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jdh
July 4th, 2007, 08:45 AM
Temple Grandin on autism + Free MIT physics

QUOTE

Temple Grandin Ph.D., is inarguably the most accomplished and well-known adult with autism in the world. She has been featured on major television programs, and written up in national publications.

Dr. Grandin didn't talk until she was three and a half years old, communicating her frustration instead by screaming, peeping and humming. In 1950, she was labeled "autistic," and her parents were told she should be institutionalized. She tells her story of "groping her way from the far side of darkness" in her book Emergence: Labeled Autistic, a book which stunned the world because, until its publication, most professionals and parents assumed being diagnosed "autistic" was virtually a death sentence to achievement or productivity in life.

Dr. Grandin has become a prominent author and speaker on the subject of autism because "I have read enough to know that there are still many parents, and, yes, professionals, too, who believe that 'once autistic, always autistic.' This dictum has meant sad and sorry lives for many children diagnosed, as I was in early life, as autistic. To these people, it is incomprehensible that the characteristics of autism can be modified and controlled. However, I feel strongly that I am living proof that they can." (Taken from Emergence: Labeled Autistic)

Even though she was considered "weird" in her young school years, she eventually found a mentor, who recognized her interests and abilities, which she later expanded into becoming a successful livestock handling equipment designer, one of very few in the world. She has designed the facilities in which half the cattle are handled in the United States, consulting for firms such as Burger King, McDonald's, Swift and others.

She presently works as an Associate Professor at Colorado State University but also speaks around the world on both autism and cattle handling.

(excerpted from www.templegrandin.com)

http://cybertower.cornell.edu/Requester/r/roomMain/autism

UNQUOTE

Free online physics courses from MIT

http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/Physics/index.htm

Undergraduate Courses MIT Course # Course Title
8.01 Physics I, Fall 2003
8.01 Physics I: Classical Mechanics, Fall 1999
8.012 Physics I: Classical Mechanics, Fall 2005
8.01L Physics I: Classical Mechanics, Fall 2005
8.01T Physics I, Fall 2004
8.01X Physics I: Classical Mechanics with an Experimental Focus, Fall 2002
8.02 Electricity and Magnetism, Spring 2002
8.022 Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism, Fall 2004
8.022 Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism, Fall 2002
8.022 Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism, Fall 2006
8.02T Electricity and Magnetism, Spring 2005
8.02X Physics II: Electricity & Magnetism with an Experimental Focus, Spring 2005
8.03 Physics III, Spring 2003
8.03 Physics III: Vibrations and Waves, Fall 2004
8.033 Relativity, Fall 2003
8.04 Quantum Physics I, Spring 2006
8.044 Statistical Physics I, Spring 2004
8.05 Quantum Physics II, Fall 2004
8.06 Quantum Physics III, Spring 2005
8.07 Electromagnetism II, Fall 2005
8.08 Statistical Physics II, Spring 2005
8.09 Classical Mechanics, Fall 2006 NEW
8.13-14 Experimental Physics I & II "Junior Lab", Fall 2004 - Spring 2005
8.20 Introduction to Special Relativity, January (IAP) 2005
8.224 Exploring Black Holes: General Relativity & Astrophysics, Spring 2003
8.225J Einstein, Oppenheimer, Feynman: Physics in the 20th Century, Spring 2006
8.231 Physics of Solids I, Fall 2002
8.251 String Theory for Undergraduates, Spring 2005
8.261J Introduction to Computational Neuroscience, Spring 2004
8.282J Introduction to Astronomy, Spring 2006
8.284 Modern Astrophysics, Spring 2006
8.286 The Early Universe, Spring 2004
8.811 Particle Physics II, Fall 2005
8.901 Astrophysics I, Spring 2006

