August 10, 2005
I am not closely related to anyone with Autism, but I know several people who are linked to those affected by the disorder. I am, however, connected to other disorders and therefore find interest in scientific progress or hypotheses regarding certain disorders.There was an Op-Ed article today in the NY Times offering an opinion on a possible cause of Austism, that I found rather interesting and surprisingly simple. The scientist, Simon Baron-Cohen, suggests that an above-normal production of testosterone by the fetus can often cause behavior in the child that renders them both less social and more systematic, two characteristics of Austism. He also prints results of tests that show this increased production of testosterone often happens when both parents exhibit male-leaning cerebral behavior. In otherwords, autistic children are basically overly-male.I can't defend one side or the other on this, but there seems to be sense in this approach. What do you think?
Posted by charr at 2:50 PM
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