My thoughts about the autism spectrum: Autism spectrum disorder: has it lost its meaning and is it leading to misdiagnosis? Psychological Medicine. 2026;56:e240. doi:10.1017/S0033291726105376

Moved by the Lightest Touch of Meaning: Even Minimal Significance Matters for Motivation From Childhood Yilin Liu and Fan Yang, Psych.Sci. doi.org/10.1177/0956... Children and adults strongly preferred artistic activities where their work would be saved over activities with no lasting existence.

Article about Tim Dalgleish, the new Dawson Chair of Young People's Mental Health @campsydept.bsky.social @mrccbu.bsky.social www.alumni.cam.ac.uk/magazine/iss...

Always on my mind

Coverage of mental health issues, particularly in the young, is on the rise – as is speculation that it’s being overdiagnosed. Now Tim Dalgleish, the inaugural Dawson Professor of Young People’s Menta...

alumni.cam.ac.uk

Just heard from @utafrith.bsky.social about @migrationmuseum.org and followed several new links, so good to repost details of the meeting I helped to organise on behalf of @adelphigenetics.bsky.social. So many migrants at several of my organisations: @royalsociety.org @ucleye.bsky.social

Veronica van Heyningen@vvheye.bsky.social · 2w ago

adelphigenetics.org/events/annua... put Thursday 22 October in the diary and register for engaging and exciting free one day conference: “Complexity of neural function - the brain in charge” Must register.

On the transmission of texts: Written cultures as complex systems academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar...

On the transmission of texts: Written cultures as complex systems

Abstract. Knowledge of past cultures relies heavily on surviving written material. Over the centuries, texts were copied, altered, and often lost, leaving

academic.oup.com

Brenda Milner is a hero and 108!! She did a lot more than discover the hippocampus is linked to declarative memory, but that work is the most famous.

Admirable Women@admirablewomen.bsky.social · 3w ago

Neuroscientist Dr. Brenda Milner is recognized as one of the fundamental founders of modern cognitive neuropsychology. She proved the hippocampus is essential for forming long-term "declarative" memory (facts, names & events). She was born #OTD in 1918--she's 108 years old today! #WomenInSTEM

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this excellent paper. I wonder, are there parallels in the use of rigid/flexible criteria in clinical diagnosis with varying opacity of symptoms? Why human societies adopt rigid moral rules: The efficiency–robustness trade-off | PNAS www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Heart rate synchrony as a marker of real-world social engagement academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar...

Heart rate synchrony as a marker of real-world social engagement

Abstract. Human social behavior unfolds in complex real-world environments influenced by social and environmental factors, yet reliable markers of social e

academic.oup.com

A novel and exciting approach to understanding cooperation. Linking compromise and responsibility attribution to risky decision-making in dyadic foraging | PNAS www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Linking compromise and responsibility attribution to risky decision-making in dyadic foraging | PNAS

From hunting to financial planning, many decisions are made under risk and alongside social partners whose decisions and outcomes are coupled with ...

pnas.org

Oustanding longitudinal study with mostly low-IQ autistic preschoolers and MA matched controls. Even here there are subgroups. Autistic children with better visual search performance had worse parent-reported communication problems. doi.org/10.1002/aur....

Visual Search Performance in Children With ASD: A Combined Case‐Control and Longitudinal Study

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is associated with altered attentional function. This has been associated with enhanced visual search performance. Addressing a gap in the literature, we investigate th...

doi.org

Is this a model of how the brain works?

Watch this short, powerful, very on-point speech. Literal shivers watching @mjcrockett.bsky.social make the most of their platform!

M.J. Crockett@mjcrockett.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Last weekend I received the Troland Research Award from the @nationalacademies.org. I’m so grateful to the communities who made this work possible. It's strange to receive this award at a time when much of the work being recognized is not eligible for federal funding. My remarks 👇 and a 🧵>>

Super-interesting paper about a cognitive strength in autism explained by use of non-interactive media. Gagnon, D., Ostrolenk, A. and Mottron, L. (2026), Early manifestations of unexpected bilingualism in minimally verbal autism. J Child Psychol Psychiatr, 67: 652-662. doi.org/10.1111/jcpp...

