Off the top of your head, what’s the scientific term for cell division? Do you know the process through which a caterpillar turns into a butterfly? Emmelyn Roettger, who is 3 years old, can quickly tell you that mitosis and metamorphosis are the right answers. Emmelyn Roettger is a smart little girl. In fact, she’s so smart that when she turned 2, she became one of the youngest people to join Mensa, the American association for kids and adults with high IQs.
Her parents find it both miraculous and more than a little ironic that their daughter turned out to be gifted, because when she was a baby, doctors said that she was developmentally delayed and might have autism. Emmelyn’s mother refused to believe that her daughter was autistic so out of desperation, she took her to have her vision checked, only to discover that Emmelyn just needed glasses.
Since then, Emmelyn began recognizing letters when she was 15 months old and could read and write just a few months later. She could also do math and count to 100 in 5s, 10s and 20s. She loves science and can tell you lots of facts about Jupiter and Saturn’s rings. And with an IQ of 135, Emmelyn officially has a level that shows her to have superior intelligence.