In 2012, a 25 year-old UK footballer woke from a coma with serious brain injury a week after a horrific car crash. But he experienced two weird symptoms. As well as English, he spoke fluent French to the nurses, despite only having a basic grasp from school. When he looked in the mirror, he didn't recognize himself. He was sure he was Hollywood actor Matthew McConaughey.
A former US Navy man who woke up in a hotel room in Palm Springs, California, had no idea who he was despite identification on his passport. He can only speak Swedish and no English.
Other stories about people hitting their head and suddenly knowing how to play the piano are fascinating. What goes on inside the brain? And how does an injury change the way it works?
Apparently, people who wake up speaking another language have "transient global amnesia".
Scientists think that when certain people suffer brain trauma, the portion of their left brain (language) shuts down. However, if the person learned a language late in life, the knowledge is stored in the right side, so the brain suddenly uses that information.
Another theory that could explain grasping knowledge or skills you never had before is reincarnation.
Whenever anything miraculous happens, like someone dies and comes back to tell tales of angels, a white light, and an afterlife, it's considered a miracle.
Which explanation for a sudden grasp of new knowledge do you prefer?