Rebuilt - Michael Chorost

p 180.
Monks of certain sects can regulate their body temperature, heart rate, and other physiological processes with extraordinary precision, and Islamic scholars routinely memorize the entire Koran.  In medieval times, a skilled troubadour needed to hear a long poem recited only three times to commit the entire thing to memory; university teachers were said to be able to repeat a hundred lines of text after hearing it recited only once.  What should be surprising is not their achievements but the fact that such achievements are now so rare.

https://library.minlib.net/record=b2303198~S1