Aut_Scot

Some more research involving robots which could be of use to those on the Autistic Spectrum: https://www.spectrumnews.org/opinion/viewpoint/intelligent-robots-prove-boon-autism-therapies/

There is currently a petition to "Stop the detention of people with autism & learning disability’s in ATU’s" on the UK Government and Parliament petitions website. Perhaps some of you would like to sign it, here is a link to it: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/231406

I suppose that I would be in the Table 3, with the possibility of going down to Table 4 if I had to. What I was looking for was a computer programme or web page linked to a database with many more types of jobs. Also, to be more useful, it could take other factors in to account, such as hypersensitivities to things such as noise, light level, smell, touch etc which an autistic person might have. For example, I visited a workplace where I could potentially have had the skills to work, but I found it was a very noisy (overbearingly so) workplace. Someone could have good cooking skills, but might not cope with a hot, noisy, crowded kitchen in a restaurant etc. A job might look good on television, leading people to think about doing it, but there might be facets of the job that might be a problem for autistic people such as dealing with difficult or unreasonable customers which might require high level interpersonal skills.

News article: " Autistic boy 'mocked' by Great Western Railway staff ": https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-45952442 What a terrible thing to do. Has anyone on here had any thing like that happen to them?

What do you think of that "jazz hands" rather than clapping debate after the news that University of Manchester student union has ditched clapping, whooping and cheering in favour of "jazz hands", due to the fact that traditional clapping can cause issues for students with autism, sensory issues or deafness. ? https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-45717841 The article below discusses this matter: https://www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/jane-bradley-where-do-you-stand-on-clapping-vs-jazz-hands-debate-1-4810835

"'Nature' being prescribed by GPs in Shetland Nature prescriptions such as picking up driftwood from a beach are being offered by GPs in Shetland in what is believed to be a UK first. NHS Shetland and RSPB Scotland have teamed up for the pioneering initiative. Listening to birdsong and taking a walk are among the other ideas being suggested to patients. It is hoped it could help tackle a range of conditions such as high blood pressure and anxiety. ... ". https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-45758016 Many autistic people suffer from anxiety, do any of you think that greater exposure to 'nature' would be of therapeutic value to autistic people?

It was good that in the latest show (Series 9, Episode 2), Rory (who has Asperger's) was successful.

I recently bought and read that book. It gets good ratings: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28000268-autism-equality-in-the-workplace

I suppose it depends on what someone wants to achieve in life. In areas such as employment, life can be very competitive and people are expected to be be very knowledgeable about thir subject, have excellent communication skills, welcome change etc etc. There appears to be little choice but to push oneself to the limits. To help to do this coping strategies are useful.

News story: " Playing peek-a-boo with babies can reveal early evidence of autism " https://careappointments.co.uk/care-news/england/item/44829-playing-peek-a-boo-with-babies-can-reveal-early-evidence-of-autism

Link to BBC news story: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-45006090 Research publication link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-018-0035-3

BBC news story " The watch that can help manage severe autism By measuring stress and anxiety levels, this wearable device could help people communicate. ... " : https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/health-44680214/the-watch-that-can-help-manage-severe-autism

" New guidance making it easier for people with autism or a learning disability to navigate the internet safely and legally has been produced ... " : https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/news/local/fife/669435/fife-at-forefront-of-new-internet-guidance-for-people-with-autism-or-learning-disabilities/

" 'Clever genes' may lead to autism, anorexia and bipolar - but protect against Alzheimer's, claim scientists ... ": http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-5873515/Clever-genes-lead-autism-anorexia-bipolar.html

He has a short film clip on the BBC website today. "Chris Packham wants better education for children with autism ....... " http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/health-42172182/chris-packham-wants-better-education-for-children-with-autism

Jessica Kingsley Publishers have a lot of books on the subject: http://www.jkp.com/uk/autism-and-related-conditions.html

Could this game with its ability to help people mentally better filter out noise, be of use to Autistic people (perhaps reduce overwhelming due to noise): http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4993574/Brain-training-game-help-people-understand-speech.html Sorry about duplicate posting, shortly after the first attempt there was an error message which lead me to believe that the post hadn't been posted.

"Cutting edge robot could reduce autistic unemployment rate A state of the art robot which teaches people key facial expressions could reduce unemployment statistics for autistic adults in the future. ... ": https://www.hw.ac.uk/about/news/cutting-edge-robot-could-reduce-autistic.htm

"The severed head of eccentric philosopher Jeremy Bentham is to go on display for the first time in decades and scientists are using the opportunity to test his DNA to find out if he was autistic.": http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/10/02/severed-head-eccentric-jeremy-bentham-go-display-scientists/?WT.mc_id=tmg_share_tw

I saw this on the BBC website today: "Epilepsy drug warnings 'not reaching women', survey shows": "Almost 70% of women surveyed about a powerful epilepsy drug have not received new safety warnings about the dangers of taking it during pregnancy, the BBC has been told exclusively. Sodium valproate, known as Epilim, carries a 10% risk of physical abnormalities in unborn babies. About 20,000 children have been harmed by valproate medicines in the UK since the 1970s. The medicines regulator said the drug had been kept under constant review. Babies exposed to the drug in the womb have a 40% risk of developing autism, low IQ and learning disabilities. ... ". http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-41345647

I like to listen to and watch nineteen sixties stuff, such as:

Trains

Changes

I am struggling a bit with my current job (it has a wide range of tasks some of which I am better at doing than others) and it might come to and end anyway due to budget cuts. I am looking in to the possibility of what to do next if my job disappears. I have looked on the Internet and have found useful articles like this: "Choosing the Right Job for People with Autism or Asperger's Syndrome" https://www.iidc.indiana.edu/?pageId=596 Can anyone tell me if there is a web page which would ask a list of questions, analyse the answers and suggest the best match job that I could do, please? I realise that I might have to do a training course, I couldn't do more than one year.

"There is little success where there is little laughter." - Andrew Carnegie