Link Dump

• Dynamic Touch Screens Help the Speech Impaired- CNET
• Handicap is Not a Death Sentence and Should not be Treated as One-US News and World Report
• One Arm Presenter is Scaring Children, Parents Tell the BBC -Daily Mail
• ipods May Help Asperger's Kids Navigate Life -Star Tribune
• A Rorschach Cheat Sheet on Wikipedia? - NY Times
  

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Federal Court Rules No Link Between Autism and Vaccines

"A special federal court ruled yesterday that vaccines do not cause autism and that thousands of families with autistic children are not entitled to compensation, delivering a major blow to an international movement that has tried for years to link childhood immunizations with the devastating disorder. " -Washington Post

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Cognitive Disability: A Challenge to Moral Philosophy

There's an upcoming conference at Stonybrook University in NY which sounds fascinating.

"Cognitive disability: A challenge to Moral Philosophy"

"The realities of cognitive disability pose a significant challenge to certain key conceptions philosophers have held. Philosophers have conceived of the mark of humanity as the possession of rational cognitive capacities. They have traditionally extended the mantles of equality, dignity, justice, responsibility, and moral fellowship to those with these abilities, whom they speak of as "persons." What then should we say about those with severe cognitive disabilities? How should we treat these individuals and what sorts of entitlements can they claim? Should we grant the arguments of some philosophers who want to parse our moral universe in ways that depend on degrees of cognitive capacity, not on being human? How do claims for the moral consideration of animals bear on the question? Is it morally acceptable to consign some human beings to the status of "non-persons"? Philosophers have rarely faced these questions squarely and systematically."

Further information notes that the main focus of the conversations will be regarding those with Ausism/ Aspergers, Alzheimers and "those labled 'mentally retarded'."

The conference runs from September 18-20. See Stonybrook's site for more information.

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Wired's take on Autism

Too often mainstream media gets it wrong when writing about disability. However, Wired magazine often gets it right, as they have done with their recent article on autism. Though the picture they use is fairly dramatic, it is an interesting article that starts with a YouTube video of a young autistic woman (which is embeded in the article), known as Silentmiaow on Youtube, but who's real name is Amanda Baggs.

"The YouTube clip opens with a woman facing away from the camera, rocking back and forth, flapping her hands awkwardly, and emitting an eerie hum. She then performs strange repetitive behaviors: slapping a piece of paper against a window, running a hand lengthwise over a computer keyboard, twisting the knob of a drawer. She bats a necklace with her hand and nuzzles her face against the pages of a book. And you find yourself thinking: Who's shooting this footage of the handicapped lady, and why do I always get sucked into watching the latest viral video?
But then the words "A Translation" appear on a black screen, and for the next five minutes, 27-year-old Amanda Baggs — who is autistic and doesn't speak — describes in vivid and articulate terms what's going on inside her head as she carries out these seemingly bizarre actions."

My initial reaction to the description was that it was voyeurism, but then watched the video and read the article. It questions what we know about autism, and the nature of intelligence tests (and makes some good points). Very worth the read.

Another good Wired article regarding Aspergers is "The Geek Syndrome" about why aspergers is surging in Silicon Valley.
Amanda's YouTube page with more videos