Aug 10 Watch 8:16 How machines are learning to read your mood By PBS News Hour Can artificial intelligence be emotionally intelligent? In Boston, researchers have programed BB-8, the little droid from “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” to detect expressions and determine how people are feeling. And that technology is being adapted for marketing, video games,… Continue watching
Aug 09 Watch 9:14 Giving adults with autism the skills to build independent lives By PBS News Hour Before Josh, 36, arrived at First Place Transition Academy, he had never taken public transportation on his own, much less held down a paying job. But a new pilot program is empowering adults with autism to overcome hurdles to independence. Continue watching
Jul 07 Texas denies medicaid coverage for an autism therapy despite federal directive By Kate Harrington, Kaiser Health News Parents, who say their children with autism are legally entitled to behavioral analysis, are butting heads with Texas officials. Continue reading
Apr 27 Watch The shocking experience of finally seeing the full spectrum of emotion By PBS News Hour A medical procedure used to diagnose damage from brain injuries may also help some autistic patients make connections and understand emotions they’ve never experienced. Author John Robison underwent that experimental therapy, detailed in a new memoir, “Switched On.” Hari Sreenivasan… Continue watching
Apr 27 Students with disabilities on the rise, driven by autism By Christina A. Samuels, Education Week The number of students covered under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act has gone up, driven by rapid growth in such disability categories as autism. Continue reading
Feb 16 Should all young children be screened for autism? Task force is inconclusive By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News An influential task force says there’s “insufficient evidence” to argue definitely that the benefits of screening all young children for autism outweigh the harms. Continue reading
Feb 09 Narrow marketplace plans in Texas are a problem for some autistic children By Kate Harrington, Kaiser Health News New, narrower networks often mean families are losing access to therapists and providers they have used for their autistic children. Continue reading
Jan 25 New mutant monkeys model the inheritance of autism By Nsikan Akpan These genetically modified monkeys exhibit some of the social deficits and anxiety behaviors observed in human autism and may help uncover new therapies. Continue reading
Jan 20 Watch Telling the story of parents and activists who fought for autism acceptance By PBS News Hour The story of autism is many stories -- from doctors, to parents, to the afflicted themselves. Journalists Caren Zucker and John Donvan examine that history in their new book, "In a Different Key: The Story of Autism." Jeffrey Brown sits… Continue watching
Jan 20 Was this autism pioneer also a Nazi? By William Brangham Viennese psychologist Hans Asperger ran a clinic for autistic children in the 1930s and is considered by many to be one of the first to diagnose and define autism as we know it today. But what became of Asperger during… Continue reading