Graduate Courses MIT Course # Course Title
8.311 Electromagnetic Theory, Spring 2004
8.321 Quantum Theory I, Fall 2002
8.322 Quantum Theory II, Spring 2003
8.323 Relativistic Quantum Field Theory I, Spring 2003
8.324 Relativistic Quantum Field Theory II, Fall 2005
8.325 Relativistic Quantum Field Theory III, Spring 2003
8.333 Statistical Mechanics I: Statistical Mechanics of Particles, Fall 2005
8.334 Statistical Mechanics II: Statistical Mechanics of Fields, Spring 2004
8.351J Classical Mechanics: A Computational Approach, Fall 2002
8.371J Quantum Information Science, Spring 2006
8.395J Teaching College-Level Science, Spring 2006
8.422 Atomic and Optical Physics II, Spring 2005
8.511 Theory of Solids I, Fall 2004
8.512 Theory of Solids II, Spring 2004
8.513 Many-Body Theory for Condensed Matter Systems, Fall 2004
8.514 Strongly Correlated Systems in Condensed Matter Physics, Fall 2003
8.575J Statistical Thermodynamics of Complex Liquids, Spring 2004
8.591J Systems Biology, Fall 2004
8.592J Statistical Physics in Biology, Spring 2005
8.594J Introduction to Neural Networks, Spring 2005
8.613J Introduction To Plasma Physics I, Fall 2002
8.613J Introduction to Plasma Physics I, Fall 2003
8.701 Introduction to Nuclear and Particle Physics, Spring 2004
8.851 Strong Interactions: Effective Field Theories of QCD, Spring 2006
8.871 Selected Topics in Theoretical Particle Physics: Branes and Gauge Theory Dynamics, Fall 2004
8.901 Astrophysics I, Spring 2006
8.902 Astrophysics II, Fall 2004
8.942 Cosmology, Fall 2001
8.952 Particle Physics of the Early Universe, Fall 2004 NEW
8.962 General Relativity, Spring 2006

Judy G. Russell
July 4th, 2007, 02:28 PM
until its publication, most professionals and parents assumed being diagnosed "autistic" was virtually a death sentence to achievement or productivity in life.A lot, of course, depends on the type of autism. There are some extremely high-functioning autistics -- and then there are those who aren't, and never will be.

Free online physics courses from MITForwarding immediately if not sooner to my physics-teaching sister. Thanks!

jdh
July 4th, 2007, 04:46 PM
One interesting aspect of Grandin's free online lectures at the Cornell Cybertower is that she discusses how animals think. Normally we think of livestock animals (as opposed, for example, to the great apes, dolphins, and elephants) as basically instinctive and non-thinking and non-decision-making, but she illustrates how that is NOT true.

Since she made the connection between autism and animal-thinking based on the realization/discovery that it's based on a difference in "wiring" of brain circuits so to speak, it easily raises the question of how competent we "normal" people actually are at thinking "in general". If animals and some autistics can understand things in a couple seconds that it might take a "normal" person hours or days to figure out, then this is NOT a merely academic or trivial question.

Often we humans think we are pretty clever just because we can jabber some sentences regarding syllogism or categorizations of actions and objects, etc. OTOH, math and physics have essentially infinitely many types of actions (operations) and objects such that the language of math and physics can in some ways easily outstrip the richness of ordinary speech, e.g. in providing ways of thinking about reality.

So if you organize a committee that has people of only one type of thinking system/paradigm on it, you could easily miss excellent solutions to problems. Maybe we should have a few political parties with dolphins and elephants on the advisory staff? I wonder if those guys have comedians too?

DH

sidney
July 4th, 2007, 08:52 PM
MIT has opened a large number of its courses, not just in physics MIT Open Courseware (http://ocw.mit.edu/).

Of course taking the course online like that is not the same as getting to hobnob with past and future Nobel Prize winners :)

-- sidney

Judy G. Russell
July 4th, 2007, 11:41 PM
it easily raises the question of how competent we "normal" people actually are at thinking "in general". If animals and some autistics can understand things in a couple seconds that it might take a "normal" person hours or days to figure out, then this is NOT a merely academic or trivial question.I'm not at all sure that the kinds of things that animals can understand in a couple of seconds are things that a human living in a modern society needs to understand quickly. If we did, I suspect our ability to understand them quickly would be at least equal to that of animals.

Maybe we should have a few political parties with dolphins and elephants on the advisory staff? That's donkeys and elephants, isn't it?

Judy G. Russell
July 4th, 2007, 11:42 PM
MIT has opened a large number of its courses, not just in physics MIT Open Courseware (http://ocw.mit.edu/).Very cool. Thanks, Sidney. That list sure includes some stuff I'd be interested in.

Of course taking the course online like that is not the same as getting to hobnob with past and future Nobel Prize winners :) No doubt. But I'll take what I can get!

jdh
July 5th, 2007, 10:05 AM
MIT has opened a large number of its courses, not just in physics MIT Open Courseware (http://ocw.mit.edu/).

Of course taking the course online like that is not the same as getting to hobnob with past and future Nobel Prize winners :)

-- sidney


Right, I forgot to mention that the OCW meant Open CourseWare.

No hobnob with Nobel Prize winners, perhaps, but they do have OLS. Presumably students can communicate online with each other.

Open Learning Support

QUOTE

OLS is a research project that is focused on building "social software" that enables informal learning communities to form around existing open educational content. The fundamental premise of OLS is that full educational opportunity requires a user to have the social access to other people who can answer questions and provide support. Since the sponsors of free and open Web-based materials cannot typically provide this access, the social support must come from other users. Therefore, OLS:

*
Operates independently of MIT OCW
*
Requires users to register and login to participate
*
Is not a degree-granting or certificate-granting program
*
Does not provide formal access to MIT or Utah State University faculty

Connect to the Discussion Group for Course 5.04: Principles of Inorganic Chemistry II now.

