The Brunch Table

4/16/2004

Adventures in half-assed Asperger’s research, cont’d

Filed under: — Nick @ 4:11 pm

So the other day, in class, somebody whistled incredibly loudly right next to my ear. This class happens in a solid-concrete basement room, and the whistler actually provided the foley whistles for the crowds in Eight Mile. (And if you’re imagining a burly dude from Detroit, she’s about half that size, which makes it extra funny.) But, of course, I could only appreciate that later, ’cause the hyperacusis kicked in and I sort of fainted for a second.

After class, somebody asked me, out of nowhere, did you know that’s a sign that you might have had Asperger’s as a kid? (I already knew that there’s a strong correlation between hyperacusis and Asperger’s.) And she–qualified, as it happens, by being the offspring of a pair of psychiatrists–proceeds to ask a couple questions about my social navigation. I answer with logical propositions, like, “He stopped when he passed me in the hall, so that means he must want to talk to me.” But, apparently, the vast majority of folks, when asked similar questions, will answer with straightforward perceptions: “I noticed she wanted to talk to me.” They don’t have to consciously process the non-verbal cues.

So the social commentary track is an alternative strategy for getting the same results with different brain hardware–sort of a Nintendo emulator for your mind?

What do y’all out there think?

2 Responses to “Adventures in half-assed Asperger’s research, cont’d”

  1. Michael Higgins Says:

    Asperger’s is way trendy! Use it to pick up chicks in bars!

  2. Nick Says:

    Actually, I’ve been doing something like that–ever since I started learning about this stuff last fall, I’ve been finding it incredibly useful to be more aware of the social “commentary track,” instead of allowing myself to miss cues that other folks seem to pick up on intuitively. And it’s really changed my interactions with people for the better. (When you pay someone else to do this for you, it’s called “cognitive behavior therapy.”)

    But, hold on, it’s a fad now? Strikes me as a bit odd for a medical fashion statement, considering there’s no pill for it. Oh well; I’ve been out here in the desert for two years…I’m a little out of touch (I’ve missed the past two Coen Bros. movies, for chrissake!) I guess Wired has been putting out a bunch of articles on it lately…but then, think of their target demographic….

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