Age of Autism: Rethinking 'Normal'

An event addressing the expanding significance of autism, both as a disorder diagnosed in ever greater numbers of people and as an idea that elicits widespread fascination.

This satellite event of the Battle of Ideas festival (the festival proper takes place on Saturday 31 October 2009 and Sunday 1 November 2009) will ask whether we are suffering from an epidemic of autism, or whether are we living through what has been termed the 'age of autism', where a developmental disorder has taken on a far wider definition and meaning in society. It will also ask whether increased debate and discussion about autism has helped or hindered those suffering from the condition, and what our fascination with autism says about us as a society.

Speakers at this event include BioNews Webmaster and Progress Educational Trust (PET) Communications Officer Sandy Starr, who will preview the PET project Spectrum of Opinion: Genes, Autism and Psychological Spectrum Disorders ahead of its official launch on Tuesday 20 October, at the PET event From Autism to Asperger's: Disentangling the Genetics and Sociology of the Autistic Spectrum.

Attendance fees range from £5 to £7.50. To register, use this online form or contact Geoff Kidder at or on +44 (0)20 7269 9224.

Find out more about genetics in The Rough Guide to Genes and Cloning, coauthored by BioNews Contributing Editor Dr Jess Buxton (buy this book from Amazon UK or Amazon USA); and find out more about fertility/embryology regulation in Human Fertilisation and Embryology: Reproducing Regulation, coedited by BioNews Contributing Editor Dr Kirsty Horsey (buy this book from Amazon UK or Amazon USA).

Further details of this event are available on the Battle of Ideas website.

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