David Dobbs writes about science, music, sports, and other forms of culture, and is the author of Reef Madness: Alexander Agassiz, Charles Darwin, and The Meaning of Coral and other books.
David Dobbs
Contributing writer
The Transmitter
From this contributor
Remembering Mark Hallett, leader in transcranial magnetic stimulation
The long-time NINDS researcher, best known for studying movement disorders, has died at age 82.
Remembering Mark Hallett, leader in transcranial magnetic stimulation
By
David Dobbs
25 November 2025 | 7 min read
The new history of autism, part III
For decades, two figures have dominated the history of autism studies. Today, newly excavated documents are calling into question the primacy of these men as founders of the field.
The new history of autism, part II
For decades, two figures have dominated the history of autism studies. Today, newly excavated documents are calling into question the primacy of these men as founders of the field.
The new history of autism, part I
For decades, two figures have dominated the history of autism studies. Today, newly excavated documents are calling into question the primacy of these men as founders of the field.
Rethinking regression in autism
The loss of abilities that besets some toddlers with autism is probably less sudden and more common than anyone thought.
Explore more from The Transmitter
What is the future of organoid and assembloid regulation?
Four experts weigh in on how to establish ethical guardrails for research on the 3D neuron clusters as these models become ever more complex.
What is the future of organoid and assembloid regulation?
Four experts weigh in on how to establish ethical guardrails for research on the 3D neuron clusters as these models become ever more complex.
By
Claudia López Lloreda
10 December 2025 | 7 min read
Insights on suicidality and autism; and more
Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 8 December.
Insights on suicidality and autism; and more
Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 8 December.
By
Jill Adams
9 December 2025 | 2 min read
Exclusive: Springer Nature retracts, removes nearly 40 publications that trained neural networks on ‘bonkers’ dataset
The dataset contains images of children’s faces downloaded from websites about autism, which sparked concerns at Springer Nature about consent and reliability.
Exclusive: Springer Nature retracts, removes nearly 40 publications that trained neural networks on ‘bonkers’ dataset
The dataset contains images of children’s faces downloaded from websites about autism, which sparked concerns at Springer Nature about consent and reliability.
By
Calli McMurray
8 December 2025 | 5 min read