Inside the Child's Mind: Understanding autism

Would you be able to learn at the same rate you do if you interpreted information a split second after it was said? What if you were holding a conversation and didn't know when to stop? Those are exactly the type of challenges eight year-old, Zander Pridy has to go through on a daily basis. CNN reporter Kiran Chetry interviewed Pridy to get some more information.

"What happens is as speech becomes more complicated, we have more and more
sounds building up and these delays cascade on each other leading to a
difficulty in percieving or recognizing the word." Said lead researcher Tim
Roberts.

Researchers at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia are using a magnetoencephalography, MEG, machine to study the brain waves of children like Pridy with autism disorders. The scientists are hoping to unlock how the scientific brain works. Dr. Schultz is using MRI's to understand and examine the autistic brain. This research won't answer the question of what causes autism, but Schultz says it may lead to a better diagnosis and an earlier intervention.

I was really shocked to read that young children, such as Pridy, have such a problem learning and socializing. They have come up with some helpful ways for them to stay focused during school, which is pretty neat. Zander has a speaker on his desk and his teacher wears a microphone to project her voice, to help him stay on task. Overall, the things they come up with to help autistic kids is really something else.