Final Presentation!

Happy Monday, everyone! First, I want to apologize for the last minute upload. I really wanted to post the first installment of my report before my presentation, but I didn't take into account other assignments/obligations that ended up being more time consuming than I expected. So, I've decided to upload 3 of the sources I'm consulting for my report for us to discuss. The central theme of my report can be condensed into one question:

Is Autism the next stage of human evolution?

When I consider the expectations placed on the current generation in terms of success, dedication, and intelligence, the stereotype of the Aspie comes to mind. Intelligent and innovate minds are expected to be nearly obsessive with their dedication, committing themselves to 60 hour + long work weeks. How did this come to be the expectation? Have we shaped our idea of success around a select few, leaving the rest to compensate with drugs and shortcuts? Vincent was sharing with me the woes of applying to medical school, and he mentioned that much of his competition has most likely already published research, giving them an edge over everyone else. How has this become commonplace?

                                        
Quiz Answers:

1. What was the name of the book Nick's mother read to understand what her son was experiencing?
Asperger's Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals

2. What was the name of Dustin Hoffman's character in Rain Man?
Raymond Babbitt

3.What percentage of those with autistic disorders suffer from mild to severe mental retardation?
70 percent

4. What is the Greek word for self?
Autòs

5. Who coined the term Asperger's Syndrome?
Lorna Wing

6. How did Lorna Wing describe the autistic spectrum or continuum?
"ranges from the most profoundly physically and mentally retarded person ... to the most able, highly intelligent person with social impairment in its subtlest form as his only disability. It overlaps with learning disabilities and shades into eccentric normality."

7. What year was autism added to the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)?
1980

8. What year was Asperger's syndrome included as a separate disorder?
1994

9. What does Dr. Tony Attwood advise parents to do whose children receive contradicting diagnoses of classic autism and Asperger's?
"Use the diagnosis that provides the services."

10. How much can in-home therapy cost per year for parents with children with an autism disorder?
$60,000

11. Who said, "Anyone who says this epidemic is due to better diagnostics...has his head in the sand"?
Rick Rollens, former secretary of the California Senate and cofounder of the MIND institute

12. How many words could Dov speak at age 9?
20 words

13. Who was the first psychologist to promote the idea that autism was organic in origin?
Bernard Rimland

14. If one twin has autism, what is the chance that the other twin will also have autism?
90 percent chance

15. What is the term geneticists use to refer to parents that stop having children after the first child has autism?
Stoppage

16. What does Kathryn Stewart call Asperger's syndrome?
"the engineers' disorder"

17. What is the metaphor used by many with autism to describe their rule-based, image-driven thought processes?
"intelligent automata"

18. What do geneticists call those who "don't fit into the diagnostic pigeonholes"?
"broad autistic phenotypes"

19. What does Dan Geschwind think autism and dyslexia suggest about human intelligence?
Certain kinds of excellence might require not just various modes of thinking, but different kinds of brains.

20. Who said that "a dash of autism is essential" for "success in science and art"?
Hans Asperger


DQs:

• Do you feel like current measures of performance, success, and intellect are unrealistic?
• Do you think stimulant medications level the playing field between the neurodiverse and the neurotypical, or do they create unfair advantages?
• Should we embrace the use of stimulants like Adderall and Vyvanse as a norm, much like coffee and other forms of caffeine?
• Rates of diagnosed autism are on the rise. Is it possible that we are evolving as a species to adapt to our societal, technologically-influenced standards of human productivity and success? Have we created autism by demanding these traits?