This troper recently heard that there was a 17 year old girl at his University with a photographic memory who aced a 400 level (read: college senior level, for those not familiar with college course numbers) class. This is unusual.

Isn't that a little too young to be unusual?

Yes, yes it is.

Not that unusual, in my opinion. At my university, it is uncommon but not exceptionally rare to see first-years in 400-level classes. I took a few 400-level classes my first year, and aced them all. Since I skipped a grade, I was 17 until almost the end of the year. In my experience, first-years in upper-level classes tend to be more motivated than upperclassmen - that's why they're taking the classes. Then again, the difficulty and dependency on previous material of upper-level classes varies by department, so my accomplishment may still not be commensurate to hers. Still, worth thinking about.

Well, it's definitely unusual by Seattle University standards. Not many 17 year olds in 400 level classes there. In fact, the average seventeen year old in Seattle is still finishing up their senior year in high school. Clearly this girl is anything but average.