Business: SMILE Biscotti, LLC Mission: Skills development, social connections and pathways toward greater independence What is SMILE? SMILE (Supporting My Independent Living Enterprise) trains, employs and supports adults on the autism spectrum in an effort to further their growth, happiness and in…

By Brad WindI have a challenge for you. Dear audiences who affirm interactive story spaces, I have a gift for you. I have a cool new framework for writer artificial intelligence (AI). I want you to sign up and play with it. I can guarantee just about anyone reading this on The Art of Autism will a…

By Ron Sandison As a theologian with autism, I enjoyed reading Summer Kinard’s book Of Such is the Kingdom: A Practical Theology of Disability. Kinnard shares her insight on Orthodox theology and empowering people with disabilities for full participation in the life of the Church. On June 8th I wi…

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The many genes missing in Williams syndrome, a condition related to autism, may all work together to exert their effects on behavior, a new mouse study suggests1. The findings add to mounting evidence that even in conditions that are strongly tied to just one or two genes, multiple genes are in fact…

On the website of the company Neurocore, an illustration of an anthropomorphized human brain, complete with hopeful eyes and a wide smile, is pumping iron. “A stronger brain makes anything possible,” says the tagline next to the cheery brain. This concept — body-building for the brain — is the premi…

Novelty is a slippery concept in genetics: Literally, it simply means that a gene’s connection to a certain condition has never previously been noted. But many researchers say that being first to implicate a gene isn’t enough. Genes also must pass a stringent statistical bar to become candidates, or…

This month’s ASAT feature comes to us from Heyde Ramirez, MA, BCBA, LBA and Maria Pantelides, MA, BCBA, LBA. To learn more about ASAT, please visit their website at www.asatonline.org. You can also sign up for ASAT’s free newsletter, Science in Autism Treatment, and like them on Facebook! You can re…

I’ve many times given advice on sensory seeking behaviours in autistic children, how to aid them and why they may occur. While explaining that a child spinning for example, is seeking to feed their vestibular sense or that a child stamping their feet is gaining proprioceptive feedback from the…

People with particularly low levels of FMRP, the protein lacking in those with fragile X syndrome, are more likely to also have autism and severe intellectual disability, according to a new study1. The lower the level of FMRP, the more severe a person’s traits. The findings could help researchers id…

It's called a spectrum for a reason.Source: The Autism Site

By The Silent Wave When searching for traits, characteristics, or symptoms of Asperger’s (and the rest of the autism spectrum, to an extent) online, the first–and the majority of–information you’ll probably find focuses on the negative aspects, at least as perceived by the “official sources” and “ex…

If one wanted to market a scientifically-unproven intervention, device, or pill as a valid autism treatment to families affected by autism, how would one go about it? Glossy pictures? Glowing testimonials? Miracle claims? Hyped social media pitches? Charming infomercials? Answer: All of the above. A…

By Aaron Bouma As an autistic that studies conflicts around the world I have been monitoring the situation in Ukraine for a long time. Of course I knew it was coming but February 24, 2022, was anything but a normal night. When missile strikes and armoured units started coming across the Ukrainian bo…