 
Fiona and Georgina Le Roy are moving back to the UK due to poor autism funding in Victoria. Picture: Craig Sillitoe
Â
NATALIE CRAIG
July 18, 2010
Â
GEORGINA Le Roy, 11, is mathematically brilliant, but the world around her does not add up.
Â
She has Asperger’s syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). But like many children on the spectrum, she is ineligible to attend one of Victoria’s specialist autism secondary schools because her IQ is within the normal range.
Â
She and her mother Fiona are leaving Melbourne this weekend for the UK, saying Australia does not have the support services they need.
”I’ve only got five more years to educate this child, and I’m worried that if she goes to a mainstream school here she will fall through the system and become delinquent,” said Ms Le Roy, a single parent who moved with Georgina from her native Britain 10 years ago. Both are Australian citizens. ”I’m absolutely dreading moving back … I’ve got no family there, the economy is shot.”
Â
Parent and autism groups say Georgina is among a growing number of students who are not adequately supported in their education by the state government.
Â
Meredith Ward from the Autistic Family Support Association said about half of ASD children were ”high-functioning” but struggled socially, and were ineligible to attend special schools or get assistance at mainstream schools – especially at a secondary level.
Â
“Most of the kids in the mainstream setting don’t receive any support at all – and that is one of the biggest issues for the autism community at the moment,” she said.
Â
The Sunday Age has reported that several parents in this position are suing the government for failing to provide appropriate assistance at school. But Education Department spokesman Nick Higgins said that all students with ASD in Victoria had access to support services and specialists such as psychologists and speech therapists, regardless of their eligibility for a special school.
Â
Ms Le Roy, a solicitor, said she was fortunate she could afford to pay for extra therapy for Georgina at the government primary school she attended, but there were no such options for high school. Georgina will attend an expensive specialist Asperger’s school in the UK.
Â
Half a million Australian families are estimated to be affected by autism. Parents have started a Facebook page to protest against the lack of an autism school for secondary students in Melbourne’s west.
Â
Source:Â
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/autistic-children-failed-by-education-system-20100717-10fcn.html
 
Others Influence Our Choice Of Mates
Article Date: 08 Jun 2010 – 3:00 PDT
Many people like to think they have discriminating tastes when it comes to romantic interests. An Indiana University study, however, found that men and women are greatly influenced not only by what their friends think of their potential fling or relationship partner, but also by the opinions of complete strangers.
“Humans don’t exist in a vacuum. From an evolutionary standpoint, it makes sense that we have evolved mechanisms that let us take advantage of the additional social information in our environment,” said Skyler Place, a researcher in IU’s Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and lead author of the study along with Peter M. Todd, professor in IU’s Cognitive Science Program.
“We might think that searching for mates is a process best done individually, that we can best gather the appropriate information by ourselves,” Place said. But humans, like many other animals, also pay attention to the preferences of others, to make for a more efficient search process. Who others like might also be a good choice for ourselves.”
Read in Full:Â http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/191167.php
 
Concerned from Tunbridge Wells:
June 03, 2010
The Guardian has been running a fun evolutionary psychology agony aunt column that’s been tackling questions such as ‘why do I fancy blonde women?’, ‘why do nice girls fall for bad boys?’ and ‘what can I do to stop my best friend marrying this idiot?’.
Despite it’s potential, evolutionary psychology has a tendancy to be a bit over-enthusiastic at times but the column just discusses the published studies in relation to the readers’ questions and turns out to be a concise guide to some of the field’s thinking on the area.
Clearly it’s not meant to be taken too seriously as an advice column but any agony aunt that gives references for her evolutionary advice is alright by me.
Link to Guardian’s ‘Ask Carole’ column (via @researchdigest)
 
