Autism: Conventional UK police interview techniques are not effective

Police find interviewing and interacting with witnesses and suspects with autism a real challenge, a new study from researchers in the Department of Psychology at UK's University of Bath, has revealed, highlighting that the ways UK police officers have been taught to interview could be at odds with what is needed in these situations.

As part of the study, the researchers found that existing interview techniques tend to focus on open questions, only later narrowing down to closed questions, whereas research shows that people with autism may need focused questions from the outset.

The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)-funded research studied what does, and does not, work when police interview people with autism.

Katie Maras

The researchers, including Dr Katie Maras from Department of Psychology, University of Bath and her colleague, Dr Laura Crane, at City University London, are calling for better training for UK police and criminal justice professionals as, at present in the UK, these groups currently have no standard compulsory training about autism.

Dr Maras said: "As part of this study we have heard of many cases where problems have arisen because police and other criminal justice professionals know very little about autism.

"Research in this area is still in its infancy, but it's steadily accumulating. There's a crucial need to get findings to practitioners to help them obtain the best evidence possible from people with autism."

Laura Crane

More than 400 UK frontline and investigative police officers holding a variety of ranks provided information for the study.

They spoke of the difficulties and challenges they encounter when obtaining written, oral and identification evidence.

Officers reported, for example, finding it hard to build rapport with people with autism, which usually plays an important part in interviews.

They also described difficulties in arranging a suitable environment for interviews.

"Police stations tend to be noisy with bright or flickering lighting and strange smells, but people with autism are often sensitive to sensory input and as a result they can struggle to maintain concentration in interviews", Dr Maras added.

Over 600,000 people in the UK have autism, many of whom will come into contact with the police at some point in their lives.

Poor social-communication skills can make them vulnerable when involved with the UK Criminal Justice System as a victim, witness or suspect.

Individuals with autism process memories in a different way from other people, which can lead to misunderstandings.

During the study, officers answered questions about existing interview practices that they considered worked well, and were asked what could be done to develop understanding and skills.

The researchers found examples of excellent practice, especially among police officers who were able to draw on their personal experience of the disorder through familiarity with a family member or colleague with autism.

On a further positive note, related research shows that there are simple and effective strategies that can enhance the evidence that people with autism give and improve their credibility as witnesses.

For example, providing information about a witness' diagnosis can improve his or her perceived credibility; unusual and stereotyped behaviours can be attributed to autism, rather than a lack of credibility.

Dyslexia: Action video games help people with Dyslexia learn to read

In addition to their trouble with reading, people with dyslexia also have greater difficulty than typical readers do when it comes to managing competing sensory cues, according to a study reported February 13 in Current Biology.

The findings suggest that action video games might improve literacy skills in those with dyslexia, which represent five to ten percent of the population.

"Imagine you are having a conversation with someone when suddenly you hear your name uttered behind you," says Vanessa Harrar of the University of Oxford.

"Your attention shifts from the person you are talking to—the visual—to the sound behind you. This is an example of a cross-sensory shift of attention."

"We found that shifting attention from visual to auditory stimuli is particularly difficult for people who have dyslexia compared to good readers."

In fact, researchers already knew that people with dyslexia had some challenges with auditory processing in addition to their visual impairments.

New evidence had also begun to link multisensory integration and dyslexia to the same parts of the brain.

That evidence, together with Harrar's own personal challenges with reading and writing, prompted her and her colleagues to conduct one of the first investigations of how people with dyslexia process multisensory stimuli.

Participants in the study were asked to push a button as quickly as possible when they heard a sound, saw a dim flash, or experienced both together.

The speed with which they pressed the buttons was recorded and analyzed.

While everyone was fastest when the same type of stimuli repeated itself, the data showed that people with dyslexia were particularly slow at pressing the button when a sound-only trial followed a visual-only trial.

In other words, they showed "sluggish attention shifting," particularly when asked to shift their attention from a flash of light to a sound.

While the researchers say further study is needed, they suggest based on the findings that dyslexia training programs should take this asymmetry into account.

"We think that people with dyslexia might learn associations between letters and their sounds faster if they first hear the sound and then see the corresponding letter or word," Harrar says.

Of course, traditional approaches to reading, in which letters are first seen and then heard, do just the opposite.

Harrar's team goes on to propose a unique, nonverbal approach to improve reading and writing with action video games.

"We propose that training people with dyslexia to shift attention quickly from visual to auditory stimuli and back—such as with a video game, where attention is constantly shifting focus—might also improve literacy.

