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

Violet-stained neurons in a serial transverse section from an embryonic spiny dogfish, a bottom-dwelling shark.

Digitization of ‘breathtaking’ neuroanatomy slide collection offers untapped research gold mine

Thousands of histological sections of vertebrate brains—including from spiny dogfish, turtles and more—are newly available online.

By Shaena Montanari
22 January 2025 | 3 min read
Research image of brain organoids with astroglia formation represented in green.

Personalized medicine; astroglia organoids; fast track for fragile X drug

Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 20 January.

By Jill Adams
21 January 2025 | 2 min read
Illustration of clinicians, a pill bottle, a speech bubble and shadowy figures.

Neuroscientists need to do better at explaining basic mental health research

The knowledge gap between scientists, health-care professionals, policymakers and people with mental health conditions is growing, slowing the translation of basic science to new treatments. Like lawyers learning to present a case to the court, scientists should learn to educate nonscientists about their findings.

By Omar Abubaker, Karla Kaun, Eric J. Nestler
21 January 2025 | 7 min read