Have a Happy Marriage: Marry a Woman Who’ll Put Up with Anything
I always wonder what that is supposed to mean. In other words, the guy’s such a shmuck, no worthwhile woman would have him except for his wife? But that’s not the way life works. Much research shows that people marry mates at their own levels of attractiveness and social acceptability. So, either the men speaking (it is always men who make such statements) are more appealing than they let on to be, or else their wives are fairly desperate themselves.
At the extreme, of course, some women stick with abusive spouses. The psychological slant on this is that the women feel they deserve no better. But research here shows that women who are beaten by spouses tend to have fewer life options – overall they have less education, are less attractive, and so on. (I know – intelligent, beautiful women’s husbands sometimes beat them too – but such women tend to extricate themselves more quickly.)
So are the marital commentators who think it is a miracle their wives stay with them beating their wives, or do they feel they are just extremely unpleasant people to be around? (They can’t mean their wives put up with their sometimes forgetting where they left their glasses – that wouldn’t make the women so notably tolerant or saintly.)
Taking these men at their words about how unpleasant they are, how did they find women willing to put up with them? Did they marry ugly women? Did they marry women who needed to have an American husband to remain in the United States? Or are they just women who regard themselves so negatively that they put up with anything?
Read More …Â http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/addiction-in-society/201006/have-happy-marriage-marry-woman-who-ll-put-anything
 
Others Influence Our Choice Of Mates
Article Date: 08 Jun 2010 – 3:00 PDT
Many people like to think they have discriminating tastes when it comes to romantic interests. An Indiana University study, however, found that men and women are greatly influenced not only by what their friends think of their potential fling or relationship partner, but also by the opinions of complete strangers.
“Humans don’t exist in a vacuum. From an evolutionary standpoint, it makes sense that we have evolved mechanisms that let us take advantage of the additional social information in our environment,” said Skyler Place, a researcher in IU’s Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and lead author of the study along with Peter M. Todd, professor in IU’s Cognitive Science Program.
“We might think that searching for mates is a process best done individually, that we can best gather the appropriate information by ourselves,” Place said. But humans, like many other animals, also pay attention to the preferences of others, to make for a more efficient search process. Who others like might also be a good choice for ourselves.”
Read in Full:Â http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/191167.php
Concerned from Tunbridge Wells:
June 03, 2010
The Guardian has been running a fun evolutionary psychology agony aunt column that’s been tackling questions such as ‘why do I fancy blonde women?’, ‘why do nice girls fall for bad boys?’ and ‘what can I do to stop my best friend marrying this idiot?’.
Despite it’s potential, evolutionary psychology has a tendancy to be a bit over-enthusiastic at times but the column just discusses the published studies in relation to the readers’ questions and turns out to be a concise guide to some of the field’s thinking on the area.
Clearly it’s not meant to be taken too seriously as an advice column but any agony aunt that gives references for her evolutionary advice is alright by me.
Link to Guardian’s ‘Ask Carole’ column (via @researchdigest)
Have a Happy Marriage: Marry a Woman Who’ll Put Up with Anything
I always wonder what that is supposed to mean. In other words, the guy’s such a shmuck, no worthwhile woman would have him except for his wife? But that’s not the way life works. Much research shows that people marry mates at their own levels of attractiveness and social acceptability. So, either the men speaking (it is always men who make such statements) are more appealing than they let on to be, or else their wives are fairly desperate themselves.
At the extreme, of course, some women stick with abusive spouses. The psychological slant on this is that the women feel they deserve no better. But research here shows that women who are beaten by spouses tend to have fewer life options – overall they have less education, are less attractive, and so on. (I know – intelligent, beautiful women’s husbands sometimes beat them too – but such women tend to extricate themselves more quickly.)
So are the marital commentators who think it is a miracle their wives stay with them beating their wives, or do they feel they are just extremely unpleasant people to be around? (They can’t mean their wives put up with their sometimes forgetting where they left their glasses – that wouldn’t make the women so notably tolerant or saintly.)
Taking these men at their words about how unpleasant they are, how did they find women willing to put up with them? Did they marry ugly women? Did they marry women who needed to have an American husband to remain in the United States? Or are they just women who regard themselves so negatively that they put up with anything?
 