Action video games have been shown to improve multitasking skills and might also be beneficial in improving the speed with which people with dyslexia shift attention from one task, or sense, to another."

More information: Current Biology, Harrar et al.: "Multisensory integration and attention in developmental dyslexia." dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2014.01.029

Adaptive assistive technologies for people with disabilities

''Assistive technologies'' (AT) have developed rapidly in recent years, allowing people with motor disabilities to live more independent and comfortable lives.

Now assistive technology systems that can open a door, turn on a light or connect to the internet at the blink of an eye, a head movement or even a thought, are being made more flexible and customisable for individual users - thanks to the work of EU-funded researchers.

An estimated 2.6 million people in Europe have mobility problems affecting their upper limbs, and around 1.3 million of them require assistive technologies, or the help of human carers, to be able to perform everyday tasks. Across developed countries, the figure rises to 2.5 million.

They include people suffering from a range of diseases, including multiple sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, as well as varying degrees of paralysis, among them locked-in syndrome in which a person may only be able to move their eyes.

While many people already make use of assistive technologies -an umbrella term that includes assistive, adaptive and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities - in most cases the systems and applications are designed to perform one specific function or assist someone with a specific form of disability.

''What I would call the "old" AT-market is dominated by isolated applications and devices, each addressing a specific disability or focusing on a specific ability of the user. This is in principle good, since it means that each device can be brilliantly optimised in its functionality,'' explains Stefan Parker, a project coordinator and researcher at KI-I in Austria.

''The trouble is that in most actual use cases these devices only manage to take advantage of a part of the user''s abilities or, in other cases, are not properly adaptable to the user''s needs, leaving him or her with a device that is merely semi-optimal for their use case.''

The problem is that disabilities cannot be categorised. Every person is different and even two people suffering from the same disease will often have very different degrees and types of impairment, or a combination of different disabilities at the same time.

Additionally, an individual sufferer will usually need systems to be adjusted, or new devices to be used, as their symptoms evolve over time.

To address the issue, a consortium of research institutes, universities and private companies from seven countries have developed an affordable and scalable platform to implement AT in a much more personalised and flexible way.

Their system, developed over two years in the ''Assistive technology rapid integration and construction set'' (ASTERICS) project with the support of EUR 2.65 million in funding from the European Commission, has already gone into commercial production.And on-going research is set to enhance it further.

Assistive systems, centred on the user
''The AT market is currently subject to great change. On the one hand, mobile devices like smart phones and tablet PCs are conquering the world, and this has a great influence on the AT market.

On the other hand, more user-centred and more flexible approaches towards AT are being generated - ASTERICS being the first and therefore most important,''says Mr Parker, who helped coordinate the project.

Unlike traditional AT systems, the ASTERICS platform can be configured to meet the specific needs of individual users.

It is possible to choose from a wide variety of sensors, from simple switches or webcams to advanced ''brain-computer interfaces'' (BCI), for interaction with the system depending on the requirements and abilities of each person.

The input data, no matter how it is generated, is processed by the ''ASTERICS Runtime Environment'' (ARE).

The software can easily be installed on a Windows-based machine and uses so-called ''models'', configured for each user, to process and execute user commands on any device in order to use their smart phone or computer,and to control their air conditioning or open a window in their home.

The models are built and configured via a dedicated configuration programme, the ''ASTERICS Configuration Suite'' (ACS) in which, through a graphical interface, it is possible to combine several plug-ins for input, signal processing and output and connect them via data-channels and event-channels.

Once completed, a model is simply uploaded to the ARE, where several models can be stored, so the user can have different options for different use cases.

There are also extension modules for the connection of sensors, which can be connected either to the platform or to any other computer via a standard USB cable, along with a HID actuator - a small USB-interface that acts like a standard wireless plug-and-play device, emulating mouse, keyboard or joystick.

''The approach results in a completely user-centred on-site development of AT - the user no longer needs to adapt to the device, it''s the other way round. This goes so far that users can even make small adaptations themselves, or their carer can make them for them, to react to changes in the daily situation,'' Mr Parker notes.

''Also the system can be adapted every time a user''s condition changes for better or worse - usersno longer need to buy a new device every time their condition changes - or use the old one despite having a hard time doing so - they can continue to use the system they are accustomed to and like, but with a new means of input or just with refined settings.''

People suffering from motor disabilities, as well as specialised carers and AT experts, were consulted by the ASTERICS team throughout the design and development process, and prototype platforms received overwhelmingly positive feedback in trials.

