When we would discuss Asperger (autism) here, it might be helpfull to offer what I call the Mental Spatial Hypothesis of Asperger. Which states that differences in the levels of hormones (like dopamine) during the developement of the brain result in the cognitive differences between the left and right hemisphere. Put most extreme: People typified as Asperger having two left hemispheres and (hyper emphatics two right hemispheres). This basically creates the difference in cognitive and socio-emotional functioning. The spatial aspect comes in when we consider that, in any person the hemipheres have their typical field of awareness in mental space: The left has a smaller area in front of the head while the right includes the body and a much wider area. In this space the left creates detailed foreground cognition and the right more general background cognition. Both fields overlap in the space in front. In other words the right hemispheric field shares and includes the space of the left.

Now from this configuration comes the super Asperger intelligence, in the area of systems, details and the memory of facts, that exceeds people with so to speak only one left hemisphere. On the other hand, people with two right hemispeheres are very social and engaged in general thinking: where in general body sensations are often experienced as pleasant. Intimacy is quick and easy. However, two left hemispheres helps a person to pay attention to details that others overlook. And here I think we need to look when it is about "super abillities" like the ones in the question. The need for coherence in the model of the wold in Asperger is often great: missing the general right hemispheric cognition in the background is making some things in life hard: general orientation and social relationships (empathy). Also having a larger, double left hemispheric awareness field, that also includes parts of the body, may result in less motoric fluency and hyper sensitivety for stimuli that other people habituate faster with their right hemispheric mental activity.

So it might be, that the extra need to orient oneself on a more detailed level, may result in becomming aware of things in the environment that others miss out.

I hope this helps to shed some light on the whole picture of Asperger autism and also its opposite cognitive style. Most people are somewhere in between.

Dear Lucas, thank you for pointing out this very interesting line of research. I'm now reading your PhD dissertation where you develop these ideas. This is very helpful for me. Thank a lot. a