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on July 16, 2010Â
A gene has been found in some people with schizophrenia that can help protect cognitive ability.
While it may put individuals at risk for schizophrenia in the first place, schizophrenic patients with the at-risk gene performed better on certain tests of cognitive function than patients with a less risky variant of the same gene.
Dr. James T.R. Walters of the Medical Research Council for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics at Cardifff University in Wales, and his colleagues found preserved memory with a variation in the gene known as the Zinc Finger Protein 804A.
Prior research has implicated the Zinc Finger Protein 804A gene (ZNF804A) as a risk factor for schizophrenia. Alleles are different variations of the same gene, and one allele of the ZNF804A gene seems to be more commonly present in patients with psychiatric diagnoses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. While its exact function remains elusive, some researchers suspect that the ZNF804A gene affects communication in the brain.
Read More …Â http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/07/16/gene-protects-cognitive-function-in-schizophrenia/15670.html
Â
Â
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on July 16, 2010Â
A gene has been found in some people with schizophrenia that can help protect cognitive ability.
While it may put individuals at risk for schizophrenia in the first place, schizophrenic patients with the at-risk gene performed better on certain tests of cognitive function than patients with a less risky variant of the same gene.
Dr. James T.R. Walters of the Medical Research Council for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics at Cardifff University in Wales, and his colleagues found preserved memory with a variation in the gene known as the Zinc Finger Protein 804A.
Prior research has implicated the Zinc Finger Protein 804A gene (ZNF804A) as a risk factor for schizophrenia. Alleles are different variations of the same gene, and one allele of the ZNF804A gene seems to be more commonly present in patients with psychiatric diagnoses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. While its exact function remains elusive, some researchers suspect that the ZNF804A gene affects communication in the brain.
Read More …Â http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/07/16/gene-protects-cognitive-function-in-schizophrenia/15670.html
Â
 
Article Date: 16 Jul 2010 – 2:00 PDT
Depression, known to be a condition with impaired psychosocial functioning that severely impacts the quality of life of patients and families, is actually defined with specific clinical symptoms such as sadness, difficulty to experience pleasure, sleep problems etc., present for at least two weeks. At least 40% of depressed patients actually benefit from an antidepressant treatment, whereas 20 – 30% of patients may suffer from chronic depression that negatively impacts their quality of life. In order to improve the efficiency of treatment and reduce the burden of depressive disorders, depression needs to be defined at the neurobiological level.
Read in Full:Â http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/194893.php
Â
Article Date: 16 Jul 2010 – 2:00 PDT
Depression, known to be a condition with impaired psychosocial functioning that severely impacts the quality of life of patients and families, is actually defined with specific clinical symptoms such as sadness, difficulty to experience pleasure, sleep problems etc., present for at least two weeks. At least 40% of depressed patients actually benefit from an antidepressant treatment, whereas 20 – 30% of patients may suffer from chronic depression that negatively impacts their quality of life. In order to improve the efficiency of treatment and reduce the burden of depressive disorders, depression needs to be defined at the neurobiological level.
Read in Full:Â http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/194893.php
 
