Bipolar Genii

Scientists have uncovered powerful evidence showing the connection between intelligence and madness, revealing that high-achievers are far more likely to be manic depressives. “Speculation that the two may be related dates back millennia, and can be found in the writings of Aristotle, Plato and Socrates. Aristotle once claimed that ‘there is no great genius without a mixture of madness’, but the scientific evidence for an association has been weak – until now. A study of more than 700,000 adults showed that those who scored top grades at school were four times more likely to develop bipolar disorder than those with average grades. The link was strongest among those who studied music or literature, the two disciplines in which genius and madness are most often linked in historical records. The study was conducted by researchers from the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, with colleagues from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.”