Helen Tager-Flusberg is director of the Center for Autism Research Excellence at Boston University. Her research aims to untangle autism and language impairments using behavioral and brain-imagining studies. She was also a columnist for Spectrum.
Boston University
Helen Tager-Flusberg is director of the Center for Autism Research Excellence at Boston University. Her research aims to untangle autism and language impairments using behavioral and brain-imagining studies. She was also a columnist for Spectrum.
A diagnosis of social communication disorder only keeps people from a community and resources they desperately want and need.
Studying parents of children with autism has long been controversial, but that doesn’t mean scientists should avoid it.
Elsa, the star of the movie “Frozen,” is the poster child for girls with autism.
Scientists should slow down and return to the basic tenets of research to regain the public’s trust.
Trials to test drugs for autism suffer from subjective measurements and placebo effects. Helen Tager-Flusberg outlines how to ferret out the true effects of potential autism therapies.
In 2025, the words we use to describe emotions matter, but their definitions are controversial. Here, I unpack the different positions in this space and the rationales behind them—and I invite 13 experts to chime in.
In 2025, the words we use to describe emotions matter, but their definitions are controversial. Here, I unpack the different positions in this space and the rationales behind them—and I invite 13 experts to chime in.
By contrast, varied doses of the same genes decrease or increase the odds of five other conditions, with distinct biological consequences, two new preprints show.
By contrast, varied doses of the same genes decrease or increase the odds of five other conditions, with distinct biological consequences, two new preprints show.
The findings, gleaned from the most comprehensive map yet of brain activity during decision-making in mice, show that the process is even more distributed than previously thought.
The findings, gleaned from the most comprehensive map yet of brain activity during decision-making in mice, show that the process is even more distributed than previously thought.