Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | A genius explains:

“Tammet is calculating 377 multiplied by 795. Actually, he isn’t ‘calculating’: there is nothing conscious about what he is doing. He arrives at the answer instantly. Since his epileptic fit, he has been able to see numbers as shapes, colours and textures. The number two, for instance, is a motion, and five is a clap of thunder. ‘When I multiply numbers together, I see two shapes. The image starts to change and evolve, and a third shape emerges. That’s the answer. It’s mental imagery. It’s like maths without having to think.’”

Utterly fascinating article.