Helen Pearson is a science writer based in New York City.
Helen Pearson
Freelance writer
Simons Foundation
From this contributor
Father’s advanced age feeds autism risk
Are older fathers more likely to have children with autism? A series of epidemiological studies is giving credence to the idea, suggesting that, with age, sperm may accumulate damage that increases risk in the next generation.
Sense of ‘self’ impaired in autism
People with autism struggle to see their own role in social situations. That's the conclusion from the first study to scan individualsʼ brains while they interact with another person - a technique that could lead to a diagnostic tool.
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In most mammalian retinas, rods outnumber cones. But that ratio is flipped in ground squirrels, a quirk that helps Seth Blackshaw explore how retinal cells develop their identities.
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In most mammalian retinas, rods outnumber cones. But that ratio is flipped in ground squirrels, a quirk that helps Seth Blackshaw explore how retinal cells develop their identities.
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Highlights from the first-ever Neural Genetics and Epigenetics Gordon Research Conference
The meeting’s organizers recap the science to watch.
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The meeting’s organizers recap the science to watch.
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Francisco J. Rivera Rosario
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Sensory and association regions are established through a reciprocal process, according to a new model of cortical development.
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Sensory and association regions are established through a reciprocal process, according to a new model of cortical development.
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Holly Barker
30 July 2026 | 5 min read