Autism

What Does Autism Mean?

People usually call it autism (say: aw-tih-zum), but the official name is autism spectrum disorders. Why? Because doctors include autism in a group of problems that kids can have, including Asperger syndrome and others. These problems happen when the brain develops differently and has trouble with an important job: making sense of the world. Every day, our brains interpret (understand) the things we see, smell, hear, taste, touch, and experience. But when someone’s brain has trouble interpreting these things, it can make it hard to talk, listen, understand, play, and learn.

Kids with autism often can’t make connections that other kids make easily. For example, when people smile, you know they feel happy or friendly; when people look mad, you can tell by their face or their voice. But many kids who have autism spectrum disorders have trouble understanding what emotions look like and what another person is thinking. They might act in a way that seems unusual, and it can be hard to understand why they’re doing it.

Kids health

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1 in 88 kids has an autism spectrum disorder, but no one knows what causes them. Scientists think that there’s a connection to genetics (something to do with a kid’s genes) and the environment. Some kids might be more likely to get autism because it runs in their families. Other kids get it even if nobody in their family has these types of problems.

Knowing the exact cause of autism is hard because the human brain is very complicated. The brain contains more than 100 billion nerve cells called neurons (say: nur-ahns). Each neuron may have hundreds or thousands of connections that carry messages to other nerve cells in the brain and body. The connections and the chemical messengers they send (called neurotransmitters) keep the neurons working as they should. When they do, you can see, feel, move, remember, experience emotions, communicate, and do lots of other important stuff.

In the brain of a kid with autism, some of those cells and connections don’t develop normally or don’t get organized like they’re supposed to. Scientists are still trying to understand how and why this happens.

The Mayan Collpase

The ancient Maya once occupied a vast geographic area in Central America. Their civilization extended to parts of what is now Mexico, Honduras, and El Salvador, and most of Guatemala and Belize.From the third to the ninth century, Maya civilization produced awe-inspiring temples and pyramids, highly accurate calendars, mathematics and hieroglyphic writing, and a complex social and political order. Looking at the impressive remains of ancient Maya civilization, it’s hard to imagine how such a society could collapse.

Archaeologists William Sanders and David Webster and their team have studied Copán for nearly two decades, starting in 1980. With their colleagues, they have uncovered a great deal of evidence about what happened at Copán, including the obsidian dates, the pollen sample, the erosion debris, and the modern-day farming practices.

Based on the evidence found at Copán, this team of archaeologists concluded that overpopulation was a major contributor to collapse. A very large number of people lived in the Copán Valley, and so more and more of the land was farmed, just as it is today. This caused environmental stresses, such as erosion and crop shortages. These in turn caused malnutrition and disease, which were clear from the anemia shown in the skulls—even the skulls of the noble classes.

From the obsidian dates and the pollen sample, the archaeologists concluded that the end of Copán was gradual, at least in the countryside. Though no monuments were built after A.D. 822, the population in the valley did not drop off seriously until about A.D. 950-1000. Significant farming continued in the area until A.D. 1200-1250. After 1200-1250, the Copán Valley returned to forest, this previous center of Maya life abandoned by all but a few remaining farmers.