Genius

What is genius? Is it just seeing the world differently? How do you know if you see the world different than everyone else since you cannot ever truly see through a different person's perspective? Is it simply questioning and searching for answers constantly? Does insanity necessarily accompany genius and exceptional intelligence, in some degree or another? Where is the line drawn between insanity and genius? Can a balanced, socially-adjusted person be a genius? Who can identify a genius? How important is an innate and unfailing belief in oneself, to the point of arrogance? Is there a pattern to genius or is it entirely individual, depending on the person, time period, and subject? Is there only one kind of genius or is there a multitude of various types? How much of the brilliant insights can be attributed to luck? Are there geniuses who never make a mark? If so, then why don't they? How does one know if they have enough brilliance that they have a responsibility to change the world? For great accomplishments, is it necessary to be brilliant, or is it enough to just want to discover something and believe that you can? How is brilliance best harnessed to produce results? Does education help or hinder brilliance? Is there anything to be said for naive, uneducated ideas? What other characteristics, if any, must be present, aside from brilliance, to accomplish something great? Tenacity, hard work, passion, dedication, curiosity, love for aesthetics?

The literary geniuses: Shakespeare, Tolstoy, Hemmingway, Elliot. The artistic geniuses: Van Gogh, Monet, Michelangelo. The musical geniuses: Mozart, Beethoven, Bach. The legendary geniuses: Feynman, Nash, Newton, and of course, the name synonymous with genius, Einstein. The brilliant leaders of today: Smolin, Rovelli, Whitten, Baez, Penrose. Just to name a few. Is there a pattern?

What is it that makes a genius?