Comments on: Cause and Cure: On the disconnect of science and junk science about autism http://www.blisstree.com/articles/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/ Family, Health, Home and Lifestyles Fri, 18 Dec 2009 08:00:41 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Michael J. Dochniak http://www.blisstree.com/articles/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/comment-page-1/#comment-534793 Michael J. Dochniak Tue, 29 May 2007 22:18:45 +0000 http://www.autismvox.com/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/#comment-534793 Over the last 60+ years, science has failed to understand the etiology of autism. As the incidence of autism increases, parents of severely autisitic children need to express themselves and hopefully entice scientists to think differently. Junk science is the stuff of creativity, creativity is the foundation of hypotheses, and a hypothesis is the food of science. So, when we discourage "junk science" we may just be starving the thing that science needs the most. Over the last 60+ years, science has failed to understand the etiology of autism. As the incidence of autism increases, parents of severely autisitic children need to express themselves and hopefully entice scientists to think differently.

Junk science is the stuff of creativity,
creativity is the foundation of hypotheses, and
a hypothesis is the food of science.

So, when we discourage “junk science” we may just be starving the thing that science needs the most.

]]> By: Autism Vox » The Age of What Diagnosis Does Your Child Have http://www.blisstree.com/articles/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/comment-page-1/#comment-531448 Autism Vox » The Age of What Diagnosis Does Your Child Have Sat, 03 Mar 2007 07:54:13 +0000 http://www.autismvox.com/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/#comment-531448 [...] More than a few who are parents of autistic children see environmental and other agents as the cause of the increase in autistic children; of the “autism epidemic.” It is not the bedeviling topic of autism causation that I wish to address in this post, but the related question of the increase in childhood psychiatric disorder as noted in a February 2007 study by Danish researchers. Even more than living in the Age of Autism, or the Age of ADHD, can it be said that we live in the Age of What Diagnosis Does Your Child Have? [...] [...] More than a few who are parents of autistic children see environmental and other agents as the cause of the increase in autistic children; of the “autism epidemic.” It is not the bedeviling topic of autism causation that I wish to address in this post, but the related question of the increase in childhood psychiatric disorder as noted in a February 2007 study by Danish researchers. Even more than living in the Age of Autism, or the Age of ADHD, can it be said that we live in the Age of What Diagnosis Does Your Child Have? [...]

]]> By: Autism Vox » Something To Make You Think http://www.blisstree.com/articles/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/comment-page-1/#comment-531417 Autism Vox » Something To Make You Think Fri, 02 Mar 2007 07:27:30 +0000 http://www.autismvox.com/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/#comment-531417 [...] As you may have noticed over the past few days, or weeks, or months, there have been a few other things to write about regarding autism: cause—-cure—-the autism “epidemic“—-vaccines—-why in the world there is so much autism in New Jersey—-little Katherine McCarron—-the genetics of autism—-disablity and mythology in the ancient world—-legislation for autism in New Jersey—-Sigourney Weaver as an autistic woman—-poetry—-the rhetoric of autism writing—-and a really good book. [...] [...] As you may have noticed over the past few days, or weeks, or months, there have been a few other things to write about regarding autism: cause—-cure—-the autism “epidemic“—-vaccines—-why in the world there is so much autism in New Jersey—-little Katherine McCarron—-the genetics of autism—-disablity and mythology in the ancient world—-legislation for autism in New Jersey—-Sigourney Weaver as an autistic woman—-poetry—-the rhetoric of autism writing—-and a really good book. [...]

]]> By: Moi ;) http://www.blisstree.com/articles/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/comment-page-1/#comment-531388 Moi ;) Thu, 01 Mar 2007 15:10:39 +0000 http://www.autismvox.com/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/#comment-531388 I think people just don't think about how much time it takes to really do something properly scientifically. People are too used to instant gratification.... On the educational hand, however, if someone had told me 10 years ago that Bug would be anywhere close to where he is now developmentally I would have told them they were nuts. I am also talking about a child who also hated books. Words freaked him out. He's been as far behind as 3 years in reading comp, due to pragmatics and theory of mind issues (and a crappy school district), for the most part. It has taken us four years, but I want you to know that on a test he took last week he was two months Above grade level in Comprehension! You have to do what you have to do to meet the needs for Now to build his potential and his foundation for his future. And don't let the cause/cure turkeys get you down... I don't care what they think of me or what I think, period. If I did that, I'd be on Valium.... I think people just don’t think about how much time it takes to really do something properly scientifically. People are too used to instant gratification….

