2015: Year in review

Recent articles

Spectrum from The Transmitter.

What’s the hardest part of an autism researcher’s job?

Scientists dish about the biggest challenges they face as they tackle tough questions about autism.

By Ingrid Wickelgren
22 December 2015 | 6 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Notable papers of 2015

Our top 10 papers for this year, based on input from autism researchers, capture the full spectrum of findings — from molecular biology to large-scale epidemiology.

By Spectrum
22 December 2015 | 3 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Hot topics of 2015

Here’s a rundown of five trending topics that are turning traditional assumptions about autism on their head.

By Katie Moisse
22 December 2015 | 4 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Quotes of the year

Here are some of our favorite quotes, by those who study autism and those who live with it, from articles we published in 2015.

By Spectrum
22 December 2015 | 1 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Artist with autism illustrates ‘invisible disability’

Sounds, smells and social encounters are just a few of the challenges that Leironica Hawkins, an artist on the spectrum, faces every day.

By Spectrum
22 December 2015 | 1 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Research one-liners

Autism researchers distill countless hours of frantic grant-writing and experiments into a single sentence — with some hilarious results.

By Jessica Wright
22 December 2015 | 1 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Spectrum’s first year

To say this has been a momentous year for the website would be an understatement.

By Spectrum
22 December 2015 | 3 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Staff picks from 2015

Some of our favorite stories this year went beyond the news to lay bare critical controversies or highlight real-world implications of research.

By Katie Moisse
22 December 2015 | 3 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

dendritic spine images

Targeting NMDA receptor subunit reverses fragile X traits in mice

The subunit acts as a “volume control” on signaling that shapes the density of dendritic spines, the new work suggests.

By Angie Voyles Askham
6 March 2025 | 5 min read
A pregnant woman seen in profile, sitting on the edge of a bed.

Maternal infection’s link to autism may be a mirage

Family-linked factors explain most associations between maternal illness and autism, a study of 1.1 million Danish children finds.

By Charles Q. Choi
6 March 2025 | 3 min read
Headshots of Michelle Monje and Frank Winkler.

2025 Brain Prize honors pair of cancer neuroscientists

Michelle Monje and Frank Winkler share the $1.4 million award for their discovery of synapses between brain cancer cells and neurons.

By Sydney Wyatt
5 March 2025 | 3 min read