NPR Lisa Daxer on Autism

Unless you have autism, like Lisa Daxer.

This sort of mirroring is probably the basis for one of the most complex and important social skills: empathy.

"By default, they socialize," she says.

We are predisposed to cooperate.

Humans have succeeded in part because we evolved a brain with a remarkable capacity for this type of complex social interaction.

"If we took an evolutionary perspective, that would be for physical survival.

We automatically respond to social cues and facial expressions.

Humans have succeeded in part because we evolved a brain with a remarkable capacity for this type of complex social interaction.

It takes a smart brain to invent a spaceship.

She suggests that perhaps these subjects just irritate neurotypicals, the way certain sounds or textures can irritate people with autism.

"Amongst primates, particularly social primates, it is important to stay within the group," he says.

So she had to memorize a list of topics that seemed to offend neurotypicals: "Don't talk about sex.

People like Daxer have taught scientists a lot about how typical humans interact socially, says Simon Baron-Cohen, a professor of developmental psychopathology at the University of Cambridge in the U.K.

"We didn't really focus on how complex social development is until people with autism pointed out to us that this is something that doesn't always just develop naturally," Baron-Cohen says.

We are predisposed to cooperate.

A member who becomes separated from the group is at increased risk of predators, to put it bluntly."

Humans have succeeded in part because we evolved a brain with a remarkable capacity for this type of complex social interaction.

Skip Peterson for NPR

Lisa Daxer says she doesn't want a typical brain and that her autism is part of who she is.

That's true whether they're in a coffee shop, a library or even the anatomy lab, where Daxer once watched a group of young women gossiping as they dissected human hearts.

"Picking up those cues very early could mean the difference between inclusion and exclusion.

At the time, Daxer was feeling increasingly depressed and isolated.

And the genes involved in empathy would get passed on to the next generation.

"If we took an evolutionary perspective, that would be for physical survival.

So she has become something of an amateur anthropologist, studying the social behavior of the people around her, the people she calls neurotypicals.

And the genes involved in empathy would get passed on to the next generation.

Humans have succeeded in part because we evolved a brain with a remarkable capacity for this type of complex social interaction.

Our social brains are really good at learning these rules — it doesn't take long for most kids realize that you don't just blurt out that someone is fat or old or stupid.

That's because getting from concept to launchpad takes more than technology — it takes thousands of people agreeing on a common goal and working together to accomplish it.

And she's come with one possible scenario, involving a caveman named Bob.

"So let's say Caveman Bob invents fire," Daxer says.

But her depression got worse.

This compulsion to socialize is no accident, Baron-Cohen says.

"I hadn't realized that and had been talking about it to my friends until someone, actually the church librarian, mentioned to me that she thought it was a depressing topic to talk about," she says.

Her housemates were unconsciously mimicking the smiles, frowns and even some of the gestures of the people onscreen.

"I hadn't realized that and had been talking about it to my friends until someone, actually the church librarian, mentioned to me that she thought it was a depressing topic to talk about," she says.

"By default, they socialize," she says.

"She visited me in the mental ward," Daxer says.

But putting one in orbit takes a brain with extraordinary social skills.

Adapting With Autism

Daxer says she doesn't want a typical brain.

"Picking up those cues very early could mean the difference between inclusion and exclusion.

We automatically respond to social cues and facial expressions.

That's a plausible explanation, Baron-Cohen says.

And if you want to be part of a group, you must constantly monitor your status with other members, Baron-Cohen says.

We automatically respond to social cues and facial expressions.

Daxer remembers seeing a remarkable example of cooperation one day at church.

"If we took an evolutionary perspective, that would be for physical survival.

And the genes involved in empathy would get passed on to the next generation.

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It's also one of the reasons that humans, and some other species, care for a member of their group who is injured or sick.

But putting one in orbit takes a brain with extraordinary social skills.

At the time, Daxer was feeling increasingly depressed and isolated.

I've seen them connect different sorts of minds so that we could all communicate and live in a single society.

So the humans who survived were predisposed to have what you might call a "social brain."

"And they had that fellowship hall turned from a place with a couple of hundred chairs to a place with a couple dozen tables and tablecloths and place settings and everything in about 15 minutes flat."

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That's because getting from concept to launchpad takes more than technology — it takes thousands of people agreeing on a common goal and working together to accomplish it.

I mean how is that an advantage when it comes to natural selection?"

People like Daxer have taught scientists a lot about how typical humans interact socially, says Simon Baron-Cohen, a professor of developmental psychopathology at the University of Cambridge in the U.K.

"We didn't really focus on how complex social development is until people with autism pointed out to us that this is something that doesn't always just develop naturally," Baron-Cohen says.

I mean how is that an advantage when it comes to natural selection?"

That helped our ancestors get along.

She has made friends and found colleagues who value her scientific work.

"As tool users we always needed individuals in the group who could invent new tools," he says, "whether we're talking about in the Stone Age — just flints — or in the modern age, new computer chips."

She enjoys that her brain loves patterns and facts.

Her housemates were unconsciously mimicking the smiles, frowns and even some of the gestures of the people onscreen.

Humans have succeeded in part because we evolved a brain with a remarkable capacity for this type of complex social interaction.

But it's also helped her become something of an expert on the social behavior of people she calls "neurotypical."

So Bob's genes, including those involved in autism, will be passed on to future generations.

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Learning About Empathy

The typical human brain has evolved an extraordinary ability to see the world from another person's point of view and to feel what that person is feeling.

A member who becomes separated from the group is at increased risk of predators, to put it bluntly."

And for her, things like reading faces and understanding what's on another person's mind are a struggle.

"If we took an evolutionary perspective, that would be for physical survival.

That's because getting from concept to launchpad takes more than technology — it takes thousands of people agreeing on a common goal and working together to accomplish it.

A member who becomes separated from the group is at increased risk of predators, to put it bluntly."

"If the parent has empathy, they're going to be able to imagine that the infant might be in pain, or discomfort, or hungry or tired, or in need of affection, a whole range of mental states," he says.

Don't stare.

And for her, things like reading faces and understanding what's on another person's mind are a struggle.

All it took was a few glances, some body language and a common purpose, she says.

"As tool users we always needed individuals in the group who could invent new tools," he says, "whether we're talking about in the Stone Age — just flints — or in the modern age, new computer chips."

She suggests that perhaps these subjects just irritate neurotypicals, the way certain sounds or textures can irritate people with autism.