On the educational hand, however, if someone had told me 10 years ago that Bug would be anywhere close to where he is now developmentally I would have told them they were nuts. I am also talking about a child who also hated books. Words freaked him out. He’s been as far behind as 3 years in reading comp, due to pragmatics and theory of mind issues (and a crappy school district), for the most part.

It has taken us four years, but I want you to know that on a test he took last week he was two months Above grade level in Comprehension!

You have to do what you have to do to meet the needs for Now to build his potential and his foundation for his future. And don’t let the cause/cure turkeys get you down… I don’t care what they think of me or what I think, period. If I did that, I’d be on Valium….

]]> By: Kristina Chew, PhD http://www.blisstree.com/articles/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/comment-page-1/#comment-531351 Kristina Chew, PhD Wed, 28 Feb 2007 17:07:24 +0000 http://www.autismvox.com/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/#comment-531351 <i>Science evolves because of previous mistakes and the fair and objective and scientific analysis of these aspects to improve in “constructive criticisms”</i>: Good words to go by. I think often about the Latin root of science, <i>scientia</i>, which simply means "knowledge," and (in my thinking) this indeed evolves over time as we learn, err, and seek to learn more. Science evolves because of previous mistakes and the fair and objective and scientific analysis of these aspects to improve in “constructive criticisms”: Good words to go by. I think often about the Latin root of science, scientia, which simply means “knowledge,” and (in my thinking) this indeed evolves over time as we learn, err, and seek to learn more.

]]> By: Lisa/Jedi http://www.blisstree.com/articles/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/comment-page-1/#comment-531339 Lisa/Jedi Wed, 28 Feb 2007 13:45:02 +0000 http://www.autismvox.com/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/#comment-531339 I think that one of the problems we are facing is the perception that science "should" be able to explain everything & that if it doesn't, it has failed. Looking at the increase in scientific knowledge over the past decade or two, we've made amazing advances in health & welfare (which is, in itself, part of the problem since discussion of the ethical use of these advances has lagged behind their actual use). But scientists still don't know "everything" & some of what is believed now to be true will be proven incorrect. As Dr. Tallis points out, this works against science, making it seem no better than quackery. It seems to me, though, that the intersection of desperation & speculation, combined with the vast amounts of information science has yet to yield, is what leads to these dangerous beliefs about "cures" & "treatments". It seems very ironic & disturbing to me that parents are allowed to subject their children to dubious dangerous procedures which wouldn't pass any research facility's IACUC (committees which oversee animal research in the US), whose requirements for animal care are extremely stringent. Since when did fear take the place of good sense? Since when did hope become the only basis for causing a human being pain & perhaps death? (Rhetorical questions...) The flip side to all this is the sometimes automatic disregard for ideas & treatments that come from non-western scientific tradition as not "scientific". Acupuncture, for example, comes from a long tradition of Chinese therapeutic medicine & has finally been recognised as a valid form of treatment here in the US, particularly since it has been extensively studied by western science & shown to work. Other non-western therapies, such as Reiki, are still being investigated, but at the moment are looked upon as wooly-headed -mostly because they are non-invasive, I suspect... we do not have a tradition in the west of medically treating the body without actually poking or prodding it. The automatic dismisal by some of these non-invasive therapies as non-scientific smacks somewhat of racism (to my mind) & is particularly interesting since it is not seen as particularly odd or wooly in the west for prayer to affect someone's physical state. There are even medical practitioners who use (Christian-based) prayer in their practise of medicine. I think, however, that western society's budding acceptance of new, non-western therapies adds to some of the confusion as to what can & can't be treated or "cured" since anything new can hold so much promise... And so we're back to desperation again, & those unscrupulous enough to prey on the desperate. Maybe, if we could just get everyone to consider that autism isn't the most horrible thing that could happen, we could get beyond the desperation & fear, & get a better sense of what works therapeutically, & what doesn't... I think that one of the problems we are facing is the perception that science “should” be able to explain everything & that if it doesn’t, it has failed. Looking at the increase in scientific knowledge over the past decade or two, we’ve made amazing advances in health & welfare (which is, in itself, part of the problem since discussion of the ethical use of these advances has lagged behind their actual use). But scientists still don’t know “everything” & some of what is believed now to be true will be proven incorrect. As Dr. Tallis points out, this works against science, making it seem no better than quackery. It seems to me, though, that the intersection of desperation & speculation, combined with the vast amounts of information science has yet to yield, is what leads to these dangerous beliefs about “cures” & “treatments”. It seems very ironic & disturbing to me that parents are allowed to subject their children to dubious dangerous procedures which wouldn’t pass any research facility’s IACUC (committees which oversee animal research in the US), whose requirements for animal care are extremely stringent. Since when did fear take the place of good sense? Since when did hope become the only basis for causing a human being pain & perhaps death? (Rhetorical questions…)

