Got to meet Temple Grandin today

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So today was pretty awesome. I went to this seminar that was being given at the University of Wyoming by Temple Grandin. I'm sure there's not a person in the autism community who has not heard of her, but just in case: she's the most sucessful person with autism in the world to date. She works as an animal behavioralist, and specializes in creating desings for cattle feed yards and slaughter houses that make things easier and more humane for the cattle.

Well, anyways she was talking about how her having autism, and her ability to think in terms of pictures and senses, not words, is what helped her become so good at what she does. She equated the autistic brain as being similar to the animal brain in terms that they tend to think in pictures, as well as consider specific examples. For example, she was telling this ancedote about a horse that was afraid of people wearing black cowboy hats, because it had been abused by its former owner who wore one a lot of the time. She said that the horse had no problem with white cowboy hats, or black hats of other styles, or of humans not wearing hats, or even a black cowboy hat on the ground, but would freak whenever someone approached it wearing a black cowboy hat on their head. She said it was similar to the way a lot of autistic individuals - including herself - think in specific cases rather than general cases - i.e. the boy who is told not to run across the street at home, but does it at school or church because he thinks the rule only applies in the case that he is at home.


All in all, it was very enlightening, especially when she was discussing vocational skills for people with autism/Aspergers.

After the fact, I was in line to get my book signed, when this news crew came up to me. Apparently one of my friends in the crowd was being interviewed, and she told them that I, having Aspergers, would have some insight on what it's like. Well, I was talking to them about my experiences, all the while noticing that every single one of the people from the news crew were Asian. Out of curiousity I asked them what news station they were from. Turns out they were international journalists working for the NHK, also known as the Japan Broadcasting Network! My inner weeaboo notwithstanding, I was astounded that they had come all this way to cover the Temple Grandin event. Also, apparently the NHK is planning a special report on Aspergers at some point in time. Unfortunately NHK only airs in Japan, but I asked the guy if there was a chance that they would stream it on the internet. He told me that he would look into the possibility, and gave me his card.



At any rate, I really learned a lot from listening to Grandin, she is my freaking role model now.

That is really cool. I wish I could sit down and talk to her. Very inspirational person.

It's pretty neat that you got to see Temple Grandin, and she is a good inspiration and success. She's at least the most successful autistic person in the world that's famous. (I think at my local AS meeting, one of the members might have talked about a millionare boss with AS, but I'm unsure if I'm remembering clearly.)
Though, I do think it might be an overgeneralization to state that the autistic brain works like the animal brain due to animals thinking in pictures. Bees see in ultraviolet light, dogs see in black and white and smell emotions, cats have a great sense of smell and intuition and see moving objects better than stationary objects, etc.

Not a fan.

Someone who's a paid consultant to the livestock industries is pretty much the epitome of evil IMHO.

Plus, I resent the "thinking in pictures" concept being misapplied as being inherently characteristic of Autistics,
though from what I understand, this is not her doing,
but the work of the media and society that can't be bothered to question
whether one individual of a group outside the mainstream is actually representative of that group in all respects.

I'm really not trying to be rude, but by what measure is she:

She sounds like a very interesting person to meet, I love the works she's done in the animal behaviour world and particularly find her work in the slaughter industry interesting. She's done a lot to improve the lives and welfare of cows.

I have to say though that I find she generalises too much when it comes to talking about autism. I never related to the whole thinking in pictures thing, and I think that a lot of times she makes it out like most people with autism will have that. She also said something once along the lines of autism being a very simple profile that's easy to diagnose which I think was a pretty odd and untrue thing to say. Some of the things she says about autism are interesting, but I dislike that she's considered an expert in the field of autism.

Wow! There is gonna be a report on autism on NHK?! I definitely wanna watch that. Do you have any idea when it might air?

I wondered the same. Besides hype I mean. Vernon Smith (a Nobel prize winner) strikes me as having more of a claim in terms of conventional measures of success. Grandin just, well... has... a job? Like how many thousands of others? Not that this should trivialize her accomplishments but I can't see what's supposed to set her apart from any other employed autistic person in terms of conventional success. Besides hype.

Personally I don't even measure success based on employment. But few people agree with me on that which is why I went into more conventional measures.

Temple Grandin is evil?

Wow.

My experience has been that those that easily judge others as evil are actually purveyors of evil as well.

(Notes that ^^^ is from Osaka) You'd probably know better than I would. I still havent heard back from the reporter. Say if you happen to find out when it is, could you tape it for me or something? I have a friend here that knows enough Japanese to probably give a decent translation, so I might watch it with her.

I don't understand the whole 'thinking in pictures' thing. I can't form an image in my mind to save my life. Well, I can, but the image shatters the moment I take note of it, try to give it any sort of analysis. Images are more a blur in my head.

I am quite curious, did she speak the same as in the movie? I have met very few other autistics, and my voice is stereotyped 'sing songy'. She was nearly screaming through the whole thing, as portrayed by Claire Danes.

My voice gets very loud, I have little control over it. But seemed as though she might go hoarse talking as loud as portrayed.

Just curious.

Thanks!

Gotta agree that I would palce Vernon Smith above Temple but that is all so subjective. I think it safe to say that she is one of the most "famous" autistic person to date and certainly responsible for bringing this issue out in our recent times. I also agree that she has a really narrow (Black/white) view on what autism is and mis-represents it sometimes. Still she does more good than harm IMHO.

Perhaps a manifestation of her autism?

Yeah, definitely part of her particular variant on autism. She has a lot of oddly rigid thinking, which is how she can interview hundreds of autistic people and relatives about their thinking styles, and only come up with three styles. (When you can get way more than three styles just by asking half a dozen people on this site.)

She doesn't speak that way now, but in an interview she said she did speak that way when she was that age.

Apparently I was pretty loud in my late teens, partly due to learning how to vocally project and never thinking to turn it off. I definitely didn't get hoarse.

Everyone has a set of ethics by which they judge others.
I'm sorry my not being in her fan club upsets you to the point you'd have to insult me.