Comments on: Ideas of Order (and thoughts on Thanksgiving)

By: The Holiday Season, and a Lot of Socializing, Are Upon Us: Some Thoughts and Suggestions

Sat, 29 Nov 2008 02:48:41 +0000

[...] Thanksgiving and now full speed ahead into December with all of its festivities, plus a few extras. Today is [...]

By: Kristina Chew, PhD

Kristina Chew, PhD — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 21:08:07 +0000

Certainly an unrealized love of patterns, and of diverging from them, was one reason I was drawn to memorize pages of paradigms of ancient Greek irregular verbs……….

By: Phil Schwarz

Phil Schwarz — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 19:30:30 +0000

What Shermer calls “patternicity” sounds a lot like what used to be called “magical thinking”: it’s more about assigning (self-comforting) putative causes, than it is about detecting intrinsic structure in a stream of incoming sensory data.

The latter is, of course, something that lots of folks on the spectrum have an affinity for. I think it’s both a cognitive and sensory coping mechanism, and an aesthetic preference; in fact, I think the need for, and success with, the coping mechanisms greatly inform autistic aesthetic sensibilities.

Being able to recognize a pattern and thereby predict the rest of the input allows us to filter and titrate the onslaught of raw data, which allows us some degree of parsimony with the sometimes limited processing bandwidth we have. We can dispense quickly with recognized inputs and focus the attentional and processing bandwidth we do have on less predictable inputs that require more conscious real-time thought.

Recognition of patterns also allows us to mitigate sensory distress, through cognitive preparedness for sudden jarring discontinuities in the sensory input stream(s) that the recognized pattern predicts or can account for. If I am prepared for the photographic flash that will come a split-second after I see the first signs of motion in the photographer’s shutter finger, that flash is accounted for and I can let it wash over me without an adrenaline-surge of fear.

Patterns are so useful, so critical, in these regards, that I think they deeply inform our aesthetic sensibilities. They’re calming; they’re “known territory”; they don’t contain nasty surprises.

Complex patterns are cognitive playgrounds: we can “park” our minds in them and let our cognition romp in the complexity, without getting hurt or lost.

By: bev

bev — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 18:46:04 +0000

Patternicity? I hadn’t heard that term, but I know something about it. In searching for a remedy for my problems getting to sleep and staying asleep, I tried a “white noise” machine for awhile. It started talking to me. It told stories, and it was very scary. I threw it away, and now I use a regular fan, which doesn’t seem to know any words.

I have often had an analogous experience with visual perceptions. The patterns in textured ceilings, sometimes there are very elaborate pictures there. Not so much these days, more when I was younger.

By: Linda

Linda — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 16:22:13 +0000

Sounds like your son was doing his part for family angst and drama to make for a perfect Thanksgiving day.

It is not about the dinner but always about the child. “I need help” “Fix, please” insures your son’s place, front and center. Parental response to cries for help is always and unconditional.

Beautiful depiction of a lovely holiday.

By: M

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 14:53:25 +0000

it reminds me of the yogurt cups, the way he put them in the fridge based on their shape.

it also emphasizes something you point out from time to time: that the way he organizes, it provides a window into his thoughts….with or without words, the patternicity is a form of communication, “this is the way I am navigating the world”.

quite lovely.

By: TomsMom

TomsMom — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 14:50:11 +0000

Thanks Kristina–pattern-recognition is one of my own strong suits and Tom is extremely good at puzzles and such. The need to impose an order that simply isn’t there is just an extension of this. In Tom’s case, it involves stuffing a whole lot of his ball collection under his shirt to make him look like a super hero. (Yes, it’s a sensory exercise as well!) Now, having room for the balls is one of the criteria for shirt shopping; however, some shirts are more suited for this exercise than others. My guy doesn’t get that: it’s his shirt, his ball collection, and it should all fit all the time. It is a bit a work to redirect him when the wrong shirt is being used . . . but he is, as Charlie is, a lot more likely to say “Need help” than meltdown. Hallelujah~

By: Marla

Marla — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 13:35:14 +0000

That is so cute. I love it! Does Charlie have an MP3 player? He might really like one of those. Maizie has one that is made for kids. Joe puts all her favorite music on it.