3 ms·

People "on the spectrum" make the best engineers/scientists/artists. They are really good at concentrating. Maybe a little autism is good for our society. Mayb

People "on the spectrum" make the best engineers/scientists/artists. They are really good at concentrating. Maybe a little autism is good for our society. Maybe we don't want to cure it so much as temper its more extreme cases.

alistairSH 4y ago
That's a vast over-simplification and over-generalization of ASD. And completely ignores the negatives associated with these mutations.
- swayvil 4y ago
  I addressed that a whole 1 paragraph down. Sometimes I think that refutation is inherently more attractive than discussion or support. What you think?
  - feet 4y ago
    Not really, and the replier's point still stands. ASD has a wide range of phenotypes and not even close to all of them are "good at concentrating"
  - alistairSH 4y ago
    Sorry, you made such a sweeping and incorrect generalization that I didn't think a detailed response was warranted. But, since you asked... "really good at concentrating" by itself is not autism. And as a trait, it is far from universal among people who have ASD. And for those with ASD who can concentrate, that is sometimes to the point of being a disability (hyper-focus to the point of ignoring all else, including personal care). And there's really no such thing as "a little autism" - it's a spectrum defined by having some combination of a larger set of deficits. If I come across a little snippy, it's because I raised a child on the spectrum. He's now a successful, independent adult, but it wasn't an easy process for him or the rest of the family.
matheusmoreira 4y ago
On the contrary, cognitive impairment is common in autism. You're probably thinking of attention deficit disorder which paradoxically may present with hyperattention, usually when something is very interesting to the patient.
- swayvil 4y ago
  I used the term "the spectrum". It covers everything from casual obsessives to serious handwavers
  - emrvb 4y ago
    Which is another indication you are not very knowledgeable on the subject. ADD/ADHD are disorders on their own. It is a common comorbidity for people on the spectrum, but it's certainly not part of the spectrum.
  - galgalesh 4y ago
    Just a technical note: "spectrum" in autism spectrum disorder doesn't refer to a scale from "mild" to "strong", but refers to a spectrum of symptoms/behaviors. There is a broad spectrum of symptoms which fall under the autism spectrum. Everyone who has ASD, has a number of these symptoms but two people who both have ASD can easily have none of these symptoms in common.
pingeroo 4y ago
Some aspies are awesome others are asshats — like anyone else. Am somewhat envious of the Vitalik types but at the same time I wouldn’t trade my “neurotypical” brain for an autistic one. I am a social animal. I like getting along with people. I like being able to feel how others feel by hearing their tone of voice or looking at their face. If I wanna concentrate I consume caffeine.
- swayvil 4y ago
  They may be assholes but gosh aren't they productive. It reminds me of dwarves from Norse mythology. Short guys in their little workrooms underground banging away at projects. Grumpy. Making miraculous stuff. The shoe fits.
  - pingeroo 4y ago
    Very poetic way of putting it and I agree these are people we certainly need! Wouldn’t be writing this message if it weren’t for autism. But to some extent they are beasts of burden. Musk talks about his brain as if it’s possessed by demons sending him a million thoughts a minute. Not fun.
    - Ygg2 4y ago
      > his brain as if it’s possessed by demons sending him a million thoughts Has he tried logging off?
    - swayvil 4y ago
      Ya, beasts of burden sounds right. Geese laying golden eggs too. Destined for the egg factory.
    - matheusmoreira 4y ago
      > But to some extent they are beasts of burden. What? I'm sorry but I find that to be dehumanizing towards people on the spectrum. They are human beings like us.
  - rhexs 4y ago
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
gremlinsinc 4y ago
I have 'some autism' as in self-diagnosed a few years back when someone else on the spectrum asked me flat out and said they're certain I'm on the spectrum. It's funny I also have ADHD (diagnosed at 38) and I watch youtube channels by people with autism/adhd on how to cope, and a lot of the 'coping' skills or masking things people do to fit in, I've organically discovered on my own and have used just naturally since I was a kid. Like, I couldn't stand being in class listening to the teacher, I never ever listened, instead I just read ahead, guessed and completed the homework assignment, and never had homework in high school because of it. My ADHD brain has kept me poor mixed w/ depression, but I feel my logical autistic side sometimes balances it out, and makes me think before doing something stupid/spontaneous. Like I sometimes forget things, so I create rituals when I do forget something, so I don't do it again. Example: I left my keys in car back in 2003, had a bunch of latino guys helping me in SLC try and break into my own car. Since that day, I never turn the car off until I've got one foot out the door, as a reminder the keys are still in ignition because it's running. Lost my wallet once, and now I always put it in the same pocket, and the same place at home when not in my pants. There's some things not great about autism, especially higher up on the spectrum, but maybe evolution sometimes has hiccups before it gets things right. Sometimes I think autism is more a blessing than a curse, and there definitely are many great minds who probably were on the spectrum. It could be an evolutionary leap eventually, I hate how people always call it a disorder or negative. Yeah, okay if you're non-verbal or something yeah that's not great, but if you're just very pithy when talking about a topic you're interested in, and have a weird sense of humor (snarky redditors - as I'm convinced reddit is literally the social network for autists), and a little ocd but not clinically so, then it's not all bad. ADHD on the other hand, I could really do without. I'm on wellbutrin for depression which raises dopamine, and vyvanse for ADHD which also raises dopamine, and my ability to focus and get motivated has skyrocketed since I started it a few months back, but before that my life was miserable. I'm making 7k monthly now freelancing, I made 7k last year because I was anxious, depressed, and had fatigue from long-covid. I just had panic attacks even thinking about prospecting for new clients. I had one good one but she was sporadic, and she recommended me to my new client who's awesome and gives me 40+ hours per week. Though, I probably should raise my rates... I'm a USA dev, freelancer with 10 years experience in laravel and right now I'm doing django/python stuff and still only charging $40 (same as I did like 4 years ago)... minimum wage has gone up like $10 in a lot of places either by force, or by competition. It's amazing though what the right medical cocktail gets you.

