Do all autistics have special abilities?

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Fnord
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06 Apr 2022, 8:36 am

Other people have similar talents.  What makes Temple Grandin's talent so 'special' is her diagnosis of autism.

I met a man in Europe who plays piano rather well -- he is not a virtuoso, but he can play just about any popular song without sheet music and make it look easy.  He makes the rounds of hotels and piano bars, is escorted to the piano while wearing dark glasses and holding a white cane, and then he plays a few standards and takes requests.  People put money into a tip jar just for him -- "The Blind Pianist".

But he is not blind.

He explained to me that getting playing gigs in Europe was difficult because there were so many other pianists who could play much better.  So he hit on this gimmick that makes his talent seem much more special than it really is.  People there are so amazed that a 'cripple' could do anything, that a blind man who can play piano is almost miraculous to them.

So when assessing an ability as 'special', people should ask themselves: "Is this person's ability 'special' in and of itself, or does it seem 'special' only because the ability is presented in contrast to the person's disabilities?"



firemonkey
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06 Apr 2022, 9:46 am

What would you regard as a 'special ability'?



Fnord
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06 Apr 2022, 9:58 am

firemonkey wrote:
What would you regard as a 'special ability'?
Something well beyond what any 'normal' human could do -- regeneration of missing limbs and organs, controlled telekinetic flight, unassisted running at 60 mph (37.5 kph) for more for more than a minute, et cetera.

Merely being exceptionally brilliant in any one field of study is not all that 'special'.



SkinnedWolf
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06 Apr 2022, 10:42 am

Agree.
Female entrepreneurs, black academic, disabled labor model, and... autistic genius.
Various names with qualifiers. This sometimes means that they are not good enough to stand out from their peers without the qualifier.
A political correctness mercy that has lower demands on marginalized groups. At the same time, it implies the sad real situation of its group in the current society.


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Fnord
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06 Apr 2022, 11:02 am

SkinnedWolf wrote:
. . . Female entrepreneurs, black academic, disabled labor model, and... autistic genius. 
Various names with qualifiers. This sometimes means that they are not good enough to stand out from their peers without the qualifier.  A political correctness mercy that has lower demands on marginalized groups. At the same time, it implies the sad real situation of its group in the current society.
You got it.  For example: Lemon Henry "Blind Lemon" Jefferson (1893-1929) is often cited as a blues guitar genius; but if he had not been blind (and black) would anyone have noticed his musical talent?  I feel doubtful.  More likely the prevailing opinion is based on the common misconception that disabled people (and minority members) are unable to achieve greatness, and that any moderate talent they may have is exaggerated or 'hyped' to near-miraculous proportions.



SkinnedWolf
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06 Apr 2022, 11:17 am

This is an incentive for individuals in these groups whose achievement is limited by social circumstances or physiological functions.
But it is sometimes a disgrace and holdback for individuals in these groups who are striving for real achievement.


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PseudointellectualHorse
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06 Apr 2022, 8:06 pm

Oh, FWIW, I've heard the term "weaponized autism" tossed around in respect for the special ability of people presumed (rightly or wrongly) to be "on the spectrum", and thus particularly useful in correlating disparate data and discovering relevant patterns.



Texasmoneyman300
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07 Apr 2022, 10:48 pm

Fnord wrote:
Other people have similar talents.  What makes Temple Grandin's talent so 'special' is her diagnosis of autism.

I met a man in Europe who plays piano rather well -- he is not a virtuoso, but he can play just about any popular song without sheet music and make it look easy.  He makes the rounds of hotels and piano bars, is escorted to the piano while wearing dark glasses and holding a white cane, and then he plays a few standards and takes requests.  People put money into a tip jar just for him -- "The Blind Pianist".

But he is not blind.

He explained to me that getting playing gigs in Europe was difficult because there were so many other pianists who could play much better.  So he hit on this gimmick that makes his talent seem much more special than it really is.  People there are so amazed that a 'cripple' could do anything, that a blind man who can play piano is almost miraculous to them.

So when assessing an ability as 'special', people should ask themselves: "Is this person's ability 'special' in and of itself, or does it seem 'special' only because the ability is presented in contrast to the person's disabilities?"

One of my special abilities is making money in stock market



Fnord
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08 Apr 2022, 8:16 am

Texasmoneyman300 wrote:
One of my special abilities is making money in stock market
A lot of people have that very same ability.  Thus, it is neither special nor unique.



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08 Apr 2022, 10:31 am

Fnord wrote:
Texasmoneyman300 wrote:
One of my special abilities is making money in stock market
A lot of people have that very same ability.  Thus, it is neither special nor unique.


I have a special ability to find things lost to time by others. It is if the object calls out to me from the past. I cannot explain how it happens, but it does for some reason. I wish I could control that ability so that I could easily find things that I have lost myself. Whatever you call it, it is strange to have.

Some refer to this ability as “luck”, but not everything I find is good. It can be really creepy sometimes. At an estate sale, I found WWII items in a large junk box that called to me, one being a “death’s head badge” worn by the elite nazis. It was encrusted with blood, picked up from a battlefield. I really could have done without finding that one. It was like I could sense the evil from across the room. I also sensed this same feeling in a friend’s house for some reason. She had recently inherited a box from a great aunt who survived the Holocaust in a concentration camp. In the box was a “death’s head ring” that her aunt had found after the war was over. My friend wanted to have it melted, but I talked her into donating it to a Holocaust researcher instead.

This is one ability that I really wish I did not have at times. It can be a curse, like in the above times.



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08 Apr 2022, 3:14 pm

QuantumChemist wrote:
Fnord wrote:
Texasmoneyman300 wrote:
One of my special abilities is making money in stock market
A lot of people have that very same ability.  Thus, it is neither special nor unique.


I have a special ability to find things lost to time by others. It is if the object calls out to me from the past. I cannot explain how it happens, but it does for some reason.

Sounds like... you're the talent the archaeology team needs.


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QuantumChemist
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08 Apr 2022, 6:02 pm

SkinnedWolf wrote:
QuantumChemist wrote:
Fnord wrote:
Texasmoneyman300 wrote:
One of my special abilities is making money in stock market
A lot of people have that very same ability.  Thus, it is neither special nor unique.


I have a special ability to find things lost to time by others. It is if the object calls out to me from the past. I cannot explain how it happens, but it does for some reason.

Sounds like... you're the talent the archaeology team needs.


No, I would find things that are better left unfound. It would be my luck to dig up a plague.



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08 Apr 2022, 7:21 pm

I’m not good at anything... unless I’m just putting myself down. I’ve heard people say I’m a good singer. And good at sketches. But these are not special abilities. I am not genius at these things. They are just things I’m good at. So no in other words I have no special abilities.



Texasmoneyman300
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09 Apr 2022, 3:32 am

Fnord wrote:
Texasmoneyman300 wrote:
One of my special abilities is making money in stock market
A lot of people have that very same ability.  Thus, it is neither special nor unique.

Okay one of special abilities is preaching I am also better than most when it comes to shooting sniper rifles



lovelyanathema
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09 Apr 2022, 3:40 am

No, that's an ableist stereotype


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09 Apr 2022, 5:09 am

My special ability is being able to not respond to stupid forum threads.

/Mats


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