The flip side to all this is the sometimes automatic disregard for ideas & treatments that come from non-western scientific tradition as not “scientific”. Acupuncture, for example, comes from a long tradition of Chinese therapeutic medicine & has finally been recognised as a valid form of treatment here in the US, particularly since it has been extensively studied by western science & shown to work. Other non-western therapies, such as Reiki, are still being investigated, but at the moment are looked upon as wooly-headed -mostly because they are non-invasive, I suspect… we do not have a tradition in the west of medically treating the body without actually poking or prodding it. The automatic dismisal by some of these non-invasive therapies as non-scientific smacks somewhat of racism (to my mind) & is particularly interesting since it is not seen as particularly odd or wooly in the west for prayer to affect someone’s physical state. There are even medical practitioners who use (Christian-based) prayer in their practise of medicine. I think, however, that western society’s budding acceptance of new, non-western therapies adds to some of the confusion as to what can & can’t be treated or “cured” since anything new can hold so much promise… And so we’re back to desperation again, & those unscrupulous enough to prey on the desperate.

Maybe, if we could just get everyone to consider that autism isn’t the most horrible thing that could happen, we could get beyond the desperation & fear, & get a better sense of what works therapeutically, & what doesn’t…

]]> By: MARIA LUJAN http://www.blisstree.com/articles/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/comment-page-1/#comment-531338 MARIA LUJAN Wed, 28 Feb 2007 10:26:41 +0000 http://www.autismvox.com/cause-and-cure-on-the-disconnect-of-science-and-junk-science-about-autism/#comment-531338 Hi Kristina Please remember that many times new ideas that need confirmation at the molecular levels has been labeled "junk science" many times. I agree that the CAUSE(s) /CURE(s) discussion such it has been proposed and carried out has been a distraction many times of the core of the efforts,that should be autistic human beings. BUT the anti CAUSE(s)/CURE(s) position somehow , even if it was not the intention, has also shifted the attention from the autistic human beings, even if the dignity and the deffense of their human rights have been the goal. These are not bad words per se; all the problem is about how the discussion and the conclussion of the scientific published studies, the policies and the phylosophies are conducted. When you read many of the scientific studies, the language is controversial per se: such thing IS NOT FOR SURE a cause; such thing IS FOR SURE a cause. These/those interventions are in the goal of "cure" or "recovering". Everytime something is published, especially in the field of autism, surely it is going to be uncomplete, needed of further confirmation and perhaps partially wrong. Science evolves because of previous mistakes and the fair and objective and scientific analysis of these aspects to improve in “constructive criticisms” –even if something must be demonstrated to be wrong-and new ideas, many times related to the previous one – but not equal and based in new findings perhaps today unkown and many times completely new- can change totally after confirmation what we know TODAY.In my field, there are plenty of cases of these. Hi Kristina
Please remember that many times new ideas that need confirmation at the molecular levels has been labeled “junk science” many times.
I agree that the CAUSE(s) /CURE(s) discussion such it has been proposed and carried out has been a distraction many times of the core of the efforts,that should be autistic human beings. BUT the anti CAUSE(s)/CURE(s) position somehow , even if it was not the intention, has also shifted the attention from the autistic human beings, even if the dignity and the deffense of their human rights have been the goal. These are not bad words per se; all the problem is about how the discussion and the conclussion of the scientific published studies, the policies and the phylosophies are conducted.
When you read many of the scientific studies, the language is controversial per se: such thing IS NOT FOR SURE a cause; such thing IS FOR SURE a cause. These/those interventions are in the goal of “cure” or “recovering”.
Everytime something is published, especially in the field of autism, surely it is going to be uncomplete, needed of further confirmation and perhaps partially wrong. Science evolves because of previous mistakes and the fair and objective and scientific analysis of these aspects to improve in “constructive criticisms” –even if something must be demonstrated to be wrong-and new ideas, many times related to the previous one – but not equal and based in new findings perhaps today unkown and many times completely new- can change totally after confirmation what we know TODAY.In my field, there are plenty of cases of these.

]]>