Adults with Autism Speak Out: Perceptions of Their Life Experiences

The purpose of this study was to investigate and describe the perceptions of three high functioning adults with autism about their life experiences. After a review of the literature, I determined that there is a lack of information regarding adults with autism, especially those at the high end of the spectrum. There is a great deal of information regarding the educational needs of individuals with autism; however, there are few studies available which address the unique needs of the adults. I wondered “What can we learn about adults with autism that we did not know before? What can they tell us about their life experiences?” The participants in this study were three high functioning adults with autism who lived in different cities across the United States. I met, visited, and corresponded with them over a nine-month period of time, beginning at a national conference on autism in July 1999 and ending in April 2000. Qualitative research methods were used to study the perceptions of the life experiences of high functioning adults with autism. These methods included initial visits and interviews, follow-up interviews, and the reading of published and unpublished material written by the participants. Through analysis of the data, an overall main assertion, three themes, add several sub-assertions were developed. Each theme and assertion was documented and supported with verbatim data and related literature. These themes and assertions are summarized as follows. High functioning adults with autism want to be considered experts in the field of autism, have opinions on, and want to be consulted on issues related to autism. They see, and believe in, the value of others learning about autism directly from the sources themselves. They are proud to have autism and do not desire to be a neurotypical, whom they see as narrow-minded and biased. Over time, with experience and education, high functioning adults with autism have developed opinions on a wide variety of topics related to autism. They believe that group living is dehumanizing, issues of employment are a big problem, behaviors need to be addressed individually and positively, and the use of gentle and supportive techniques is the best way to teach social skills. Recommendations to parents and professionals involved in working with individuals with autism were provided

A new solid-state sodium-metal battery

Sodium batteries and solid-state electrolytes are two research directions in the effort to develop electrochemical energy storage that goes beyond the lithium ion. In this issue of Chem, Goodenough and colleagues combine a sodium-metal anode, a NASICON solid electrolyte, and a Prussian blue analog cathode to create an energy-dense, long-lived battery. Sodium batteries and solid-state electrolytes are two research directions in the effort to develop electrochemical energy storage that goes beyond the lithium ion. In this issue of Chem, Goodenough and colleagues combine a sodium-metal anode, a NASICON solid electrolyte, and a Prussian blue analog cathode to create an energy-dense, long-lived battery

Sex-biased parental care and sexual size dimorphism in a provisioning arthropod

The diverse selection pressures driving the evolution of sexual size dimorphism (SSD) have long been debated. While the balance between fecundity selection and sexual selection has received much attention, explanations based on sex-specific ecology have proven harder to test. In ectotherms, females are typically larger than males, and this is frequently thought to be because size constrains female fecundity more than it constrains male mating success. However, SSD could additionally reflect maternal care strategies. Under this hypothesis, females are relatively larger where reproduction requires greater maximum maternal effort – for example where mothers transport heavy provisions to nests. To test this hypothesis we focussed on digger wasps (Hymenoptera: Ammophilini), a relatively homogeneous group in which only females provision offspring. In some species, a single large prey item, up to 10 times the mother’s weight, must be carried to each burrow on foot; other species provide many small prey, each flown individually to the nest. We found more pronounced female-biased SSD in species where females carry single, heavy prey. More generally, SSD was negatively correlated with numbers of prey provided per offspring. Females provisioning multiple small items had longer wings and thoraxes, probably because smaller prey are carried in flight. Despite much theorising, few empirical studies have tested how sex-biased parental care can affect SSD. Our study reveals that such costs can be associated with the evolution of dimorphism, and this should be investigated in other clades where parental care costs differ between sexes and species

Smokejumper Magazine, July 2013

This issue of the National Smokejumper Association (NSA) Smokejumper Magazine contains the following articles: My Last “Jump”—Crash of F-8 Crusader (Gary Watts), Feature Smokey Stover (Guy Hurlbutt), Doehring First Woman Base Manager, The Start of a Smokejumper Base 1943 (Historic), Balloon Bombs, the USFS and the Vietnam Sequel (Fred Donner). Smokejumper Magazine continues Static Line, which was the original title of the NSA quarterly magazine.https://dc.ewu.edu/smokejumper_mag/1083/thumbnail.jp

Prussian blue analogs as battery materials

Context & Scale: In this work, we offer our perspective on a class of compounds known as Prussian blue analogs, a group of versatile cyano-coordination polymers. Originally commercialized in the dye industry, they have more recently been used in diverse energy technologies including energy storage, electrocatalysis, and thermal power generation. We address their role as components of the next generation of batteries with improved cycle life and power capability. Through a review of achievements from early electrochemical experiments to crystallographic breakthroughs to development of state-of-the-art electrodes, we outline how control over the crystal structure allows these materials' electrochemistry to be tuned for diverse uses. Despite recent advances, there remain conspicuous and fundamental questions about the structure-electrochemistry relationship that we identify. We adumbrate investigations using density functional theory calculations, synchrotron X-ray techniques, electrochemical tests, and technoeconomic analyses to answer these questions

Experiences of Receiving a Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Survey of Adults in the United Kingdom

A total of 128 adults with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders were surveyed concerning the process they went through to obtain their diagnosis and the subsequent support they received. Results suggested that routes to diagnosis were quite heterogeneous and overall levels of satisfaction with the diagnostic process were mixed; 40 % of respondents were ‘very/quite’ dissatisfied, whilst 47 % were ‘very/quite’ satisfied. The extent of delays, number of professionals seen, quality of information given at diagnosis and levels of post-diagnostic support predicted overall satisfaction with the diagnostic process. Important areas and suggestions for improvement were noted for all stages of the diagnostic pathway. Respondents also displayed above average levels of depressed mood and anxiety, with greater support being requested in this area