Open Learning Support is funded by a grant from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/Chemistry/5-04Fall-2004/DiscussionGroup/index.htm

UNQUOTE

Unlike MIT OCW, Cornell Cybertower Rooms are not real courses, however, I believe that some of the professors do commit to monitor the discussion forums one a week, at least during some period during the time after the Room is first posted on the Cybertower.

DH

jdh
July 5th, 2007, 10:16 AM
donkeys and elephants, isn't it?

No.

The states of matter are (AFAIK):

solid (elephants)

liquid (dolphins)

gas (crows and parrots)

plasma (ghosts?)

perhaps arboreal (orangutans) and subterranean (bears and badgers) should be allowed too, under solid (land dwellers)?

BTW, which if any sports teams have donkeys and elephants as mascots?

DH

jdh
July 5th, 2007, 10:35 AM
I'm not at all sure that the kinds of things that animals can understand in a couple of seconds are things that a human living in a modern society needs to understand quickly. If we did, I suspect our ability to understand them quickly would be at least equal to that of animals.


It was an example. Should'a give more examples with different time spans.

There are plenty of us humans who are block heads and have one track minds, perhaps some with very high IQ's (i.e. quick). If I'm a blockhead it's gonna take me years or decades to learn some things. That's why such things as psychotropic drugs, boot camps, deprogramming, etc. Hopefully one accomplishes more in them than just exchanging one block for another. My Dad told me that, even tho' he often disagreed with my Mom, this problem is also one good reason for getting married.

Computer games are still at a very primitive state. For example, do they have any games yet that teach how to apply tone of voice together with pick up lines when flirting ?

DH

jdh
July 5th, 2007, 11:06 AM
MIT has opened a large number of its courses, not just in physics MIT Open Courseware (http://ocw.mit.edu/).

Of course taking the course online like that is not the same as getting to hobnob with past and future Nobel Prize winners :)

-- sidney

I wonder what direct or indirect influence the Free Software Foundation and Richard Stallman (he was/is at MIT?) might have had on OCW ?

Open Source vs. Freedom
http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oscon2002/jc_photos4.html

The Free Software Foundation
http://www.fsf.org/

Richard Stallman's Personal Home Page
http://www.stallman.org/

It takes more than one kind of people: another Richard (Stevens, author of UNP)
"Guru of the Unix Gurus"
http://archive.salon.com/tech/feature/2000/09/01/rich_stevens/index.html

his website
http://www.kohala.com/
http://www.kohala.com/start/

DH

P.S. GPL3 just recently was released (by the lawyers, et al., I presume).

Judy G. Russell
July 5th, 2007, 11:48 AM
BTW, which if any sports teams have donkeys and elephants as mascots?The answer to that depends on whether you regard American politics as sports... Otherwise, no donkeys but one mule and two elephants:

Army Black Knights a.k.a. Cadets (West Point, NY) -- Mule
Alabama Crimson Tide (Tuscaloosa, AL) -- Elephant
California State-Fullerton Titans (Fullerton, CA) -- Elephant

sidney
July 5th, 2007, 10:12 PM
I wonder what direct or indirect influence the Free Software Foundation and Richard Stallman (he was/is at MIT?) might have had on OCW ?

I would say that it was the long-existing culture at MIT that influenced rms in his formative days there, and both rms and OCW are outgrowths of the same cultural influences. (I was at the MIT AI lab starting at about the same time that rms started to hang out there.)

-- sidney

davidh
September 22nd, 2007, 12:34 AM
I wonder if those guys have comedians too?

The Daily Whisper
Hottest Scoop on the 'Net

McCarthy Calls Carrey 'Autism Whisperer'
NEW YORK (AP) -- Jenny McCarthy worried about finding a good man after her son, Evan, was diagnosed with autism two years ago. Then Jim Carrey came along. "Beyond doubt it was written in the stars that Jim and Evan were a pair," the 34-year-old actress tells People magazine in its Oct. 1 issue.

"He's actually helped Evan get past some obstacles I couldn't. I sometimes call him the autism whisperer. He speaks a language Evan understands, and Evan feels safe with him."

http://channels.isp.netscape.com/celebrity/whisper.jsp?current=27&floc=NI-pop

From what I remember of Temple Grandin's lectures online, linked to earlier in the thread, her advice on teaching autistic children probably does jive with Jim Carrey's visual style of comedy. Also noteworthy was the way that Prof. Grandin gestures with her hands in the video versions of the lectures, online.

David H