The Transmitter stories

Recent articles

Stories about developments in neuroscience.

Black-and-white illustrated portrait of Jonathan Green.

‘Emergent and transactional’: How Jonathan Green is rethinking autism and interventions

The experienced clinician discusses writing his recent paper, and its reception in the field.

By Brady Huggett
28 August 2023 | 1 min read
Black and white watercolor-style portrait of Cheryl Dissanayake.

The story of autism research in Australia: A conversation with Cheryl Dissanayake

With the help of a generous benefactor, autism research in Australia is gathering critical mass.

By Brady Huggett
25 July 2023 | 1 min read
Images of Marie-Eve Lefebvre and Punit Shah sitting at their laptops.

New journals seek to fill neurodiversity gap

The two journals, although differing in initial support, both realized the need for a publication focused exclusively on the neurodiverse experience.

By Brady Huggett
8 March 2023 | 42 min listen
Triangle that looks like a play button in a delicate collage of squares and circles on a cream colored background.

Writing a ‘new history of autism’

Spectrum talks with David Dobbs about researching his latest article, and what he found.

By Brady Huggett
8 November 2022 | 17 min listen
portraits of four black autism researchers

What it’s like to be a Black autism researcher

Spectrum spoke to four Black autism researchers about what it’s like to be in a field that’s overwhelmingly white, how police violence against Black people has affected them, and the joy of finding one another in ‘Black In Neuro.’

By Chelsey B. Coombs
22 October 2020 | 1 min read
two people social distancing

Spectrum stories: Life in lockdown with autism

Host Chelsey B. Coombs talks to clinicians and people with autism about their experience of the pandemic, how their routines have changed and some of the unexpected benefits.

By Chelsey B. Coombs
17 June 2020 | 1 min read
man's hand on woman's shoulder creating a sensory reaction visualized by illustrated lines

Spectrum Stories: What social touch says about autism

Understanding how touch is altered in autism could yield an early marker of the condition.

By Kaitlyn Schwalje
18 June 2019 | 1 min read
Illustration shows woman connecting digitally with other parents

Spectrum Stories: How social media aids discovery and diagnosis of autism-linked conditions

Social media is connecting families with researchers who study rare conditions related to autism — to the benefit of both.

By Kaitlyn Schwalje
6 May 2019 | 1 min read
Spectrum stories podcast logo.

Spectrum Stories: The benefits of genetic testing in autism

Finding a mutation linked to autism traits can have life-changing consequences for autistic individuals and their families.

By Ben Kuebrich
18 March 2019 | 1 min read
Boy during test with researcher

Spectrum Stories: Tapping intelligence in minimally verbal people with autism

Scientists are finding new ways to test cognition in autistic individuals who speak little or not at all.

By Ben Kuebrich
23 January 2019 | 1 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Federal funding cuts imperil next generation of autism researchers

As the International Society for Autism Research’s annual meeting begins, its next president reflects on a brewing crisis.

By Brian Boyd
30 April 2025 | 5 min read
Memory astrocytes.

Null and Noteworthy: Reanalysis contradicts report of immune memory in astrocytes

The analysis, which has not yet been peer reviewed, attributes the finding to misidentified immune cells instead.

By Laura Dattaro
30 April 2025 | 5 min read
Research image of neural progenitor cells.

Documenting decades of autism prevalence; and more

Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 28 April.

By Jill Adams
29 April 2025 | 1 min read