Autism and the arts

Recent articles

Brains of many colors with people standing on them, coming out of the shadows

Book Review: ‘Nobody’s Normal’ chronicles the intertwined history of mental illness and stigma

Anthropologist and autism expert Richard Roy Grinker’s latest title reveals how our definitions of mental illnesses and notions of ‘normality’ reek of cultural biases that stop many from seeking help.

By Claudia Wallis
26 January 2021 | 6 min read
young autistic girl in playroom with a tennis ball that matches her yellow dyed hair.

Inside a summer camp for autistic children in Russia

Photographs show how a camp in St. Petersburg this summer helped children on the spectrum and their families find some fun during the pandemic.

By Polina Porotskaya
1 September 2020 | 5 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Illustration of DNA with genetic code.

Autism-linked variants converge on two molecular patterns in mouse brains

Gene activity across 17 autism mouse models occurs in either of two opposing transcriptomic states, supporting the idea that diverse genetic changes may converge on a few recurring biological patterns.

By Giorgia Guglielmi
1 October 2026 | 4 min read
Illustration of pipa frog showing nerves in fingertips.

How the pipa frog hunts prey by touch

Each of the frog’s eight fingers branches into 16 ultra-sensitive tips, which together function as a fovea—potentially the first demonstration of this type of sensory structure outside of mammals.

By Calli McMurray
30 September 2026 | 7 min read
scaled

Response to ‘Finally, a new route for the magnetic-sense field’

Magnetoreception in Drosophila has much to offer those with an interest in neuroscience.

By Denis Henshaw
30 September 2026 | 3 min read