 
August 14, 2010 9:03 AM PDTÂ
If you think robots are heartless piles of plastic and silicon, you’re correct. But soccer-playing humanoid robot Nao has been evolving by developing “emotions” under a European project and is now being used in the U.S. in sessions to treat autistic children.
Under the recently concluded Feelix Growing project–aimed at designing bots that can detect and respond to human emotional cues–researchers at the University of Hertfordshire’s Adaptive Systems Group and other centers have been trying to get Nao to simulate human emotions.
Researcher Lola Canamero and colleagues have been programming Nao–created by Aldebaran Robotics and used worldwide as a research bot–based on how human and chimpanzee infants interact with others. Working with a budget of some $3.2 million, the researchers have been trying to create robots that can be better companions for people.
In a gushing report, the Daily Mail has hailed Nao as “the first robot capable of developing emotions and forming bonds with humans.”
Robot fans who remember Sony’s robot dog Aibo, discontinued in 2006, will recall that it had a range of synthetic emotions and could “grow” emotionally according to how it interacted with its owner.
It’s no surprise that the researchers have also been experimenting with Aibo, including the cyberpup and Nao in a “robot nursery” designed to incubate emotional behaviors. Nao can so far express excitement, anger, fear, sadness, happiness, and pride, and supposedly has the “emotional skills” of a 1-year-old child.
Using its facial-recognition skills, Nao can become attached to people who help it learn, just like a human infant. When confronted with an unfamiliar situation, or when neglected by its human caregiver, Nao can become agitated. It will remember past experiences it interprets as positive or negative.
Read in Full:Â http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20013657-1.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
 
Friday, August 13, 2010 – Autism Unexpected by Jean Winegardner
Silver Spring, MD (8/13/10) — I spent last weekend in New York City with 2,400 mostly women bloggers at BlogHer 2010, a conference that brings together online writers from all over the world.
I’ve been to BlogHer before, but this one was special to me because I had the opportunity to speak on a panel titled Blogging Autism: Shattering Myths, Opening Eyes, and Finding Your Tribe.
My co-panelists were a wonderful group of women, each of whom brought something unique to the discussion. Pamela Merritt is an activist who is a co-guardian of her adult autistic brother. Shannon Des Roches Rosa is a powerful and influential voice in the online autism community and mother to a child with autism. Carol Greenburg is an autistic adult as well as the mother of a son with autism.
Each of us shared a myth about autism that we hoped to dispel through our writing. Pamela reminded us that autism is not just a childhood condition. Shannon wants to debunk the idea that autism means misery. Carol brought up the fact that autism and cognitive deficits don’t necessarily go hand in hand but that not all people with autism are genius savants either. I see many myths about autism, but the ones that I mentioned were that autism is not life ending and that there are many different ways to be autistic.
Of course I think the words that we spoke and the comments from the audience were important—very much so. Even more important, however, was the powerful experience of sitting in a supportive room with a group of people who care about people with autism and want the best for them. When you’re in a room like that, you don’t have to explain, you don’t have to justify, you don’t have to be defensive. You just have to be. And you can be because the other people in the room get it, they really, really get it.
Read in Full:Â http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/autism-unexpected/2010/aug/13/blogging-autism-and-shattering-myths-blogher-2010/
 
