Monday, February 10, 2014
How The Autistic Mind Works-Fascinating TEDTalk
Have you ever visited the site TEDTalks? If not, I highly recommend it because it offers lectures on pretty much any subject you can think of written by experts in their respective fields. On this site and their Netflix channel, you can see talks about anything from ants to media ethics to the history of jazz. They're the type of talks people pay a lot of money to see, but you can view them for free.
If you're interested in how autistic people think, here's a very interesting talk from Temple Grandin. Grandin is an expert on animal behavior who was diagnosed with autism as a child.
http://www.ted.com/talks/temple_grandin_the_world_needs_all_kinds_of_minds.html?quote=653
What I found especially interesting is how she compares her way of thinking to that of animals. Rather than thinking in words the way you and I do, they think in pictures. It's like the way my sister's pit bull reacted to me when I would come to visit. He would bark and growl like crazy at first because, to him, I'm someone he hasn't seen before. When my sister closed the door and opened it back up a minute or so later, the dog was fine. He'd seen me before, so he knows I'm okay. I guess it makes sense that a person who thinks like this might have trouble learning to communicate with words-it's just not the way they're wired.
Like Grandin says, though, the world needs all kinds of minds. For instance, I'm very grateful that the bridge-tunnel I go through when I visit family in Virginia was designed by someone who thinks in pictures! There's no way I or another "word-person" would be able to do that.
Sunday, February 2, 2014
Animal Myths-Infographic
Since I've mentioned
animals in other posts, I thought you and/or your kids might find
this interesting. It de-codes several commonly-held beliefs about
animals. I'll have to admit, I was a bit surprised to learn about the
different lifespans among dog breeds; I know that's the case between
indoor vs. outdoor cats, but I didn't know that a large dog (like the
gorgeous Husky my friends used to have) was considered a “senior”
at age five! I guess it makes sense, though, since some large breeds
like the Husky and Saint Bernard are bred for tough outdoor work. I
also love the drawings!
Enjoy!
Labels:
animal myths,
animals,
bats,
birds,
dog years,
infographic
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Something I'd Love To See-Air-Conditioned Clothing!
I was looking for something completely unrelated when I came across this article about a proposed clothing item in Japan.
If this is real, I hope these things come to the US soon. As much as I like warm weather, the triple-digit temperatures we get in Georgia in the summer are ridiculous!
Maybe they're not exactly fashionable, although they *do* remind me of those Members-Only jackets we had in the 80s. I know, I know, I'm dating myself here. :) Even so, necessity is the mother of invention, and I'd rather be cool in an ugly jacket or shirt than sweltering wearing Versace.
Labels:
air-conditioned clothing,
air-conditioning,
cooling,
heat,
japanese
Friday, January 17, 2014
Word Scamble For Kids-Dogs
Here's a word scramble about dogs that
you can print out and give to your kids the next time you go on a car
trip or out to eat. If you want to see pictures of the different
breeds, visit http://www.dogbreedslist.info/.
Gleabe __ __ __ __ __ __
bpiutll __ __ __ __ __ __
__
enlenk __ __ __ __ __ __
yrkej __ __ __ __ __
rladbaor rtieverre __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
golbudl __ __ __ __ __ __ __
robex __ __ __ __ __
shlae __ __ __ __ __
pdoloe __ __ __ __ __ __
mragen sephrdhe __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
dohun __ __ __ __ __
igtnuhn __ __ __ __ __ __
__
trgea nade __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __
ckorce lspeina __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
witotrlrer __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __
dlogne rtieverre __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
syukh __ __ __ __ __
tcfeh __ __ __ __ __
tleseam __ __ __ __ __ __ __
rayckbad __ __ __ __ __ __
__ __
urgad dgo __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __
esineg-yee dgo __ __ __ __ __
__ - __ __ __ __ __ __
pdhseoge __ __ __ __ __ __ __
__
loecli __ __ __ __ __ __
hwec yto __ __ __ __
__ __ __
noeb __ __ __ __
btosno retrier __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
kjac resulsl retrier __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
Answer: Beagle, Pitbull, kennel, jerky,
Labrador Retriever, Bulldog, Boxer, leash, Snoopy, Poodle, German
Shepherd, hound, hunting, Great Dane, Cocker Spaniel, Rottweiler,
Golden Retriever, Husky, fetch, Maltese, backyard, guard dog,
seeing-eye dog, Sheepdog, Collie, chew toy, bone, Boston Terrier,
Jack Russell Terrier
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)