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| Bill Yates Brain Posts |
Hat tip to Mind Hacks for pointing out a recent two part interview with Professor John Nash. Dr. Nash is the subject of the film a Beautiful Mind that reached a significant level of popular and critical acclaim. The interview by Riz Khan is part of the Al Jezeera productions.
Here are some of my comments on the interview:
Dr. Nash is 81 years old but feels he can still contribute to the academic community. He conceives of his working age as 56. This is 81 minus 25 years of not being able to work due to mental illness.
He has been diagnosed with schizophrenia. He had an active paranoid delusional phase but now reports not taking any psychotropic medication. This is not uncommon clinically, as early hallucinations and delusions may give way to what are more clinically known as negative symptoms.
Dr. Nash has some difficulty in answering many questions. He does not have much insight into emotional developmental issues. He is unable to explain much about his relationship to his father or mother. The interview shows some poverty of content. Responses are limited and he does little to extend answers and initiate new areas for discussion.
He advocates cognitive therapy for mental disorders. His concept of cognitive therapy seems more like cognitive rehabilitation--i.e. playing chess on the computer.
Mathematics is a scientific discipline where creative advancement may occur at a very young age--teens and early twenties. Schizophrenia significantly impairs cognitive ability. But Dr. Nash was able to make a significant scientific contribution at an early age--before the onset of his clinical disorder. He has had a pretty good long-term outcome for the seriousness of his disorder. His high IQ prior to his illness may have buffered him from some effects of the illness.
Part one of the interview is embedded above (about 10 minutes). Part two of the interview (about the same length) can by accessed through the link below.
Standard YouTube License @ Al Jazeera English
Link to Part 2 of the Interview.
See the original article:
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