''ASTERICS was really appreciated by users and during the course of the user tests we were able to give possibilities to people that they wouldn''t have had without the system. Some users have continued to use the ASTERICS system since the user tests and are very happy with it,'' Mr Parker says.

''Crucially, the system is relatively cheap to install, and can make use of users'' existing devices, such as the webcam on their laptop, to reduce costs further.

Mr Parker estimates that most people would need to spend around EUR 500, excluding the cost of buying a laptop or home PC, for a suitable set up, though it could run to several thousand euro if more expensive equipment such as a brain-computer interface is required.

IMA, a project partner based in the Czech Republic, is currently producing commercial hardware, including input/output modules for use with the system, while Harpo in Poland, another partner, is the prime distributor of the complete system and provides adaptation and customisation services.

The team's goal now is to continue their research and launch a follow-up project to extend the system to mobile devices such as smart phones and tablets.

Canadian Researchers reveal Toddlers value helpful people

Even very young children value people that help them and they are motivated to return the favour, according to a new study in the journal Plos One, out of Queen's University, Ontario.

The study revealed that those children, when asked to pick one person to help, most often choose the person who was helpful to them.

Valerie Kuhlmeier

"Children can identify helpful individuals and will be helpful toward those people," says study author Valerie Kuhlmeier (Psychology).

"As early as the age of three, children already appear to be engaging in a variant of the golden rule: 'do unto others as they have done unto you."

In the study, children were presented with a puzzle that consisted of a picture covered in such a way as to allow only a small section to be seen.

The children could not see what was in the picture but could interact with two puppets. Puppets are used in studies like this one because children treat them as peers.

One puppet announced that it knew what the picture was and proceeded to tell the child. The second puppet said that it also knew the picture, but was not going to tell.

Both puppets spoke in happy, friendly tones, and looked alike; they only differed in their willingness to provide information.

Children were able to determine which puppet was helpful and, when the one puppet needed help reaching a far-way toy or solving a puzzle of their own, the children were quick to identify which puppet had helped them and returned the favour.

"There is a growing body of research demonstrating that toddlers spontaneously help others in many situations," says Dr. Kuhlmeier, director of the Infant Cognition Group at Queen's.

"What we are also finding is that they pick out the helpers around them, even when the helpful act is as simple as teaching them something new about their world, and they return the favour with their own helpful acts."

Development of new diagnostic tools and treatments for people with rare diseases

Prof Hanns Lochmuller

A multi-million Euro initiative is bringing together researchers from across the world to develop new diagnostic tools and new treatments for people with rare diseases and to connect research data in this area on a global scale.

Rare diseases - while individually uncommon - affect one person in every 17. 80% of rare diseases have a genetic component, and they include genetic kidney diseases like nephrotic syndrome and conditions like Huntington's disease, ataxia and muscular dystrophy.

Today, the EU has announced 38 million Euro funding for research towards new treatments and for the development of a central global rare disease hub involving 70 institutions that will allow scientists to share data from their genomics research projects.

This will lead to faster diagnosis and better treatments and improve the quality of life for patients with rare diseases.

The revolution in DNA sequencing, which means an entire human genome can now be sequenced within days and for less than 10,000 Euro, has brought the hope of personalized treatments for many of these diseases a step closer.

Professor Hanns Lochmuller of Newcastle University, UK, who is leading the new rare disease hub, said: "Being able to sequence a person's entire genetic code is an important advance, particularly for people living with the many rare genetic disorders, but it has also shown us that sequencing is only the first part of the story. It doesn't replace clinical expertise - in fact, being able to combine genetic data with clinical data is more important than ever."

Read the full article here

Disabled People with Permanent Brain Injury face UK benefits 'trap'

Disabled people with permanent brain injuries are stuck in a 'revolving door' of benefits assessments and constant pressure to remove their only source of income, it has been claimed.

The UK brain injury charity Headway and Scottish personal injury lawyers Digby Brown have said many people with brain injuries are failing the government's new benefits assessments.

Many have their benefits reinstated on appeal.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWS) claim that the assessments will help people avoid a "life on benefits," which is a UK Government political term for cutting benefits.

Some people have had their benefits removed and reinstated, following appeal at the High Court, three times in the last two years.

Anyone who is claiming benefits for a disability or illness now has to have regular and humiliating "work capability assessments" under changes to the benefits system brought in by the UK London government in 2008.

