When asked how I managed to shed 80 pounds in nine months my first response is always: I stop eating junk food. Watching Emily Bazelon’s presentation on girls with Autism lead me to this quote from Clifford Nass: Our research shows a link between face-to-face contact and good relationships because that’s the best way to [...]

This is what rationed health care looks like. From the Los Angeles Times: Discovering Autism. Rates of autism have exploded over the last 20 years. In exploring the phenomenon and its repercussions, Los Angeles Times staff writer Alan Zarembo interviewed dozens of clinicians, researchers, parents and educators and reviewed scores of scientific studies. Zarembo, along [...]

Originally, the trailer was available for embedding and the full show was avialable through the CBC and Vimeo, but those links are now broken. I work with students with Autism Sepctrum Disorder. I see and feel the frustration of parents who need answers. The comments on the CBC page are just a hint of the [...]

If I were a member of a young couple today and planning to start a family, I would be scared witless by the statistics regarding children born with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Only a year or so ago the figure was that one child in 150, or .67 percent, born in the United States would [...]

[Update -- 9 May: See also: Liar, Liar: Jim Carrey and the Misinformation About Vaccines and Autism and Neuroligica Blog...] I got a tetanus shot a few weeks ago. Just a regular booster, a smart thing to do. Dying from tetanus isn’t fun. In generalized tetanus, the initial complaints may include any of the following: [...]

Edouard Machery writes: The Free-Cup Case: Joe was feeling quite dehydrated, so he stopped by the local smoothie shop to buy the largest sized drink available. Before ordering, the cashier told him that if he bought a Mega-Sized Smoothie he would get it in a special commemorative cup. Joe replied, ‘I don’t care about a [...]

Last Wednesday I posted about a sensory-friendly showing of the animated feature: Star Wars — The Clone Wars this coming Saturday. Yesterday I received this update: WHAT: AMC Entertainment and ASA have teamed up to begin testing a pilot program to bring families affected by autism a special opportunity to enjoy their favorite films in [...]

When I’m wearning my educator hat, one of the tasks I perform is to work with students who have a variety forms of Autism Spectrum Disorder. Because of that role, I’m on the mailing list for The Autism Society of Greater Cleveland. This morning I got an email announcing a sensory-friendly showing of Star Wars [...]

Steven Novella wrote: The case of [facilitated communication] in general and with this specific trial show a major feature of pseudoscience – the deliberate use of bad data that can be manipulated to give a desired result. When FC is tested with proper scientific controls it is clear that that facilitator is doing all the [...]

This afternoon I went to the 3:30 showing of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. I picked this weekday afternoon showing because it had a low risk of loud obnoxious kids ruining the expensive experience for me. (And I was right, I shared the theater with one other person.) I’m glad that [...]

[Update -- 2136 -- I just got off the phone with one of my friends who is a mental health professional and educational specialist. She pointed me to the information on facilitated communication and suggested that this was likely what is going on here. I have to wonder, who is on the other side of [...]

I’ve watched the video several times now and I’m feeling uneasy about what I’m watching. My discomfort comes from an uncertainty about the chasm between the first and second parts of the video. I’d really like to hear from the woman’s psychologist or other medical professionals who are working with her. Language exists so that [...]

Your thoughts?

This evening I received the following letter in the form of a comment to a blog post that was 18 months old. It’s a long letter and it rambles quite a bit. It’s the kind of letter that a newspaper would seriously edit for length and clarity. But I don’t have a space problem and [...]

Click above for the video Earlier this year I was fortunate enough to hear Dr. Temple Grandin speak in Cleveland. She gave me a number of insights into my students with Autism and helped me to better shape the strategies I use. The brain is fascinating beyond belief. Everything is in there. We just have [...]

Because I’m devoting most of my time in November to the Novel In A Month Challenge, I’ve set up 30 items from my blogpile — items I once thought interesting but never blogged about — for everyone to discuss. Next up is Exploring autism and technology. Scoop, lever, heave, scoop, lever…

Over the last three years the number of students I work with who have some form of Autism has increased. Not that the rate of Autism is increasing, it is, but rather that schools have asked me to work with more students with this disorder. Because of this I have become more interested in what [...]