Anyone know of good resources on Hans Asperger?

Page 1 of 1 [ 3 posts ] 

TokenX
Tufted Titmouse
Tufted Titmouse

User avatar

Joined: 18 Feb 2008
Age: 34
Gender: Male
Posts: 47
Location: California

07 Mar 2009, 11:28 pm

I'm planning to do a speech on Dr. Asperger and his accomplishments and how he affected the world, but I'm lacking good sources.

Does anyone have any tips?



VMSnith
Snowy Owl
Snowy Owl

User avatar

Joined: 26 Nov 2007
Gender: Male
Posts: 125

08 Mar 2009, 1:37 am

This stuff is from memory, but you shouldn't have much trouble sourcing it ...

There is Asperger's original paper, which was dusted off and translated by Lorna Wing, "On Autistic psychopathy in children."

You will see that Asperger took a remarkably positive view and states over and over that Aspies are valuable and creative people. He said that "for succes in the arts and sciences, it
seems that a dash of autism is essential."

Asperger was working in Austria during the Nazi occupation. It is speculated that he may have been protecting subjects from the Nazi death camps, he took great care to point out they make excellent scientists and civil engineers.

It is further speculated that Asperger himself was Aspie.

Asperger's clinic was bombed out by an Allied air raid, destroying his clinic, killing his partner and possibly some of his subjects.

His seminal thesis was essentially lost in the rubble of WW II, and sat unnoticed at U Cambridge
until Lorna Wing found it.

He was probably the first neurodiversity advocate.

Hope some of this helps ...



sinsboldly
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 21 Nov 2006
Gender: Female
Posts: 13,488
Location: Bandon-by-the-Sea, Oregon

08 Mar 2009, 3:02 am

Dr Tony Attwood tell of Dr Asperger being protected by the head of the hospital he was doing research in when the Nazi SS troopers came for him because he was on a list of Enemies of the State because he didn't feel autistics should be eliminated as 'defective'.


_________________
Alis volat propriis
State Motto of Oregon