Updated: Sun Aug. 15 2010 4:48:45 PM
Born out of love for a son with autism, one woman’s fight to give her child a better life has led to bettering thousands of others.
Established in 1976 by Joanne Farley, the West Island Citizen Advocacy creates housing for those with mental illness and difficulties for those on the West Island.
The project came about as Farley’s son, Paul, who was diagnosed at an early age with autism, grew up and sought independence.
“She worked very hard from the time he was young to get services started for people with handicaps,” said Farley’s daughter Mary Claire Tanguay, now the program’s director.
Farley also helped meet her son’s needs by starting Special Ed classes, workshops and job programs in the West Island.
Originally opened out of Farley’s home, the West Island Citizen Advocacy project has expanded to serve thousands in its three decades.
“Now we serve 42 people and, in addition to six apartments with three men in each apartment in the community, we have two buildings which provide housing for another 25 people,” said Tanguay.
The two buildings are called Herron House and Farley House – the latter named after her.
Before the program began, those with mental issues were forced to live at home or move downtown.
Now, they thrive in the community, thanks to Farley’s help.
Now 89 and suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease, Farley is no longer active in the program, but has been awarded the Order of Canada and other accolades for her commitment.
Carrying on her mother’s tradition as well as expanding it to others in need, Tanguay looks after anyone who is vulnerable, including a senior advocacy program.
“We serve anybody who has a handicapping condition or people who are disadvantaged and need some defensive rights help,” she explained.
Volunteers are crucial in the success of the project, because they are paired with needy seniors.
“We have about 430 active matches across the West Island,” she said. “These matches help them with practical things, and we help them with emotional support… they might help do the groceries, the banking,” she said.
The pairings help both the needy and the volunteers, said community worker Diane Veuhoff, who said helping with the program has paid off for her.
“I came from an accounting position before, sitting behind a computer where you’re a number. I’m not a number now. I’m making a difference in people’s lives,” she said.
Source:Â http://montreal.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100815/mtl_power_100815/20100815/?hub=MontrealHome
 
First Posted: 08-17-10 11:37 AMÂ Â Â |Â Â Â Updated: 08-17-10 12:57 PM
When Tyler Bell graduated from high school it meant he was one step closer to being an independent — a scary thought considering he’s had to rely on other people his whole life.
Tyler is severely autistic and, when he turns 21, will lose the government support that paid for his special education and therapy needs for the past 17 years. Many adults living with autism lack the proper amount of resources necessary to live a normal life and the fear is that Tyler could end up becoming one of those living alone.
Read in Full/View Video:Â http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/17/autistic-adults-assistance_n_684133.html
 
Petrina Berry
August 15, 2010
Prime Minister Julia Gillard has been criticised for not doing enough for children with autism during this election.
Autism Queensland says Labor’s proposal to give teachers cash incentives for improved attendance and literacy and numeracy results will not change outcomes for students with autism and Asperger’s syndrome.
Autism is a disorder of neural development which affects a person’s social skills and language skills, characterised by restricted and repetitive behaviour. Asperger’s is a milder form of autism and is largely characterised by poor social skills.
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Chief executive of Autism Queensland Penny Beeston says autism was on the rise and as a result more teachers were having to cater for these children with special needs.
“They are the children that Julia Gillard is talking about. The ones who don’t attend school,” Ms Beeston told AAP.
“It’s often the children with autism who are the ones falling out of schools.
“Paying overstretched teachers bonuses does not address the core of the problem, which is the lack of resourcing in our schools for teacher training and expert support around the learning needs of children with autism and other disabilities.”
She said early intervention programs were proving to be a success and should be extended to include the child’s entire school life.
The Labor government committed $190 million over four years to June 2012 to deliver support and services for children with autism or Asperger’s, including an early intervention program for children aged zero to six.
Ms Beeston says the early intervention package was making a big difference but it doesn’t go far enough.
“The government sees how positive the outcome of the early intervention package has been, so why not extend this to include the child’s entire schooling life and into their working lives?” she said.
Autism experts will gather on the Sunshine Coast for a two-day Autism Queensland symposium for parents, carers, local therapists, teachers, medical practitioners and support workers of people with autism on Monday and Tuesday.
A 2007 study found one in 160 Australian children aged between six and 12 years has an autism spectrum disorder.
Jan
22
 
