The Geography of Genius

In a recent episode of Talk on Google, author Eric Weiner discussed his latest book "The Geography of Genius." The book discusses the characteristics of a genius and it stresses the type of environment that cultivate the so-called genius in our history.  Mr. Weiner traveled around the globe to explore the habitats of where many world-known genius lived in; he explored Athens, Hangzhous in China, Renaissance Florence, Enlightenment Edinburge in Scotland, Calcutta, Vienna, and Silicon Valley with the purpose to study the genius in the past.  He walked on the foot-steps of Socrates in Athens and Mozart in Vienna and tried to uncover the key factors that separate those genius from the rest of the population.

Gene verses the environment: which has more influence to a person? Social psychologists have done numerous researches on the topic and the general consensus is it depends and that both factors take part in shaping a person.

I believe the environment has the greatest impact on an individual.  Of course genetics play a huge role in how a person turns out in life but many individuals who have a born disability did not let it takes control of them, rather they let their ambitions and willpower to take control of their lives. And the result is they blossom in life and they succeed in areas in life that they could never thought of.  For instance, Serbian-Australian Nick Vujicic has a rare disorder called Phocomelia, a rare condition where a person is born with no limbs.  He struggled mentally and physically as a child but he came to accept it and used his physical state and life story to inspire other people. Today, he is a motivational speaker helping people to find hope and meaning in life, and he even runs a business that hires thousands of people.  He had social supports from friends and family and was able to overcome his disappointments. With this being said, it proves that one's genetics do have an impact on a person but how we carry out our lives depends on the environments greatly.  Nick's environment helped him to overcome his disability and he grew and became success in life.

The author Eric Weiner is right, genius are shaped by their environment. They are the product of their own personal experiences and the environment cultivates the genius.  There will always be roadblocks in life, there will be people who put us down and believe we are no good and we are damaged and cannot be fixed. But--there is always a but in most aspects in life-- what they said do not have to be our reality. We can make a big difference in our life  and change for the best. We cannot let our gene dictates us.  We are the creator of our future and our environment is in our hands, ready to let us mold it.