Jared M. Nussbaum is a doctoral student at Purdue University under Dr. Rick Olenchak specializing in the study of giftedness, creativity, talent development, and related constructs. Having been identified as exceptionally gifted himself, Jared is particularly interested in the internal experience of the most severely gifted among us and intends to contribute literature that precisely elucidates what it means on a qualitative basis to be highly capable. Jared studies the neuroscience of intelligence, including sensitivity of the neurons and speed of neural conduction as they relate to high ability. He is also interested in the nature of genius and the intersection of high ability and mental illness, in particular OCD. Partial to theory, Jared seeks to establish more exact and comprehensive definitions of the foundational concepts that inform the field of gifted education. Jared has been a member of the IGC community since 2020 and has a bachelor’s in philosophy from Connecticut College. He is from the NYC metro area and, as an avocation, helps to run his family’s very small ice cream shop, out of which his family makes their own ice cream!