Assessments are carried out by the already discredited, Atos Healthcare for the Department of Work and Pensions. Atos's performance is measured on how many people they can remove from the benefits system.

Simon Glen, Headway project co-ordinator, claimed the assessors don't ask probing questions.

He said: "Thinking problems - problems with memory or planning or concentration - can all appear hidden but they really affect your ability to live a normal life.

"If you don't remember how to get somewhere, where you are, or who people are, that really affects your life.

"The assessment process doesn't attempt to pick up these cognitive problems."

"It can be an absolute nightmare for clients," said Kathleen McMonagle, a client support manager with Digby Brown.

"Time and time again they're going for these assessments and being asked a very closed set of questions that leads to a pre-determined result (i.e. every candidate is fit for work and will have a costly and stressful fight the UK Gov dept on appeal to prove otherwise).

"Normally, a decision is made that they're fit for work. They go to appeal. They win. They go back to the Department for Work and Pensions and they're automatically referred for another grueling health assessment.

"They fail again, and we're back to square one." It's an oppressive and de-humanising process aimed at reducing benefit costs for UK Government at the expense of disabled and injured people.

Standard questions
One individual who had suffered a severe brain injury when he had an epileptic seizure, has had his benefits removed and reinstated three times in the last two years.

He explained: "They don't attempt to understand the individual effect of the brain injury, and they don't even ask you the relevant questions.

"They just ask you standard closed questions which require a 'yes' or a 'no'. It's all very worrying because then you have to go to appeal. It's not in any way fair."

Increasing Costs of Appeal
Digby Brown has seen a big increase in the number of clients who are constantly having to go to appeal to have their benefits reinstated.

It provides a welfare rights service to its existing clients and also to people referred by charities such as Headway.

Official figures suggest around 30% of decisions are being overturned but Digby Brown says 90% of clients with brain injuries are having decisions reversed.

ATOS
Atos claim that the UK Government have designed the process and the questionnaires used, which confirms the cynical manipulation of data to reach a determined outcome.

They also added that although all those who carry out work capability assessments are fully trained doctors, nurses and physiotherapists with at least three years clinical experience, they are not allowed to diverge from the process nor are they permitted their own 'opinion' on the result.

Inside information reveals that the Atos doctors and staff are also concerned at being used as dumb tools to further an oppressive UK government policy.

Work and Pensions Rhetoric
A UK Government spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions issued an empty and politically correct statement to support the government's discredited policy for the disabled and injured:

"We know that conditions affect different people in different ways and can change over time, so it's right that people should be reassessed rather than written off to life on benefits."

Children With Disabilities at Greater Risk of Violence and Subsequent Mental Ill-Health

People with disabilities are at a greater risk of being the victims of violence and of suffering mental ill health when victimized, according to research published February 20 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Hind Khalifeh and colleagues from University College London and King's College London.

A recent World Report on Disability highlighted violence as a leading cause of morbidity among disabled people.

The research published February 20 is the first to assess the extent to which people with disabilities experience different kinds of violence and the associated health and economic costs.

The authors analyzed data from the 2009-2010 British Crime Survey to estimate the odds of a person with physical or mental disabilities experiencing physical, sexual, domestic or non-domestic violence.

The survey did not include individuals with disabilities living in institutions.

On the whole, the authors found that, compared to those without any disability, the odds of being a victim of violence in the past year were three-fold higher for those with mental illness-related disability, and two-fold higher for those with physical disability

The odds were similarly raised for physical and sexual violence, and for domestic and non-domestic violence.

Their analysis also revealed that victims with disability were twice as likely to experience emotional difficulties following violence than non-disabled victims.

Across England and Wales in 2009, approximately 224,000 people with disabilities experienced violence, resulting in an excess economic burden of £1.51 billion.

The authors state that overall, the prevalence and risk of violence they estimated in their study is consistent with reports from other countries such as the US and Taiwan.

According to the authors, their research highlights the need for clinicians to be aware of the greater risks of domestic and non-domestic violence among patients with all disability types, and of the increased risk of emotional difficulties among disabled victims.

The study concludes, "Future research should evaluate the effectiveness of violence prevention programs in people with disability that address risk factors specific to this group, such as caregiver stress or communication barriers to disclosure."

