Could autistics become the majority in the distant future?

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skafather84
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23 Dec 2008, 10:02 pm

Orwell wrote:

Anyways, if anything people are getting more social, not less, as technology advances, so again, I don't see how neurotypicals are going to become autistic, especially given that autism has an extremely high heritability which would suggest a stronger genetic than environmental component.

less personal interaction. less eye contact and reading of body language.

hmm...this is starting to sound familiar....

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gramirez
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23 Dec 2008, 10:22 pm

I hope not.

200th post.

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Letum
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23 Dec 2008, 10:39 pm

skafather84 wrote:

i'm saying that it's going to affect and gradually change the way people think and the way our minds are wired[...]

But how do you think technology is going to change our brains; by what method?

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23 Dec 2008, 10:47 pm

sanndr wrote:

DeanFoley wrote:

Orwell wrote:

No.

Haven't we gone into the crud reproduction rates of people with ASDs? Assuming it's genetic, it seems pretty much certainly no. Assuming it isn't, it's anybody's game (lyk, teh vaccines!)

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protest_the_hero
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24 Dec 2008, 9:40 am

Orwell wrote:

And what Letum said. Unless Aspies start having a lot more babies on average than NT's, we're simply not going to be the majority, ever.

But >IF< we did...theoretically...

skafather84
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24 Dec 2008, 12:09 pm

Letum wrote:

skafather84 wrote:

i'm saying that it's going to affect and gradually change the way people think and the way our minds are wired[...]

But how do you think technology is going to change our brains; by what method?

the associations made early on in childhood development. the stimuli a toddler will encounter growing up. it'll eventually change the way people think about the world around them and change how they interact with people and from what it appears right now, that would mean an increase in another mode of communication and a decrease in interpersonal communication.

how come i keep feeling like you guys are pressing like as if this is something that i expect would happen within a generation or two? i certainly don't.

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24 Dec 2008, 12:50 pm

protest_the_hero wrote:

It is genetic, so theoretically, given the right circumstances, through "evolution", could we? Just a thought.

This has been asked millions of times before - usually by those with an autism supremacy stance. Your guys answer will be no, and always will be no.

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24 Dec 2008, 4:57 pm

Autism Supremacy? Sigh...

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24 Dec 2008, 5:50 pm

protest_the_hero wrote:

Orwell wrote:

And what Letum said. Unless Aspies start having a lot more babies on average than NT's, we're simply not going to be the majority, ever.

But >IF< we did...theoretically...

Well, it is debatable whether people with ASDs are sufficiently adaptive to be able to run a society. More importantly however is the fact that as it stands the utter inability for people with ASDs to reproduce means that even if "all ASD" was a possible equilibrium it is pretty much inaccessible from an NT one.

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pezar
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24 Dec 2008, 6:35 pm

I think that there could be "aspie clusters" in places where large numbers of aspies congregate. Silicon Valley comes to mind, as well as similar areas in other countries (like "Silicon Wadi" in Israel). Boston also has a large number of technology firms, which are more likely to attract aspies.

Given a few generations, aspies could well become the majority in certain areas. The areas would be few, but given the fact that one city can control a whole state in the US, and some foreign countries revolve around the national capital, the aspie areas could become powerful enough to influence government policy and even popular conceptions of autistics. Already there is a high number of HFA diagnoses in Silicon Valley due to aspies clustering together and making little aspies.

It's possible that if in the future you had a billionaire who everybody thought was aspie, and he came out and confirmed it, you'd have a huge overnight culture shift, similar to what happened when Rock Hudson declared that he was dying of AIDS in 1984. When Bill Gates was rumored to be aspie, the stock market thought he was mentally ill for some reason and Microsoft stock plunged, so he was forced to deny it. Warren Buffett is rumored to have it too, but at 78 he's not likely to get an official dx.

The hope lies with the youth IMO, with aspies now in their teens. If one of those becomes a billionaire and then comes out, you'd see a huge shift. Already the creator of BitTorrent has admitted to being on the spectrum, but he's not high profile enough.

Letum
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24 Dec 2008, 7:03 pm

skafather84 wrote:

Letum wrote:

skafather84 wrote:

i'm saying that it's going to affect and gradually change the way people think and the way our minds are wired[...]

But how do you think technology is going to change our brains; by what method?

Step 1a: Technology presents different associations made early on in childhood development and toddlers will encounter different stimuli growing up.
Step 1b: There is an increase other modes of communication and a decrease in interpersonal communication.
Step 2: ???
Step 3: And so the numbers of those with Autistic/AS traits increases.

I would like to know how you think step 2 works.
How do we get from steps 1a and 1b to step 3?

pezar wrote:

I think that there could be "aspie clusters" in places where large numbers of aspies congregate.

This is already the case. Various parts of the world have high rates of Autism for genetic reasons. Basque Spain, Northern England/Ireland, parts of Norway and one or two small tribes in
the undeveloped world have higher rates of autism/AS.

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24 Dec 2008, 9:51 pm

pezar wrote:

The hope lies with the youth IMO, with aspies now in their teens. If one of those becomes a billionaire and then comes out, you'd see a huge shift. Already the creator of BitTorrent has admitted to being on the spectrum, but he's not high profile enough.

That just reinforces the stereotype of Aspie as computer geek. We have had a Nobel Prize winner in economics come out as Aspie, but no one seems to have noticed.

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skafather84
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25 Dec 2008, 12:40 am

Letum wrote:

skafather84 wrote:

Letum wrote:

skafather84 wrote:

i'm saying that it's going to affect and gradually change the way people think and the way our minds are wired[...]

But how do you think technology is going to change our brains; by what method?

yeah, as i thought about it more as i went along i realized "this is probably just a social change and the definition will change as the populace at large changes".

step 2 would be the slow decline in function for interpersonal communication over the years and generations. but yeah....i guess it's more of a social change than it could be considered anything spectrum other than some similar developments.

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25 Dec 2008, 9:08 pm

Evolution requires characteristics and traits that promote particular genes.

Mmm lets see Aspersgers and Autistics:

Advantages in socialising - NO
Advantages in maintaining relationships - NO
Proven to procreate more - NO

I could go on but what's the point. There is nothing advantageous about AS with regard to the promotion of its genes.

To those of you that think we are the next best thing, get over your delusion and face reality

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25 Dec 2008, 11:11 pm

Will autistics become a majority any time in the future? Most likely no.

Would I like to see autistics become a majority? Yes, either that or the rise of an NT society that values being forthright and honest in everything, although that is even less likely than a majority autistic population since NTs are hard-wired to lie. Everything about NT society is based on lies and deceit... Those NTs that are honorable and honest (and actually quite numerous) are quickly suppressed by the power-hungry pathological liars out there... The pathological liars ruin it for the rest of the NTs and us autistics, since in any society based on honesty they can get away with whatever they wish so long as they're not caught. I think that's what autistics want more than an autistic majority... they want a society where deception itself is socially unacceptable, not just evading detection thereof...

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26 Dec 2008, 8:51 am

ToadOfSteel wrote:

Oh come on stop with the Autistic's / Aspergers are so honest and cannot lie BS. I really hate this AS vs NT garbage.

Toad I can accept your belief in god but this goes too far

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