alistairSH 4y ago

That's a vast over-simplification and over-generalization of ASD. And completely ignores the negatives associated with these mutations.

swayvil 4y ago
I addressed that a whole 1 paragraph down. Sometimes I think that refutation is inherently more attractive than discussion or support. What you think?
- feet 4y ago
  Not really, and the replier's point still stands. ASD has a wide range of phenotypes and not even close to all of them are "good at concentrating"
- alistairSH 4y ago
  Sorry, you made such a sweeping and incorrect generalization that I didn't think a detailed response was warranted. But, since you asked... "really good at concentrating" by itself is not autism. And as a trait, it is far from universal among people who have ASD. And for those with ASD who can concentrate, that is sometimes to the point of being a disability (hyper-focus to the point of ignoring all else, including personal care). And there's really no such thing as "a little autism" - it's a spectrum defined by having some combination of a larger set of deficits. If I come across a little snippy, it's because I raised a child on the spectrum. He's now a successful, independent adult, but it wasn't an easy process for him or the rest of the family.

matheusmoreira 4y ago

On the contrary, cognitive impairment is common in autism. You're probably thinking of attention deficit disorder which paradoxically may present with hyperattention, usually when something is very interesting to the patient.

swayvil 4y ago
I used the term "the spectrum". It covers everything from casual obsessives to serious handwavers
- emrvb 4y ago
  Which is another indication you are not very knowledgeable on the subject. ADD/ADHD are disorders on their own. It is a common comorbidity for people on the spectrum, but it's certainly not part of the spectrum.
- galgalesh 4y ago
  Just a technical note: "spectrum" in autism spectrum disorder doesn't refer to a scale from "mild" to "strong", but refers to a spectrum of symptoms/behaviors. There is a broad spectrum of symptoms which fall under the autism spectrum. Everyone who has ASD, has a number of these symptoms but two people who both have ASD can easily have none of these symptoms in common.

