The project starts by interviewing a very large sample of humans placed at all points along the autistic spectrum (as defined in the DSM), from those who are just good engineers, through mathematicians and physicists, to Aspergers to full blown Autism.
Having developed a consensus view, create a theme park that depicts the world as those with Aspergers/Autism view it.
Make "normal" people spend the day there, by force if necessary.
Should this education process fail, repeated random violent beatings would be administered to the ones that "just don't get it".-- 8th of 7, Apr 11 2016 In her language https://www.youtube...watch?v=JnylM1hI2jcscroll to 3:10 to skip to the translation. [2 fries shy of a happy meal, Apr 17 2016] So basically like living inside an episode of Spongebob...-- RayfordSteele, Apr 11 2016 I passed a marquis a couple of days ago that advertised some sort of "autism experience"; a movie I think.-- bungston, Apr 11 2016 At the 4th paragraph I knew it was you, [8th].-- whatrock, Apr 11 2016 But ... how ... ?-- 8th of 7, Apr 11 2016 Do people with full autism do interviews?-- Ander, Apr 12 2016 Not as such. That would be one of the more challenging aspects of the project.-- 8th of 7, Apr 12 2016 did you know that more than 200 million people started using grid electricity for the first time between 2011 to 2012? (Economist) The nifty awesome possibility of utilizing a mind simulator to feel another persons perspective is vaguely similar.
"That would be one of the more challenging aspects of the project." [8th of 7] I am amazed, I thought you were going to use photonic data mapping of the brain at a big data approach. really actually. photonic tomographic measures of brain area glucose utilization are published. basically the autistic person would just have to wander around 2ndlife world as well as their desktop then exist. The software maps their CNS activity then translation software shows immersive or video clips of similar emotionalize with also occurring cognitive activation.
Perhaps a person kindly enquiring about meal participation is something like "weirdpocalypse" from gravity falls. looks and feels OR, rather more mildly, perhaps a person kindly enquiring about lunch looks or feels more like nonoptimal NPR fundraiser depending on the person.-- beanangel, Apr 13 2016 // I am amazed, I thought you were going to use photonic data mapping of the brain at a big data approach. really actually. photonic tomographic measures of brain area glucose utilization are published. //
"We" aren't going to do anything. There's no money to be made, no opportunity for dangerously inadvisable use of explosives or projectile weapons, and nothing awful happens to cats.
If you want to do it, go ahead. We just want 7% of the gate money as a royalty.-- 8th of 7, Apr 13 2016 //I passed a marquis a couple of days ago// I hope he said "good morning" to you. I find many of them can be so aloof.
As to the idea, I'm not sure it's possible. First of all, how would you know how the world looks to someone with autism? It's like trying to see red the same way someone else sees red - Carmichael's conundrum.
My very, very limited knowledge of autism suggests that it involves a direct perception of the world, rather than perception of an internal model of the world (which is what you and I do). I don't believe you can design a theme park that would remotely, slightly, marginally recreate that experience.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Apr 13 2016 so you mean it's the hardwiring rather than the software?-- Skewed, Apr 17 2016 I don't know. I think the theory is that it's the wiring. But nobody really knows a lot about autism.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Apr 17 2016 Actually, people with autism know a lot, but they're not telling.
That's part of the problem, or indeed most of it.-- 8th of 7, Apr 17 2016 One seriously autistic woman has tried to interpret in a quite moving video. [link]
I don't think that the perception can be simulated. It would be like trying to teach dolphins how to walk and use hands.-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Apr 17 2016 //Nobody can pay attention to absolutely everything coming in with equal detail.//
I think the situation is a little different. In a non-autistic person, all the information comes in and, along with memory and prior knowledge, is used to build and update a plausible internal model; the person then "sees" this internal model and pays attention to one part of it or another as necessary.
So it's a bit like having ten pages of text describing an elephant, and an internal model that says "it's an elephant". The person sees an elephant, and can then examine bits of it if they so wish.
In autism (according to one view), the model never gets constructed and the person has instead to look at the ten pages of text; they can attend to the sentence that says "long grey bendy thing", or they can attend to the sentence that says "two pointy white things", but they have to pick out those sentences from all the equally-weighted incoming information.
The advantage that autism gives is probably an ability to perceive the world rather than an internal (and possibly wrong) model of it. Autism probably also builds better reasoning and deduction skills, because those skills are constantly exercised to interpret the world.
The disadvantages are presumably the huge computational burden (which must be exhausting) and an inability to make the reasonable predictions and generalizations that come from having an internal modelling system.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Apr 17 2016 Autism-like cognitive function can be very approximately replicated using transcranial magnetic stimulation or drugs. Add those to your theme park and you're on a winner.-- xaviergisz, Apr 18 2016 No probem.
