Dean Keith Simonton's contention that scientific genius is extinct (Nature 493, 602; 2013) may itself be based on an extinct — or at least dying — concept of genius.
In the past, geniuses were lone scientists who distilled extant knowledge to spawn innovation. Simonton lays part of the blame for their extinction on modern team science (see K. Börner et al. Sci. Transl. Med. 2, 49cm24; 2010). But a different kind of genius can exist inside a team. An example might be the member who instinctively optimizes the group's complementary expertise to elicit a ground-breaking discovery.
Even more radical forms of genius are conceivable. The hallmark combination of knowledge and process can create a form of collective genius (A. W. Woolley et al. Science 330, 686–688; 2010). And as scientists become more connected with each other and technology, genius could emerge from a hybrid of human and machine intelligence.
There is no need to bemoan the demise of the lone genius. Rather, we should be fostering and studying more contemporary forms of scientific genius.
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Fiore, S. Scientific genius: In different guises. Nature 494, 430 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/494430a
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/494430a