One of the symptoms of autism is hyper-focus, another is obsession.
If you are hyper-focused on something, say like math equations, you’ll tune out other things/hobbies/obligations to focus on that. If you are obsessed with something, again like math equations, you’ll want to do that thing all the time, even if it may hurt you because you ignore important stuff like relationships, grooming, bathing, or eating.
Part of doing something like math equations over and over again is that you tend to get really, *really* good at it. And since your symptoms of autism make you more likely to have that sort of behavior pattern, it means that they are more likely to become “savants” and develop specific skills.
EDIT: I want to add, this is a very ELI5 explanation and does not go into how different each autistic person is and that we should not expect them all to be geniuses. They are humans and are all different, just like everyone else.
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