Article Date: 16 Jul 2010 – 2:00 PDT
Circadian (daily) rhythms are found in all functions e.g. performance, mood, endocrine rhythms, behaviour, sleep timing. The biological clocks that control circadian rhythms are based on a genetic programme of interacting molecules in cells throughout the body, coordinated by a ´master clock´ in the brain and synchronised by external cues, mainly light. Failure to adapt to environmental and societal cues leads to misalignment of the internal biological clocks, and is particularly evident with shift work and jet lag. This temporal dysregulation comes with enhanced risk of errors and accidents, loss of productivity, and health risks such as increased propensity for cancer, depression, sleep disturbances, gastrointestinal, metabolic and cardiovascular disorders, decreased immune responses and life span.
In patients with affective disorders, there is a close link between circadian rhythms, stability of mood, and sleep regulation. Abnormal circadian rhythms have been found in major depression, bipolar disorder, and seasonal affective disorder.
In the last few years, discovery of the core molecular clock machinery has dramatically increased interest in the impact of circadian dysregulation on mental and physical health. Furthermore, clinical scientists have learned the enormous importance of synchronising agents to entrain rhythms in patients with affective disorders, and how useful these agents are as so-called ‘chronotherapeutics’ (e.g. light, melatonin).
Despite the growing evidence for their efficacy, and the interest of patients in non-pharmacological treatment options, it is surprising how limited the use of these treatments still is, indicating rather widespread ignorance among doctors and patients.
Professor Anna Wirz-Justice, Ph.D., one of the most prominent researchers in chronopsychiatry from the Psychiatric University Clinics in Basel, Switzerland, will present the latest findings in this field with special focus on promising new treatment approaches. Furthermore, she will discuss how wider dissemination of chronotherapeutics can be achieved.
Â
Article Date: 16 Jul 2010 – 2:00 PDT
Circadian (daily) rhythms are found in all functions e.g. performance, mood, endocrine rhythms, behaviour, sleep timing. The biological clocks that control circadian rhythms are based on a genetic programme of interacting molecules in cells throughout the body, coordinated by a ´master clock´ in the brain and synchronised by external cues, mainly light. Failure to adapt to environmental and societal cues leads to misalignment of the internal biological clocks, and is particularly evident with shift work and jet lag. This temporal dysregulation comes with enhanced risk of errors and accidents, loss of productivity, and health risks such as increased propensity for cancer, depression, sleep disturbances, gastrointestinal, metabolic and cardiovascular disorders, decreased immune responses and life span.
In patients with affective disorders, there is a close link between circadian rhythms, stability of mood, and sleep regulation. Abnormal circadian rhythms have been found in major depression, bipolar disorder, and seasonal affective disorder.
In the last few years, discovery of the core molecular clock machinery has dramatically increased interest in the impact of circadian dysregulation on mental and physical health. Furthermore, clinical scientists have learned the enormous importance of synchronising agents to entrain rhythms in patients with affective disorders, and how useful these agents are as so-called ‘chronotherapeutics’ (e.g. light, melatonin).
Despite the growing evidence for their efficacy, and the interest of patients in non-pharmacological treatment options, it is surprising how limited the use of these treatments still is, indicating rather widespread ignorance among doctors and patients.
Professor Anna Wirz-Justice, Ph.D., one of the most prominent researchers in chronopsychiatry from the Psychiatric University Clinics in Basel, Switzerland, will present the latest findings in this field with special focus on promising new treatment approaches. Furthermore, she will discuss how wider dissemination of chronotherapeutics can be achieved.
Nick Curtis
15.07.10
These remarkable pictures of London, published for the first time in the Evening Standard today, are by Stephen Wiltshire, the artist with autism. The 36-year-old from Maida Vale is famous worldwide for his intricate architectural drawings and city panoramas — often drawn from memory and at great speed — and for his triumph over the neural condition that rendered him incommunicative as a child.
For these pictures Stephen was invited by the City of London Corporation to three locations normally closed to the public: the roof of the 43-storey, residential Cromwell Tower at the Barbican, the Old Bailey and the “battlement†terraces of Tower Bridge.
Stephen is a boyishly handsome, stylish young man with a permanent half-smile on his face. Although some people with autism have problems with social interaction, he is friendly and impeccably polite. From the exposed concrete roof of Cromwell Tower, we can see from Primrose Hill to the Crystal Palace transmitter, Wembley Stadium to the Olympic site. Stephen looks, takes some photographs, then starts sketching at blinding speed with an ordinary HB pencil.
Read in Full:Â http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/lifestyle/article-23856368-views-of-stephen-wiltshires-london.do
Stephen Wiltshire Gallery
The gallery, opposite New Zealand House in Royal Opera Arcade London, shows and sells the works of the autistic savant artist Stephen Wiltshire.