Albert Einstein is not your poster boy!

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Have you not noted that this planet is finite?

Oh my yes I have noticed this planet is finite.... and crowded. We have the ability to build elsewhere, we do not have the will. We are in a golden age... there will be wars for food, and wars for water. Some of them will be savage beyond anything people have seen since we started building cities. The collapse of so many places in Africa are a good example of what's coming. Would I like to leave? Yes. I'm too old now. Maybe my grandchildren will get the opportunity, but I doubt it, since I'm not Chinese....

Scientific proof? That's funny! What's scientific about "Asperger's Syndrome"?

That said, Einstein was certainly autistic, and a bit dysfunctional; yes, he was a little bit needy (his second wife had to, we are informed, "mother" him) but "Aspie"? Well maybe.

But lets consider a little bit of reality?

"He was genius , he was loner at school (and so most genius children) but that doesn't make him an aspie , he had a great sense of humor , he was weird but he was NOT socially impaired and he got married twice."

I am not an acknowledged genius, but I was certainly a loner at school, and I do not consider myself an "aspie" (but I am autistic). Do I have a sense of humour? Others must judge.

Tell you what: Pick the game you do best, any game, and I will produce another; winner takes all? Best of three, five...?

It doesn't matter if he was autistic or not. Despite the heiling and the waving of the flags, not all smart people are autistic. It's disgustingly arrogant, egotistical, and prideful to be trying to lay claim to every intellectual who makes any kind of difference.

All intellectuals are autistic=All autistics are better than normal people(NTs). And this line of thought leads down the same road as Aryan Supremacy, only instead of Blue Eyes and Blonde Hair, it's being on the Autistic Spectrum.

Heil Spectrum?

I'm sorry, I just can't stand these arguments. No one has any real info, only what they edited into the wikipedia article, or kind of hazily remember from their school textbooks.

(I) Qualitative impairment in social interaction, as manifested by at least two of the following:

(A) Marked impairments in the use of multiple nonverbal behaviors such as eye-to-eye gaze, facial expression, body posture, and gestures to regulate social interaction

Where's the evidence for that?

(B) Failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level

I would say false. He was good friends with some of the world's leading scientists and mathematicians.

(C) A lack of spontaneous seeking to share enjoyment, interest, or achievements with other people

Although he described himself as a "lone traveler," his theory of relativity revolutionized science, and he played the violin pretty well.

(D) Lack of social or emotional reciprocity

He did have some reciprocity on the level of contributing to society.

I've been married twice too. People also think I'm funny. I didn't realize this disqualified me from a diagnosis.

Also: check the definition of "capitalize", you used it incorrectly.

As for his charisma, aspies tend to be very good at discussing their special interests. This may have made him seem much more social than he was, since I doubt conversations with Einstein involved a great deal of "small talk".

And while there is no definitive diagnosis for him, anyone who wishes to speculate is more than free to do so. Whether he had some form of autism or not, he certainly had his quirks, and it is great comfort to know that even the most renowned, exceptional and successful people had their quirks.

Squall is aspie and Squall > Seifer

Squall > Seifer

LePetitPrince, how dare you tell me what to use as a healing process and the truth. Einstein did have traits of Aspergers and it's in evidence as well. I hate it when people are so negative about autism/aspergers and they try to force the negativity among others on this forum. I have been very successful in my life and I thank my Aspergers for it.

Ah screw the controversy, Al was my homeboy, main man o' the posse. I don't care if he was NT or Aspie or Rigelian. Al's cool and the ladies found him phat. Brains bring the babes, don't you know...

There, that was as silly as anything else. Deal....

How about this new poster boy:

The DSM-IV-TR states that one can have mental retardation and still be an "aspie" (it's rare however); Gillberg's allows such too (Asperger's is autism with adequate speech after all). Asperger's had children with mental retardation in his group of 400.

DSM-IV-TR:

I don't think anyone is trying to make the arguments you are making for them. These are strawman arguments.

Many people with Autism have been successful in life. They succeeded in spite of, and maybe because of, their autistic difference. If you think examples of this are bad to give to NTs that think we are inferior, or to dash the attempts of those on the Spectrum, and their parents, that is your aim. But I choose to look at the postive we can do, and AE is an example of one of the postive aspects of Autism. If people don't like that, too bad, they can be negative all they want, I won't be though. I don't think we are superior, we are just different, and that difference is not always a bad one.

Best Regards,

Idaho Aspie

Danielismyname,

Do you have any quotes to back this claim? I certainly have never read that from the DSM-IV. I know being autistic and being mentally ret*d can conexist, but Aspergers you most have no other significant mental delays, as in defintion 5 of the dx.

Best Regards,

Idaho Aspie

Well, that quote is from the DSM-IV-TR. Gillberg's and Szatmari's AS criteria neglect a delay in cognitive development (it doesn't matter in the overall diagnosis).

Take for example, a child with an IQ of 60-70; said child has no impairment in speech, the child can speak adequately, but he/she is clearly autistic. The child will meet all of the above diagnostic categories for Asperger's during the school years. Said child won't meet the DSM-IV-TR if he/she is evaluated prior to school; he/she will be PDD-NOS then. He/she will still meet two of the three above no matter which age he/she is assessed.

Hans Asperger described cases with mental retardation up to normal and above average intelligence. For some reason or another, it changed over time so Asperger's became synonymous with normal/above, and Kanner's equated to below/normal/above [with severe language difficulties].

The idea that aspies never get to reproduce is bizarre. Many of us have parents who are very likely aspies!! ! And dont tell me my father is a 'magician' type when he cant program the VCR.

Also the suggestion that Einstein couldnt have been an aspie because he had some mathematician and scientist friends.. newsflash, aspies can make friends especially with people who share an interest.

Brains do pull chicks, and the fact that Einstein had emotional recipocity so cant be an aspie.. does that imply that aspie autistic people are incapable of caring for others? Not true.. Just because someone has empathy deficits doesnt mean they cant care for others in their own way.

I havent seen any arguments presented against Einstein being an aspie that make a strong case. We will never know though.. we can only speculate.