Richard Panek

  THE ESSENTIAL EXCERPT

 

It was almost certainly no coincidence that just as the idea of an autism spectrum was entering the mainstream of both popular and medical thinking, so was the concept of an autism "epidemic." If the medical community is given a new diagnosis to assign a range of familiar behaviors, then of course the incidence of that diagnosis is going to go up. Did it? If so, wouldn't we see a drop in some other diagnoses—the diagnoses that these new cases of autism or Asperger's would have previously received? Yes—and in fact we do see evidence of that drop.

PRAISE FOR

THE AUTISTIC BRAIN

“Excels at finding concrete examples that reveal the perceptual and social limitations of autistic and ‘neurotypical’ people alike.”

“The Autistic Brain can both enlighten readers with little exposure to autism and offer hope and compassion to those who live with the condition.”

“Grandin and Panek explore neuroimaging, genetics, and brain science in this book that looks at what causes autism and how it can be treated and diagnosed. Fascinating.”