Sara Luterman is the caregiving reporter at The 19th, based outside Washington, D.C., and a contributing editor at Radiolab. Previously, she worked as a freelance writer, and her work has appeared in The Washington Post, The Nation and Vox.
Sara Luterman
Founder
NOS Magazine
From this contributor
Contentious study prompts backlash from autism researchers
Conflicts of interest and methodological issues sully a study published 18 July in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, autism researchers say.
Contentious study prompts backlash from autism researchers
By
Sara Luterman
11 August 2021 | 5 min read
Book Review: An autistic writer recounts the fun and futility of trying to fit in
In “I Overcame My Autism and All I Got Was This Lousy Anxiety Disorder,” Sarah Kurchak weaves together jagged honesty, funny anecdotes and occasionally painful doses of self-awareness.
Book Review: An autistic writer recounts the fun and futility of trying to fit in
By
Sara Luterman
13 October 2020 | 4 min read
Review: ‘Love on the Spectrum’ is kind, but unrepresentative
The Netflix series that follows 20-something autistic adults looking for love is well intentioned but fails to capture reality and is riddled with bad advice.
Review: ‘Love on the Spectrum’ is kind, but unrepresentative
By
Sara Luterman
18 August 2020 | 6 min read
Autistic people must not be denied access to ventilators
With life-saving gear in short supply during the pandemic, health authorities must ensure that disabled people are not pushed to the back of the line.
Autistic people must not be denied access to ventilators
By
Sara Luterman
5 May 2020 | 4 min read
Film review: Rare realism about autism in ‘The Limits of My World’
Heather Cassano's documentary about her autistic brother Brian is a thoughtful and empathetic look at life on the spectrum.
Film review: Rare realism about autism in ‘The Limits of My World’
By
Sara Luterman
8 October 2019 | 4 min read
Explore more from The Transmitter
Null and Noteworthy: Neurons tracking sequences don’t fire in order
Instead, neurons encode the position of sequential items in working memory based on when they fire during ongoing brain wave oscillations—a finding that challenges a long-standing theory.
Null and Noteworthy: Neurons tracking sequences don’t fire in order
Instead, neurons encode the position of sequential items in working memory based on when they fire during ongoing brain wave oscillations—a finding that challenges a long-standing theory.
By
Laura Dattaro
30 June 2025 | 4 min read
How to teach this paper: ‘Neurotoxic reactive astrocytes are induced by activated microglia,’ by Liddelow et al. (2017)
Shane Liddelow and his collaborators identified the factors that transform astrocytes from their helpful to harmful form. Their work is a great choice if you want to teach students about glial cell types, cell culture, gene expression or protein measurement.
How to teach this paper: ‘Neurotoxic reactive astrocytes are induced by activated microglia,’ by Liddelow et al. (2017)
Shane Liddelow and his collaborators identified the factors that transform astrocytes from their helpful to harmful form. Their work is a great choice if you want to teach students about glial cell types, cell culture, gene expression or protein measurement.
By
Ashley Juavinett
30 June 2025 | 10 min read
Astrocytes sense neuromodulators to orchestrate neuronal activity and shape behavior
Astrocytes serve as crucial mediators of neuromodulatory processes previously attributed to direct communication between neurons, four new studies show.
Astrocytes sense neuromodulators to orchestrate neuronal activity and shape behavior
Astrocytes serve as crucial mediators of neuromodulatory processes previously attributed to direct communication between neurons, four new studies show.
By
Claudia López Lloreda
27 June 2025 | 9 min listen