Paroma Basu
Freelance writer
Simons Foundation
From this contributor
Autism impedes ability to read body language
A glitch in visual processing may explain why people with autism struggle to gauge emotions from the body language of others, according to a study published in the journal Neuropsychologia. Watch the video
New ‘mirror neurons’ reflect the attention of others
Studying a new type of mirror neuron may help researchers better understand the brain impairments underlying characteristic deficits of autism.

New ‘mirror neurons’ reflect the attention of others
Visual contrast drives face recognition, study finds
The answer to a long-standing mystery in visual neuroscience may also help explain how people with autism perceive faces, according to a study published in March in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Visual contrast drives face recognition, study finds
Experts question study touting hyperbaric therapy for autism
A much-publicized study reporting social and cognitive improvements in children with autism who breathed pure oxygen in a high-pressure chamber has met with skepticism from other autism researchers.

Experts question study touting hyperbaric therapy for autism
Explore more from The Transmitter
ABCD Study omits gender-identity data from latest release
The removal counteracts the goals of the longitudinal study by “pretending that some aspects of adolescent brain development don’t exist,” says sex differences researcher Nicola Grissom.

ABCD Study omits gender-identity data from latest release
The removal counteracts the goals of the longitudinal study by “pretending that some aspects of adolescent brain development don’t exist,” says sex differences researcher Nicola Grissom.
Neuropeptides reprogram social roles in leafcutter ants
The mechanisms that control the labor roles of ants may also be conserved in naked mole rats, a new study shows.

Neuropeptides reprogram social roles in leafcutter ants
The mechanisms that control the labor roles of ants may also be conserved in naked mole rats, a new study shows.
Perspectives from the field: Opinions in autism research
This collection of Spectrum articles from the past 12 months highlights expert perspectives on autism’s heritability and its link to biological sex, the value of transdiagnostic frameworks, and the field’s future, among other topics.

Perspectives from the field: Opinions in autism research
This collection of Spectrum articles from the past 12 months highlights expert perspectives on autism’s heritability and its link to biological sex, the value of transdiagnostic frameworks, and the field’s future, among other topics.