Badassitude and the autistic spectrum: there is no such thing as too much testosterone

Charles XII of Sweden
“… by all accounts was pretty hardcore.”
http://www.amazingben.com/arf0080.html

The Blues Brothers
“There is just something about these two hapless brothers and their wild adventures that makes you totally pumped up and ready to crash a car through a window while smoking cigarettes, wearing a black suit and listening to James Brown.”
http://www.amazingben.com/arf0051.html

Paul Dirac
“He was a virtual black hole of destruction”
http://www.amazingben.com/arf0024.html

Moby Dick (book written by Herman Melville)
“80-ton, hate-filled, murderous embodiment of God's Wrath.”
http://www.amazingben.com/arf0077.html

The Microsoft Xbox (made by Bill’s company)
“Just turning the power on makes me so pumped up that I want to start kicking shit, pounding on my chest and bodyslamming my television.”
http://www.amazingben.com/arf0020.html


References mentioning some famous people and autism

Baron-Cohen, Simon (2003) The essential difference. Penguin Books.
[Paul Dirac, Einstein, Newton, William Shockley …]

Caplan, Arthur (2005) Would you have allowed Bill Gates to be born?: advances in prenatal genetic testing pose tough questions. MSNBC.com. May 31 2005.
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7899821/

Elmer-DeWitt, Philip and Farley, Christopher Joh (1994) Diagnosing Bill Gates. Time. Vol. 142 Issue 4:p 25.

Fitzgerald, Michael (2005) The genesis of artistic creativity: Asperger’s syndrome and the arts. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
[Herman Melville and others]

Gillberg, C. (2002) [Charles XII seems to have fulfilled all the criteria of Asperger syndrome] (article in Swedish) Lakartidningen. 2002 Nov. 28;99 (48):4837-8.
[Charles XII of Sweden]

Gross, Terri. (2004) Comedian – and writer – Dan Aykroyd. Fresh Air. NPR. November 22 2004.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4181931
[Dan Aykroyd (of the Blues Brothers) discusses his childhood diagnosis at around 29 minutes into this radio interview]

James, Ioan (2004) Remarkable physicists: from Galileo to Yukawa. Cambridge University Press.
[Dirac, Newton, Cavendish, Einstein]

Lagerkvist, B. (2002) [Charles XII had all symptoms of Asperger syndrome: stubbornness, a stereotyped existence and lack of compassion] (article in Swedish) Lakartidningen. 2002 Nov. 28;99(48):4874-8.
[Charles XII of Sweden]