Survey to Assess Needs for Improved Course Designs As colleges and universities offer more courses online, it is important that we consider how students with autism spectrum disorders approach online communities, especially online classes. My experiences as a diagnosed high-functioning autistic student and instructor have led me to question how…
The Autistic Me
Time magazine has two stories on autism diagnostic rates. One report is on a careful census of adults, trying to determine if there is a real difference between generations. The second report is on a telephone survey that shows a sudden spike in rates based on poorly worded questions. I…
I’m definitely leaving any and all cognitive research related to autism behind after 2010. I’m shifting back towards creative writing and, hopefully, new media rhetoric. I’m hoping to find a university where I can work on my poetry, scripts, and novels. Research is interesting, but the public conflict isn’t. (If…
I appreciate the power of passion — but I also recognize its limits. I can seem passionate about a few things, but the general reality is that being “excited” and “enthusiastic” is not the same as being passionate. I’m interested in the language arts, visual design, and technology. But, my…
There are times when nothing makes sense. The universe, despite its patterns, seems random, chaotic, and even cruel. Yet, reality simply is. We can study statistics, predict possible outcomes, develop complex models for nearly every contained system… yet on the personal level those models are useless. We can predict that…
I have been very sore and sensitive for the last few weeks. My back, legs, and hands ache. Unfortunately, this drains me of any ability to deal with things I dislike. Trying to start a cultivator, also known as a tiller, I yanked too hard just as the starting cable…
The running gag in Warner Bros. cartoons is that any product from Acme Corp. is far from the “acme” of its kind. Acme rockets are the Yugos of rocket science. Acme trebuchet? It slings the operator, not the stone, as poor Wile E. Coyote should realize by now. About the…
Once I earn my degree and escape Minnesota, I am going to do every thing I can to reset myself and my path in life. Since elementary school, I have wanted to be a full-time writer. While I am interested in different forms, from reporting to dramatic writing, I always…
According to Blue Cross, I’ve had 29 medical claims filed by doctors in the last 90 days. I will begin the New Year with at least three that I have already added to my calendar, one minor surgery, at least one out-patient test, and I am anticipating there will be…
Today, December 15, 2008, I went to yet another neurological exam. Actually, it was a psychological exam, supposedly screening for seizure disorders (complex partial seizures). However, it was simply another bad experience with that vague semi-science we call psychology. I think about 20 to 30 percent of psychology / psychiatry…