pingeroo 4y ago

Some aspies are awesome others are asshats — like anyone else. Am somewhat envious of the Vitalik types but at the same time I wouldn’t trade my “neurotypical” brain for an autistic one. I am a social animal. I like getting along with people. I like being able to feel how others feel by hearing their tone of voice or looking at their face. If I wanna concentrate I consume caffeine.

swayvil 4y ago
They may be assholes but gosh aren't they productive. It reminds me of dwarves from Norse mythology. Short guys in their little workrooms underground banging away at projects. Grumpy. Making miraculous stuff. The shoe fits.
- pingeroo 4y ago
  Very poetic way of putting it and I agree these are people we certainly need! Wouldn’t be writing this message if it weren’t for autism. But to some extent they are beasts of burden. Musk talks about his brain as if it’s possessed by demons sending him a million thoughts a minute. Not fun.
  - Ygg2 4y ago
    > his brain as if it’s possessed by demons sending him a million thoughts Has he tried logging off?
  - swayvil 4y ago
    Ya, beasts of burden sounds right. Geese laying golden eggs too. Destined for the egg factory.
  - matheusmoreira 4y ago
    > But to some extent they are beasts of burden. What? I'm sorry but I find that to be dehumanizing towards people on the spectrum. They are human beings like us.
- rhexs 4y ago

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

gremlinsinc 4y ago

I have 'some autism' as in self-diagnosed a few years back when someone else on the spectrum asked me flat out and said they're certain I'm on the spectrum. It's funny I also have ADHD (diagnosed at 38) and I watch youtube channels by people with autism/adhd on how to cope, and a lot of the 'coping' skills or masking things people do to fit in, I've organically discovered on my own and have used just naturally since I was a kid. Like, I couldn't stand being in class listening to the teacher, I never ever listened, instead I just read ahead, guessed and completed the homework assignment, and never had homework in high school because of it. My ADHD brain has kept me poor mixed w/ depression, but I feel my logical autistic side sometimes balances it out, and makes me think before doing something stupid/spontaneous. Like I sometimes forget things, so I create rituals when I do forget something, so I don't do it again. Example: I left my keys in car back in 2003, had a bunch of latino guys helping me in SLC try and break into my own car. Since that day, I never turn the car off until I've got one foot out the door, as a reminder the keys are still in ignition because it's running. Lost my wallet once, and now I always put it in the same pocket, and the same place at home when not in my pants. There's some things not great about autism, especially higher up on the spectrum, but maybe evolution sometimes has hiccups before it gets things right. Sometimes I think autism is more a blessing than a curse, and there definitely are many great minds who probably were on the spectrum. It could be an evolutionary leap eventually, I hate how people always call it a disorder or negative. Yeah, okay if you're non-verbal or something yeah that's not great, but if you're just very pithy when talking about a topic you're interested in, and have a weird sense of humor (snarky redditors - as I'm convinced reddit is literally the social network for autists), and a little ocd but not clinically so, then it's not all bad. ADHD on the other hand, I could really do without. I'm on wellbutrin for depression which raises dopamine, and vyvanse for ADHD which also raises dopamine, and my ability to focus and get motivated has skyrocketed since I started it a few months back, but before that my life was miserable. I'm making 7k monthly now freelancing, I made 7k last year because I was anxious, depressed, and had fatigue from long-covid. I just had panic attacks even thinking about prospecting for new clients. I had one good one but she was sporadic, and she recommended me to my new client who's awesome and gives me 40+ hours per week. Though, I probably should raise my rates... I'm a USA dev, freelancer with 10 years experience in laravel and right now I'm doing django/python stuff and still only charging $40 (same as I did like 4 years ago)... minimum wage has gone up like $10 in a lot of places either by force, or by competition. It's amazing though what the right medical cocktail gets you.