According to Maria Konnikova, Sherlock Holmes's phenomenal memory and capacity for reasoning are within the grasp of ordinary, non-fictional humans like ourselves.

Re-reading Arthur Conan-Doyle's stories about the 19th century detective, she was struck by the thought that Holmes embodies many of the discoveries of 21st century neuroscience and psychology about how the brain works.

"He thinks like a scientist," she told Alok Jha in last week's Science Weekly podcast. More than that, she believes he uses meditation and mindfulness to tap into his brain's "default mode network" – using it to spot hidden connections and make his famous "deductions".

Alok Jha interviews Maria Konnikova on the Guardian's Science Weekly podcast Link to this audio

Leave your questions and comments for Maria below. She will be online to answer them between 1.30pm and 2.30pm GMT on Wednesday.

Konnikova is a graduate psychologist at Columbia University and writes the weekly "Literally Psyched" column for Scientific American, where she explores the intersection of literature and psychology. She is the author of Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes.