His logic, and the connections he had built, fascinated me. Several years later, at a dinner party in Seattle, I recounted that story. History lessons in school are boring. It's math, because my teacher always gets us to think about connections and patterns. Try as we might to accommodate children's spontaneous questions, too often their natural enthusiasm is dulled by the needs of the system for order.
Some people call such an ability wits.
It's what the brain is all about.