// you go and work in sales and marketing. //
Really ? We always thought that it was because the voices in their heads have told them to "Go Forth and do Evil Things to please Lord Satan".-- 8th of 7, Apr 18 2016 Huh... I thought that was politics.-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Apr 19 2016 //The advantage that autism gives is probably an ability to perceive the world rather than an internal (and possibly wrong) model of it//
you know, I've been waiting with baited breathe for you to claim (a minor degree of) autism since you posted that :)-- Skewed, Apr 22 2016 That would be "bated breath". And I believe I am dull red on the spectrum.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Apr 22 2016 ok, I'm about half way down the bottle of scotch at the moment, I would like to attribute any appalling spelling errors to that.. but I'd probably be lying :)-- Skewed, Apr 22 2016 Huxley's account of lysergic acid diethylamide in "The Doors of Perception" springs to mind here. Of course, Huxley only documented a "good trip" and, for greater authenticity, you'd want to ensure that "bad trip" aspects of the experience were also represented. Huxley writes of a notional "reducing valve" which is disabled by the drug, and is comparable to [MB]'s account of the reduction of ten pages of text to "elephant".
So, to make this work (which I don't necessarily recommend), you could administer acid, and combine it somehow with the apprehension of those random beatings. Obviously, people could only visit this park alone, and preferably after being kidnapped.
Also, it's important that you get the theme park's maps right. You know how, in a typical theme park, or similar visitor-attracting site, there are big, simplified maps, with a highly-visible arrow indicating "you are here". Well, in this park, those maps would make no concession whatever to simplification, but would resemble "Where's Wally?" pictures, in which the "you are here" arrow was carefully blended into the background. Furthermore, the image would refresh every few seconds, each new image being centred on a different geographical point and being differently lit and coloured. Some features of the image (never the "you are here" arrow itself) would be animated to wiggle annoyingly. This is to illustrate what clinicians call "weak central coherence".-- pertinax, Apr 23 2016 You're hired, [pert]. Be at the design meeting in two days time. In the interim, we'll send you the existing plans to go over.-- 8th of 7, Apr 23 2016 Ooh, I've just found a very telling definition of autism.
It was published in a "Dictionary of Psychology" in 1951 (back when psychology was still heavily influenced by psychoanalysis).
Autism: see Autistic Thinking
Autistic Thinking: mental activity which is controlled by the wishes of the individual, as contrasted with *reality thinking*, controlled by the conditions imposed by the real nature of objects and events; more or less equivalent to *wishful thinking* or *phantasy* (q.v.)
This definition tells you nothing whatsoever about the experience of being autistic, but it tells you a great deal about (a) the nature of the psychoanalytic movement and (b) the historical process by which people of the spectrum came to be marginalised.
Essentially, it defined autism as "being wrong". Therefore, it provided a handy, pseudo-clinical, scientific-sounding label with which to dismiss anyone who disagreed with the analyst.
It should be understood in the context of writing, about autistic people, by influential non-clinical authors in the psychoanalytic movement. Somerset Maugham and D. H. Lawrence spring to mind. Somerset Maugham wanted us dead, whereas D. H. Lawrence wanted us enslaved for the benefit of the cool people. If you think I'm exaggerating, re-read their work. I still remember the uncritical enthusiasm with which Lawrence's oeuvre was taught in my high school. </rant>-- pertinax, Apr 23 2016 // it defined autism as "being wrong". //
Yes, but that's also just a wife's definition of her husband's (and by inference, all other men's) point of view...-- 8th of 7, Apr 23 2016 It occurs to me that this has been partially implemented by COVID-19.
Now, *everyone* is unsure about how personal space is supposed to work, forced to communicate without the full range of non-verbal cues, unable to acquire sexual partners without great difficulty, forced to cope emotionally without frequent validation by peers and generally apprehensive that there is something threatening going on which they don't fully understand.
Schadenfreude isn't nice, but sometimes, when I hear people complain about how much they hate lockdown, I can't help thinking "welcome to our world".-- pertinax, Sep 05 2020 Good observation, pertinax. I'm reminded of walking through a local mall today on an errand. Several people acknowledged me with a raised hand and/or "hello". As for me, I seemed to recognized every pair of eyes peeping over those masks. Also, people seemed attentive to the fact I was there -- their mood seemed inclusive.
Mind you, a bunch of strangers. I think you're right; that has to be akin to what a hypervigilant person experiences on a good day.
Have to add, if that was a good day I'd not want to have a bad one. Beatings or no!-- reensure, Sep 05 2020 // Schadenfreude isn't nice, //
<Baffled expression />
... except for the "freude" part, which is the Gernan for "joy" ... as in "Kraft durch Freude".
And presumably "Freude durch Schaden" ...
It would be most interesting to see the results of an anonymous* survey/test to see just how many Bakers are "on the axis".
Obviously it wouldn't include [xen], because these tests only give useful results for humans, not the french.
*To one another. Obviously, we would need to know everyone's names, dates of birth and all other pertinent** data for purely statistical reasons and because the Chinese pay top dollar for that stuff.
**i.e. everything.-- 8th of 7, Sep 05 2020 random, halfbakery