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## Autism ## Autism Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears early in life. Four times more boys than girls have autism and it can happen to people of all races, nationalities or walks of life, while the family background and the way a person lives have no connection with the cause of the disease. Autism (the root is Greek 'autos' meaning self) prevents the normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction and communication skills, so people suffering from autism cannot communicate and live with other people in a natural way. The disorder makes it hard for children and adults to communicate with others and relate to the outside world. In some cases affected people become violent and they may cause harm to other people but also themselves. Persons with autism may exhibit repeated body movements (hand flapping, rocking), and do not like to change their routine. Sometimes, autistic people have problems with their senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste. Despite all these difficulties, several autistic people (15-20%) with proper care have been able to overcome their problem in some way and lead a more or less normal life. Due to their ability of visual thinking, several autistic people have developed special gifts, like performing arithmetic calculations with huge numbers, as was shown in the Oscar-winning film “Rain Man” with Dustin Hoffman starring as an autistic person. Albert Einstein and Sir Isaac Newton, are also believed to have been autistic. Source: San Antonio Independent School Network, USA Check that you understand what these words mean in this document Developmental disability: a problem with the growth of a child. Typically: usually, most often. Races: the different types of people that exist, like Negroes, Caucasians (whites) etc. All walks of life: coming from different social or professional backgrounds. To prevent: to stop from happening. Development: the process of growing up or becoming bigger and better. Interaction: the action or influence of people, groups, or things on one another. Communication skills: the ability to exchange messages directly or indirectly with other people via language or signs. Disorder: a situation of a person’s health in which something is wrong. To relate: to connect with or communicate with. Violent: marked by great force which can harm people or objects. To exhibit: to show. To hand flap: to move the hand from side to side. Routine: an unchanging way of doing things all the time. To overcome: to find a way to solve the problem. Visual thinking: thinking by forming pictures in the mind. Special gift: an ability that other normal people do not have. Arithmetic calculation: the process of finding the answer to a mathematical problem. For further information visit: About Autism