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I have no idea. One would think the opposite, that programmers think in abstract concepts. I heard an interview with her on public radio (it was called in sin

• PhasmaFelis 11y ago
  Hmm. "Abstract thought" encompasses a few very different things. This Quora answer explains it better than I could manage, so I'll paste it here: https://www.quora.com/If-Aspies-often-have-difficulty-with-abstract-thinking-then-why-do-so-many-mathematicians-have-autistic-traits https://www.quora.com/If-Aspies-often-have-difficulty-with-a... "Abstract thinking" is a huge category and a lot of Aspies and people in the autism ballpark have trouble with some parts and are good at other parts. In particular, I think many of us are good at abstract thought that is formal. Not formal in the sense of wearing a tie or whatnot, but formal in the sense of being based on precisely described relationships. Take math. Math is a creative activity, just as much as painting or any other art. But math is a formal creative act. Like a painting, a mathematical proof can be beautiful, elegant, inspiring. Unlike a painting, a mathematical proof can be wrong. Or take computer programming. Again, writing a program is creative and a program can be beautiful. But a program is written in a very formal language: Any computer language has strict rules. On the other hand, many of us are bad at abstract thinking that is informal or, perhaps, a good word is mushy. How do we read a person's facial expression, body language etc? The same thing means different things at different times; there rules, but there are (usually) exceptions; and the rules aren't written.