This needs to stop

[Fredan]

Other autistics really need to stop spreading stuff like this.

There is no way to tell if any of these men were autistic or not, and autism was not known in their time either.

More "feel good" nonsense.

 

[Jumpinbare]

Agreed. I think it's fair to say they may have been autistic, but no more than that.

I find it absurd that people put in serious discussion about whether fictitious characters are autistic.

 

[velociraptor]

 

[Dagan]

At least, per those specific historical figures, there's a lot of facts and recorded interactions with them. It's enough that there are many scholarly investigations into it all. It's not just pulled out of thin air to make mention of, I mean.

 

[Neonatal RRT]

Other autistics really need to stop spreading stuff like this.

There is no way to tell if any of these men were autistic or not, and autism was not known in their time either.

More "feel good" nonsense.

View attachment 147189

Newton and Mozart were, by all accounts, true savants. Einstein, a genius in his field. Autistic? Who knows.

At any rate, I agree... this sort of thinking is completely ignorant to the point of being ridiculous.

 

[Known_Issue]

But even if they actually were autistic, it's 100% irrelevant.

Honestly, it’s pretty poor reasoning... As if success (whatever that is) didn’t depend on lots of different factors.

 

[Aeolienne]

Undiagnosing Gates, Jefferson and Einstein

 

[NB79]

Didn't supposedly gates talked about 'his autism' or that was fake news.

 

[Neonatal RRT]

Didn't supposedly gates talked about 'his autism' or that was fake news.

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[Judge]

I try to keep perspective of such possibilities contained to the era of when Kanner and Asperger were alive, and no earlier. Even then that may prove to be a stretch. Otherwise it amounts to pointless speculation without any real facts other than thoughts of their "eccentricities". And if a well-known personality states they are not autistic, I suppose the best thing is to take their word for it.

Though I can't help but wonder how many persons in the entertainment industry may be autistic, but who have been counseled to keep it under wraps largely for public relations concerns.

 

[Alexej]

Undiagnosing Gates, Jefferson and Einstein

Thank you - an interesting article

 

[Neonatal RRT]

Undiagnosing Gates, Jefferson and Einstein

I am not a fan of these 3rd and 4th hand accounts and then speculating upon whether or not someone is truly autistic. For most of us, this is deeply personal and frankly, most are trying to mask. Opinion-editorials are just that... opinions... often based upon biased research. I can glean the intent of the article, but what if these people were genuinely autistic? I am not suggesting anything, either way... who are we to know?

With all of these cases of geniuses, savants, visionaries, etc... whether or not they are autistic... who knows? Is it more likely... statistically speaking? Perhaps. Less than 1% of neurotypicals have savant skills... 30% of autistics have savant skills (most of those are ASD-2s and 3s) ... not Asperger's/ASD-1s. In my experience working with pediatric and adults with autism, there is so much neurodiversity... and better left to the professionals to do the diagnosing. Who are any of us to comment upon someone else's inner experience? Best not to be an "armchair" psychologist and pass judgement.