 
Article Date: 14 Aug 2010 – 0:00 PDT
Women and girls in the United States consider and engage in suicidal behavior more often than men and boys, but die of suicide at lower rate – a gender paradox enabled by U.S. cultural norms of gender and suicidal behavior, according to a psychologist who spoke at the 118th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association.
“Everywhere, suicidal behavior is culturally scripted,” said Silvia S. Canetto, PhD, of Colorado State University. “Women and men adopt the self-destructive behaviors that are expected of them within their cultures.”
While the gender paradox of suicidal behavior is common, particularly in industrialized countries, it is not universal, she said. In China, for example, women die of suicide at higher rates than men. In Finland and Ireland, men and women engage in nonfatal suicidal behavior at similar rates. There are more exceptions to the gender paradox of suicidal behavior when one examines female/male patterns of suicidality by age or culture, she said.
In some cultures, particularly in industrialized countries, such as the United States and Canada, suicide is considered a masculine act and an “unnatural” behavior for women, Canetto said at a symposium entitled “New Perspectives on Suicide Theory, Research and Prevention.”
Read in Full:Â http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/197683.php
 
Article Date: 14 Aug 2010 – 0:00 PDT
Women experience chronic pain longer, more intensely and more often than men, according to a psychologist who works with both men and women dealing with diseases and conditions that leave them suffering.
“Chronic pain affects a higher proportion of women than men around the world,” said Jennifer Kelly, PhD, of the Atlanta Center for Behavioral Medicine. “We need to encourage women to take a more active role in their treatment and reduce the stigma and embarrassment of this problem.”
Read in Full:Â http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/197684.php
 
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on August 16, 2010Â
Different risk factors are associated with the onset and persistence of subthreshold mania and depression symptoms in young people, researchers have found.
“Little is known about the factors that influence persistence of subthreshold expression of bipolar psychopathology,†explain Marieke Wichers (Maastricht University, The Netherlands) and team.
They add: “Insights into the causes of persistence would facilitate the identification of subjects at risk in an early stage of the development of psychopathology and make early intervention possible.â€
The researchers therefore assessed data from the Early Developmental Stages of Psychopathology study (EDSP) on 705 young people from Munich, Germany, who were aged 14-17 years at baseline.
The participants were interviewed at baseline and at regular intervals over an average followup period of 8.3 years using the Munich-Composite International Diagnostic Interview (DIA-X/M-CIDI), an updated version of the World Health Organization’s CIDI version 1.2.
Mood symptoms were assessed using 28 items of the DIA-X/M-CIDI depression and dysthymia section and 11 items of the DIA-X/M-CIDI mania section.
Read in Full:Â http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/08/16/different-factors-responsible-for-onset-persistence-of-bipolar-in-youth/16883.html
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ScienceDaily (Aug. 16, 2010) — A new discovery about selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) suggests that these drugs, which are used to treat mental health disorders like depression and anxiety, have multiple effects on our cells. In a research report published in the August 2010 issue of Genetics, researchers used yeast cells to identify secondary drug targets or pathways affected by SSRIs. Such secondary pathways could help explain why different people taking the same drug may experience different effects, and could also lead to new types of drugs altogether.
“We hope that our study begins to illuminate the full breadth of pharmacological effects of antidepressants on cellular physiology starting with the simple unicellular eukaryote, budding yeast,” said Ethan O. Perlstein, Ph.D, a researcher involved in the work from the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics at Princeton University in New Jersey. “Furthermore, our work validates the notion that simple model organisms may be useful for the study of complex human disease.”
Knowing that a high concentration of sertraline (Zoloft®) is toxic to yeast cells, scientists applied a lethal dose to millions of these cells and fished out a few cells that became resistant to the drug. Researchers then identified the underlying mutations in those cells and applied genetic, biochemical, and electron microscopic imaging techniques to characterize the molecular basis of resistance. Their results suggest that SSRIs may actually affect more than one process in a cell, including non-protein targets such as phospholipid membranes. Additionally, the study’s results demonstrate that sertraline targets intracellular membranes and modulate pathways involved in vesicle trafficking that are present in both yeast and human cells. Vesicle trafficking plays an important role in how neural synapses develop and function. More work is necessary, however, to determine the exact clinical relevance of this secondary drug target.
“There’s no question that SSRIs help thousands of people with mental health problems,” said Mark Johnston, Editor-in-Chief of the journal GENETICS, “but as this research shows, there is still some mystery about how they help us. This study a key first-step toward giving us a comprehensive answer to how SSRI’s work, and it may open doors to entirely new therapies.”
Source:Â http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100816162704.htm