How on earth do we manage to navigate through our social networks? See new paper by Teoh ... & FeldmanHall: Medial temporal lobe encodes cognitive maps of real-world social networks | PNAS www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Medial temporal lobe encodes cognitive maps of real-world social networks | PNAS

Humans routinely solve social problems by navigating densely interconnected networks—gossiping strategically, brokering across cliques, and coordin...

pnas.org

Liao L, Fombonne E. Autism Overdiagnosis and Its Harmful Effects. JAMA Pediatr. Published online April 13, 2026. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2026.0400 e.g. self-fulfilling prophecy; resource depletion; loss of precision and trivialising autism.

Attenuated selective attention during visual perspective taking in autism: A combined behavior, ERP, and pupillometry study by Polzer et al. "... altered top-down recruitment during VPT and increased cognitive effort during perspective ratings." acamh.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

<em>Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry</em> | ACAMH Pediatric Journal | Wiley Online Library

Background Altered social cognition in autism may be influenced by difficulties in domain-general functions, such as selective attention. Here, we manipulated the requirement for selective attention...

acamh.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

So interesting.

Jörn Diedrichsen@diedrichsenjorn.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Also out today - A quick intro piece on the role of the cerebellum in cognition. What does it do? How will we find out? This is what @actlab.bsky.social and I think the critical questions are right now. It was fun to write - especially the section on evolution.... journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...

Nice! An advance in our knowledge of social cognitive development. 4-yr-olds intuitively understand information flows in social networks doi.org/10.1073/pnas... Young children understand how social connections affect what people know about each other By Chuey, Jara-Ettinger & Gweon

Want to know more about Hans Asperger and his syndrome? You can listen to Ken Barrett's Brainland podcasts with me shows.acast.com/brainland/ep... and with Alice Jolly, author of "The Matchbox Girl" shows.acast.com/brainland/ep...

HANS ASPERGER AND THE AUTISTIC SPECTRUM: Reflections on the past, present and future | BRAINLAND

In conversation with Dame Uta Frith

shows.acast.com

Chris Frith in conversation about his life and work. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Otgz...

Meet The Neuroscientist Proving We’re All Living In A Collective Consciousness

YouTube video by Giant's Shoulder

youtube.com

6/6 Clinical precision is not ignoring suffering—it strives for the right support to reach the right people through rigorous, evidence-based models.

5/6 We must protect the most vulnerable. By grouping everyone together, we risk overlooking those with significant intellectual disabilities as the public discourse shifts entirely toward "different ways of thinking."

4/6 On "masking": Science requires objective, unbiased observation. Concepts rooted primarily in subjective self-report lack the precision needed for a stable medical category and can lead to circular reasoning.

3/6 Diagnosis must have differential value. Labeling all social struggle or hypersensitivity as "autism" risks missing underlying causes that require entirely different clinical interventions.

2/6 The "spectrum" has expanded to the point of collapse. If a single label covers both profound impairment and those with no intellectual or communicative deficits, it ceases to predict specific biological or medical needs.

1/6 Engaging with critiques of my @TES interview. While I value the lived experience shared, we must distinguish between sociopolitical identity and clinical diagnostic utility. #Autism #Neurodiversity

Excited to see the world's greatest living pianist (IMHO) in May at the Vienna Konzerthaus. Here he is playing Schubert's 'Hungarian Melody' www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjFc...

Schubert. Hungarian Melody b-moll. D.817. Grigory Sokolov.

YouTube video by Alex K

youtube.com

‘We need to sort this problem out’: Liz Kendall tells MPs on STFC cuts Science secretary assures House of Commons “we strongly back curiosity-led research”, despite impending cuts www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-p...

‘We need to sort this problem out’: Liz Kendall tells MPs on STFC cuts - Research Professional News

Science secretary assures House of Commons “we strongly back curiosity-led research”, despite impending cuts

researchprofessionalnews.com

This makes me feel optimistic for what can be done for children in special education. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

The primary class where ASN pupils adapt to school

One primary school in Glasgow says it has developed its own model of how to integrate ASN pupils into a mainstream school.

bbc.co.uk

Has Broadening the Autism Spectrum Led to Overdiagnosis? | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/ment...

Has Broadening the Autism Spectrum Led to Overdiagnosis?

An autism expert sparks fierce debate over whether the spectrum has grown too broad, leading to misdiagnosis in children and adults in cases that are milder or unclear.

psychologytoday.com