Fascinating new article about the development of autism in my fave science magazine - does this tells us anything important about synaesthesia?

According to an article in the latest New Scientist, 2 year olds with autism have been found to show a particular interest in looking at movements that are synchronized with sound, while they are conspicuously uninterested in looking at what might be interpreted as biological movements. Two thoughts came to my mind upon reading about these apparently fundamental behavioural differences between developing autists and neurotypicals. Firstly, I wonder, is the autistic preference for looking at movements synchronized with sounds one of the most basic behavioural differences in toddlers that gives rise to the systemizer-type brain? Does this autistic inborn preference to look for mechanical movements lead to the development of superior mechanical and technical intelligence? Unlubricated inanimate objects often make a noise during movement while hard, dry surfaces rub together, but animals and people do not make scraping or squeaking noises during movement as we have sealed joints that are biologically lubricated, so it appears that the autistic toddler has a brain that is primed to develop into the brain of an engineer, but not a person who deals with other beings. This discovery fits in beautifully with the research done years ago by UK autism expert Prof. Baron-Cohen and his team who found that autistic kids are more likely to have an engineer for a dad or grand-dad than non-autistic kids. It all makes sense to me - the daughter of an engineer who has most of the features of Asperger syndrome and synaesthesia too, and who find herself inexplicably drawn to watching the wheels of motor cars when they are travelling at around 50 km/h.

Another thought struck me too. It could possibly be a clue that current thinking about synaesthesia is fundamentally wrong. Autistic kids are drawn to looking at movements that are synchronized with sound. That means autistic kids are wired to pay attention to sensory input that is like the experience of synaesthesia; these kids apparently preferentially expose their brain to sensory input in which sound and vision are simultaneous. I found this idea very reminiscent of the recent discovery of motion-sound synesthesia by US lecturer Melissa Saenz, reported in New Scientist in August 2008 (I experience this type of synaesthesia). Could this new discovery about autistic toddlers be an explanation of how synaesthesia develops in the young brain? Does this explain the recently discovered genetic link between autism and synaesthesia? Does synaesthesia (sometimes? always?) develop from autism in the very young brain? Is synaesthesia not the result of genes specifically" for" strange brain wiring? Is synaesthesia, with its differently-developed physical brain structures, just one of many developmental side-effects of autistic development? Did all synesthetes show signs of autism in their earliest years of development?

Whether or not my speculations point towards the truth or nonsense, one thing is certain - this research shows us that autistic toddlers have the inborn neurological potential to develop skills that non-autistic children apparently are not gifted with. Any form of "early intervention" or "therapy" that successfully makes autistic children develop more like non-autistic children could potentially DESTROY, CRUSH or IMPAIR the inborn special potential of autistic children to develop specialized, important and useful systemizing abilities. If I had an autistic child and I was being told that my kid needed to have special treatment for autism, I'd want a rock-solid promise based on hard scientific evidence that such intervention would not steal my child's special potential to develop superior systemizing skills. I'm sure that there is no "autism therapist" operating anywhere in the world who can give any such assurance.


Links:

Pearson, Aria (2009) Toddlers with autism see a different world. New Scientist. April 1st 2009. Issue 2702.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20227024.500-toddlers-with-autism-see-a-different-world.html

Motluk, Alison (2008) Screensaver reveals new test for synaesthesia. New Scientist. August 4th 2008.http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14459-screensaver-reveals-new-test-for-synaesthesia.html?DCMP=ILC-hmts&nsref=news5_head_dn14459

Copyright Lili Marlene 2009.