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One of the coolest non-neurotypical features you can have is synaesthesia, the ability to hear colors and taste sounds. Essentially, it's a condition where your sensorium swaps inputs around and gives you a strange and cool view of the world that's different from nearly everyone else's. Though synaesthesia is a rare ability, a researcher in California has discovered that more people have it in a mild form than anyone had ever realized. She devised a simple way to figure out if you are a synathaesthetic, by watching a screen saver with moving dots to see if they make you hear anything. Take the test at New Scientist, and find out if you are a non-neurotypical too. [New Scientist] More »
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Most studies of autism link it to genetics. The condition is often referred to as the "geek syndrome" because some studies have shown a high incidence of autism in areas like California's Silicon Valley, where highly technical people are having children together. Scientific studies have backed up the idea that autism is genetic, identifying several genes that seem implicated in the disorder. Now a new study has revealed that many of the genes associated with autism are — luckily — ones whose functioning can be modified in early childhood. Autism genes are associated with early learning and are essentially designed to be reprogrammed — so, given the right learning environment, children born with autism could rewire their brains and be spared the worst effects of this disorder. More »
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