof ...

's film '' Pi'', Maximillian Cohen is asked a few times by a young child with a calculator to do large multiplications and divisions in his head, which he promptly does, correctly. In 1998 film ''

Mercury Rising ''Mercury Rising'' is a 1998 American action thriller film starring Bruce Willis and Alec Baldwin. Directed by Harold Becker, the movie is based on Ryne Douglas Pearson's 1996 novel originally published as ''Simple Simon'', which was the worki ...

'', a 9-year-old

autistic savant Savant syndrome () is a rare condition in which someone with significant mental disabilities demonstrates certain abilities far in excess of average. The skills that savants excel at are generally related to memory. This may include rapid calcu ...

with prodigious math abilities cracks a

top secret Classified information is material that a government body deems to be sensitive information that must be protected. Access is restricted by law or regulation to particular groups of people with the necessary security clearance and need to know, ...

government code. In the 2006 film '' Stranger than Fiction'', the main character, Harold Crick, is able to perform rapid arithmetic at the request of his co-workers. In the 2007 sitcom ''

The Big Bang Theory ''The Big Bang Theory'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro, all of whom also served as head writers. It premiered on CBS ...

'', the main character,

Sheldon Cooper Sheldon Lee Cooper, Ph.D., Sc.D., is a fictional character in the CBS television series ''The Big Bang Theory'' and its spinoff series ''Young Sheldon'', portrayed by actors Jim Parsons and Iain Armitage respectively (with Parsons as the latter ...

, calculates numbers and solutions in his head for his theoretical physics research. In the 2008 show ''

Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited hig ...

'', the main character,

Walter White Walter White most often refers to: * Walter White (''Breaking Bad''), character in the television series ''Breaking Bad'' * Walter Francis White (1893–1955), American leader of the NAACP Walter White may also refer to: Fictional characters ...

, is shown to calculate most of the numbers to his deals, such as profit and production costs, purely within his head. In the 2009 Japanese animated film '' Summer Wars'', the main character, mathematical genius Kenji Koiso, is able to mentally break purely mathematical encryption codes generated by the OZ virtual world's security system. He can also mentally calculate the day of the week a person was born, based on their birthday. In another Fox television show, ''

Fringe Fringe may refer to: Arts * Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest arts festival, known as "the Fringe" * Adelaide Fringe, the world's second-largest annual arts festival * Fringe theatre, a name for alternative theatre * The Fringe, the ...

'', in the third episode of the third season, Olivia and her fellow Fringe Division members encounter an individual with severe cognitive impairment who has been given experimental nootropics and as a result has become a mathematical genius. The individual is able to calculate hundreds of equations simultaneously, which he leverages to avoid being returned to his original state of cognitive impairment. In the 2012 film ''

Safe A safe (also called a strongbox or coffer) is a secure lockable box used for securing valuable objects against theft or fire. A safe is usually a hollow cuboid or cylinder, with one face being removable or hinged to form a door. The body and ...

'', a female child math genius is kidnapped to be used by the Chinese Triad. In the 2014 Sci-Fi novel ''Double Bill'' by S. Ayoade, Devi Singh, a mental calculator, is one of the 70 lucky children who win a trip to the moon. In the 2014 TV series ''

Scorpion Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. They have eight legs, and are easily recognized by a pair of grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back and always end ...

'', Sylvester Dodd, a gifted mathematician and statistician with an IQ of 175; he is described as a "human calculator". ''Shameless'' Season 7 Episode 1 In the 2016 film '' The Accountant'', a high-functioning autistic tracks insider financial deceptions for numerous criminal organizations. In the 2017 film ''

Gifted Intellectual giftedness is an intellectual ability significantly higher than average. It is a characteristic of children, variously defined, that motivates differences in school programming. It is thought to persist as a trait into adult life, wi ...

'', an intellectually gifted seven-year-old, Mary Adler, becomes the subject of a custody battle between her uncle and grandmother. In 2020, an eponymous film ''Shakuntala Devi'' on the life of Indian mathematician, writer, astrologer and mental calculator

References

{{reflist

External links

Mental Calculation World Cup siteMemoriad siteMethods and Relevance to Brain efficiency of Neelakantha BhanuMSO ResultsLightning Calculators
is a three-part essay that discusses these individuals, their methods, and the media coverage of them. Giftedness

Champion mental calculators

First Mental Calculation World Cup (Annaberg-Buchholz, 2004)

Second Mental Calculation World Cup (Gießen, 2006)

Third Mental Calculation World Cup (Leipzig, 2008)

Fourth Mental Calculation World Cup (Magdeburg, 2010)

Fifth Mental Calculation World Cup (Gießen, 2012)

Sixth Mental Calculation World Cup (Dresden, 2014)

Seventh Mental Calculation World Cup (Bielefeld, 2016)

Eighth Mental Calculation World Cup (Wolfsburg, 2018)

Ninth Mental Calculation World Cup (Paderborn, 2022)

MSO mental calculation gold medal winners

Mental calculators (deceased)

Mental calculators in fiction

Dune

Matilda

Other

See also

References

External links