Aspies For Freedom

Hey C is good or average!

Lots of neurotypicals go into conversational tangents.

Many of the conversations I enjoy most started with a tangent.

Oh, the places you'll go!

These two quotes are worrying -

Dan Gillette, who chairs the innovative technology committee for Cure Autism Now, a national advocacy group, said that while the project faces many hurdles, social scripts can help those with autism overcome their fear of social situations and lead more independent lives.


But Calvanio is even hopeful the technological assistance can do more than just help students cope: He hopes it can ''change the brain" enough to fix the disorder.

''That's the $64,000 question," he said.

''If we get the kids young enough, we think it's possible."


Cure Autism Now involved with a project that hopes to 'change the brain'.

I'd say the first quote is reasonable (crib notes are helpful by design) and the second one shows that research grants sometimes go to self-publicists instead of proper scientists.

Lots of people with autism use social scripts already to cope.

I don't know that most autistic people fear social situations.

Many are neutral towards them, and some actually seek them out.

And an independent life is practically built in to the definition of the disorder. What about an interdependent life? That's the aim for us all.

I mention this on my Sysblog: http://awitnesstotolerance.sysblog.net/2...ersations/

Could someone help me out with the right RSS?

Can you pm Gareth and he can advise you, thanks.

no thanks.  i don't need something to change my social habits.  that's what makes me so diffrent and so lovable.  it's part of my personality.  i will say that all people should at least know what not to do to avoid a dangerous situation, but i don't want my conversations all scripted...that's boring and confroming.

sorry, rant here.  why is autism always considered a disablity?  i'm not on disablity, i'm independent, etc.  we need to dispell the disablity myth.  i'm not disabled, i don't need a cure, i'm not a pity story.  so stop it with the tears.  autism is only disabling if you let it, just like any situation any person, autistic or not.

i think a better idea would be writing down your thoughts if someone is in the middle of a conversation, and wating your turn to say what you want.  i should do that at certian points, becuase i have a great idea, but someone is talking, so write it down and get back to it, but i think it's okay if you're not interuppting anything.  but i'm fine without it, and i like it.

and again with the negative autism remarks?  we never get anything postive, it's like were defective people in these articles or something.

and what's wrong with techology interaction better with persons?  last i heard, soical interaction isn't the main goal of life...ugh.  better soical interaction does not mean more independent.  i know some people who can soically interact all day, but are still living with their parents.

why do we have to become like them?  why can't we be ourselves and people deal with it?  annoying.  this article inperts the students as willing to become non autistic to be fully healthy, and the full hope is to fix autism, which is a stupid idea.  i don't want to rid myself of autism...i wouldn't be myself.

and what is that eugenic CAN doing?  probaly making us look bad as usual so they can wipe us out.

last thing, i have never blamed autism for anything in my life...autism is a part of me, yes, but it is not a crippling thing that prevents me from doing things, it's part of my personality, thats how things are, becuase that's me.

sorry for ranting.

"Demonstrating the software at his desk, Libby spoke in quick bursts, with his ideas usually a half-step ahead of his words. But he stayed on topic and paused periodically to gauge reaction, which he never used to do. The reminders are starting to stick, he said."

Pause periodically to gauge reaction.  -  if that is supposed to be from facial expression, I am lost at that.  Asking someone if they are bored of the topic might not be too effective either since most people might lie to seem polite.

"What's helping him is having the unwritten rules of social interaction written down. Using a personal digital assistant, or PDA, an electronic diary customized with social and organizational reminders, Libby is slowly breaking some hard-wired habits."  
Learning the rules and having to apply them all take time and concentration.  I find this very tiring.  

While all this can help some, it will never "cure".   This is just all the type of faking it or social camoflage that we older Aspies do all the time.  This is nothing new.  Victorian and early times seemed to have all these rules and  etiquette that was to be followed.  The last century wanted to reject some of that but I am not fooled.   People are forever demanding conformity and not moving toward acceptance of diversity in many ways.

hay we all have to focus one improving someithing. all people including people without autsim. there are so many social situaions so i am sceptical that this technolgoy workds. sorry but with every peorson with autism/ asperger symdrome i know are different. with the same diognonsis i know 2 people one who always looks at you while talking to you and the other who hardly ever. i am acussed of not looking at people who im not talking to. but my goals are not freaking out rather then making myself freak out by looking at everone. my friend who has good eye contact has a lot of obsessions. he get quiet violent and kickes off. my friend who struggles with eye contact sam is calmer and appears to just be shy. she is less demanding and less scary. i could quite happy talk to people who don't look at me. in fact that is a trait i like about autistic children and adults. we connect different ways. the only way to cure autism is give us a brain transplant. why do people want there personalities to be changed. i do things that will help the negagtive traits of my personality to become better so i am a better person. is that not what people without autism do? i know i can't read minds or body like people without the condidtion appear to be able to do. but i have a connectsion with sertain people because of my autsim. some people specially distubed people or people with autism find my personality reasuring. cos im consisitant always on time and bluntly truthfull, there is no secrets with me i talk about anything and everyting. that is reasuring for someone who has never had stability. the world is made up of different people and we are all here for a purpose.

even the people with the most suriver autism have a purpose in life. just maybe they dont' appear to seek it. i work with children with low funtioning autism and high funciotning autsim. i love them all and am a sort of mummy to them. i don't find autistic people unloverable quiet the opposite they show me love the way i need the big scary world to show me love. without them a piece of the puzzle in my life would be missing. why take that piece out. yea it a shame when it effects independance. by why do we have to go by socieity rules on your 18 so you gotta have to soical skills to look after yourself? in other counties children are 8 before they even go to shcool. in another country the average age for independace is 21. we all go at our own pase in this world. i have learned lessions that a avarage 30 year old has learned! yet im am as independant in lookin after myself as a 16 year old just! lol

i can relate.  at 20 most of my peers have somewhat lived indepently...i havent.  i have reached certian milestones later than my peers, and that's okay...some people can live on their own at 15, some are still living with parents at 25.  there shouldn't be a textbook on kids, becuase everyone is diffrent.  that's what makes life intersting.

This doesn't sound like a bad idea. It's pretty much just a way of putting existing knowledge of how best to teach social skills into modern-day technology that will appeal to young people. Also, being able to use it as a diary sounds neat, and definitely useful for those who find it hard to manage emotions.

About the statement made about 'changing brains', it doesn't sound terribly sinister to me. I'd rather have my brain 'changed' by learning social skills from a PDA than by taking social 'lessons' while hiding in the boys toilets during lunchtimes from bullies. Your brain is always changing, so that you can learn about how best to interact with people and the environment. This isn't some sinister plot to instill conformity amongst different kids, it's about giving them skills to survive in the big bad world.

Thank you. I would tend to agree.