50 Famously Successful People Who Are Dyslexic

Famously Successful People Who Are Dyslexic
Dyslexia is characterized as a learning disability that can impair the ability to read. Letters often appear jumbled and someone with dyslexia can feel overwhelmed by a simple page of text. It is estimated that dyslexia affects between five and 17 percent of the population. However, if you or someone you know have dyslexia, those numbers can feel far smaller.
As the famously successful people who are dyslexic will show you, dyslexics are rarely alone and have gone onto accomplish amazing and incredible feats in just about every arena imaginable. The fields of acting, music, politics, science, and even writing have all been conquered by dyslexics.
Famously Successful Actors Who Are Dyslexic
The roles may differ, but these leading men all have dyslexia in common.

Tom Cruise

1. Tom Cruise
This famous actor started off in such notable films as “Risky Business”and “Top Gun.” Other award-garnering performances have included “Jerry Maguire,”“Valkyrie,”and “A Few Good Men.” However, he is not just famous for jumping on Oprah’s couch and scientology. Diagnosed with dyslexia at age seven, he struggled to complete his academic studies and found his calling in acting.
2. Keanu Reeves
One of the most private actors in Hollywood, Keanu’s dyslexia is a bit of a myth. Born in Lebanon, he was raised in various countries before hitting it big as the goofy, loveable guy in “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.” Solid performances in films such as “Speed”and “Point Break”would go on to help him achieve cult status with a starring role in “The Matrix”franchise.
3. Robin Williams
His one-time role on the series “Happy Days”would mean more than any would ever think. It would lead to a starring role in the hit series “Mork and Mindy”and a new way the world would watch comedy. An impressive film career would follow with hits such as “Dead Poets Society,”“Good Morning, Vietnam,”“Aladdin,”and “Mrs. Doubtfire.” In 1997, Robin won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for the film “Good Will Hunting.” He has also won two Emmy Awards, four Golden Globes, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and five Grammy Awards.
4. Billy Bob Thornton
He is best known for his role in “Slingblade”in a writing, directing, and starring capacity for which he won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. Other hits include “On Deadly Ground”and “Tombstone.” Now a blues rock singer, he is one of the few of any men, dyslexic or otherwise, who can say he was married to Angelina Jolie.
5. Orlando Bloom
Whether for his role in “The Lord of the Rings”or “Pirates of the Caribbean,”he is known across the globe. Other films include “Elizabethtown”and “Kingdom of Heaven.” A native of Canterbury, England he was also recently named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.
6. Edward James Olmos
This Mexican American actor was born in Los Angeles and first earned fame for a role in the hit film “Blade Runner.” He was also famous for a supporting role in “Miami Vice.” Switching between film and television, Edward starred in “Stand and Deliver,”“Selena,”and the popular remake of the show “Battlestar Galactica.” The winner of several ALMA awards, he was also nominated for an Oscar in 1989.
7. Vince Vaughn
He often played That Guy in movies such as “Couples Retreat”and “Four Christmases.” He was first noticed for his role in “Swingers,”which would lead to films such as “Old School,”“Dodgeball,”and “Wedding Crashers.” He also enjoyed a romantic stint with Jennifer Aniston while filming “The Breakup.”
8. Henry Winkler
He joins fellow dyslexic Robin Williams in beginning his career on “Happy Days.” Best known for his role as Arthur “The Fonz”Fonzarelli on the show, a little known fact was that it was supposed to be a supporting and short lived role. With growing popularity, the character stayed on until the show’s finale and also helped coin the term “jumping the shark.”
More......
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Does Genetic Testing Stop People Having Children?

Some of mankind's most devastating inherited diseases appear to be declining, and a few have nearly disappeared, because more people are using genetic testing to decide whether to have children.

Births of babies with cystic fibrosis, Tay-Sachs and other less familiar disorders seem to have dropped since testing came into wider use, The Associated Press found from interviews with numerous geneticists and other experts and a review of the limited research available.

Many of these diseases are little known and few statistics are kept. But their effects — ranging from blood disorders to muscle decline — can be disabling and often fatal during childhood.

Now, more women are being tested as part of routine prenatal care, and many end pregnancies when diseases are found. One study in California found that prenatal screening reduced by half the number of babies born with the severest form of cystic fibrosis because many parents chose abortion.

More couples with no family history of inherited diseases are getting tested before starting families to see if they carry mutations that put a baby at risk. And a growing number are screening embryos and using only those without problem genes.

The cost of testing is falling, and the number of companies offering it is rising. A 2008 federal law banning gene-based discrimination by insurers and employers has eased fears.

Genetic testing pushes hot-button issues: abortion, embryo destruction and worries about eugenics — selective breeding to rid a population of unwanted traits. Yet it is touching a growing number of people.