A Substack post about meaningless corporate jobs is going viral. Marx predicted this 200 years ago. Here's why his critique still matters: www.strangeclarity.com/p/work-is-br...

“If the aim is to be liked by more and more people, whatever is unusual about a person gets flattened out.” Zadie Smith

With a temp of 91 and dew point at 77, outside is a sauna with slightly better air circulation. At least some of us are thriving (the hydrangeas).

People liked my autism epidemic myth-busting, so I turned it into a Substack post complete with linked research and data. Share with your friends, family, enemies—anyone telling you autism is an epidemic or a social trend. open.substack.com/pub/strangec...

💥 New post: What Your Writing Reveals About You AI can now detect autism from essays with ~90% accuracy — outperforming human experts. A breakthrough for screening, but also a privacy wake-up call. What else are our words revealing? 👉 www.strangeclarity.com/p/autism-wri... #AI #Autism #Privacy

“My day passes between logic, whistling, going for walks, and being depressed.” Ludwig Wittgenstein

Now THAT is a sick burn. Thankful for the small mercies… Wittgenstein will never read what I write.

Necessity being the mother of invention: turns out potato chips dipped in plain Greek yogurt is freaking delicious.

What do Emily Dickinson, Leonardo da Vinci, and Carl Linnaeus have in common? I have a theory. Find out here: strangeclarity.substack.com/p/could-a-dr...

Hear me out: writing is a kind of fermentation. Like cheese, sourdough starter, preserved lemon, there’s a sweet spot of maturity you can’t force. Some essential transformation takes time.

Brilliant

Executive dysfunction is a well-established aspect of autism. I had always thought of it as an ADHD thing, but it's not just. So then.. why isn’t executive dysfunction in the DSM for autism? People look there to see what autism is. But they’re getting only a narrow slice. #asd #autism

Not usually a podcast person, but I’ve been listening to Good Hang, Poehler’s new podcast during research breaks. It is the perfect palate cleanser. An ideal study break. Light but not vapid. Feel good but not saccharine. If that sounds like something you might need in your life, try it out.

I just read an absolutely ghastly takedown essay of Margaret Atwood on Substack. It would definitely warrant the Joan Didion “oh, wow” treatment but fortunately for Atwood I think she’ll remain unaware of this one. #booksky #damndaniel

“Like Elizabeth Inchbald, Mrs. Piozzi was a dutiful keeper of journals. But hers were of a different kind. A few months after her eightieth birthday, she added a new entry. In it, she listed every one of her ‘enemies outlived.’” Daaaaang. From Jane Austen’s Bookshelf by Rebecca Romney. #booksky

Jane Austen’s Bookshelf by Rebecca Romney is the best nonfiction reading experience I’ve had since Doppelgänger by Naomi Klein. Two verrrry different books but they both expertly tackle substance and critique through a highly personal lens. #booksky #nonfiction

Lit nerds and language lovers, I’ve got a question for you. What’s the best modern equivalent of common in the way older British lit uses it? I’m reading Frost in May by Antonia White (loving it – subtly humorous and charming), and I hit this line:

Important clarification 👇

Started my first Octavia Butler novel, KINDRED, and I’m loving it so far. A black woman living in 1976 San Fran keeps getting pulled back to 1815 slave country Maryland. The stakes couldn’t be higher.

I finished reading Rachel Kushner's CREATION LAKE and I'm... underwhelmed. I had high hopes. I really enjoyed Mars Room. But Sadie was a disappointingly flat character and her arc wasn't all that believable. My overwhelming feeling from the book is vague grayness. Nothing really comes to life.

Is there any word more transporting than "veranda"? I'm reading a bio of Jean Rhys who grew up in Dominica and traveled back. It's all "sea-facing veranda" and "reading on the veranda" and "lolling on the veranda" and I realize I've never used the word veranda in my life. Veranda veranda veranda!

If you’re interested in autistic representation in the media… RUN don’t walk to The Rehearsal on MAX. The show is basically an autistic amusement park.

There's this trend where governments and organizations are hiring sci-fi writers to tell them what the future might hold in store, and that got me thinking about a fundamental rule of storytelling: it must be rooted in real patterns of human behavior. strangeclarity.substack.com/p/the-root-o...

Louis Armstrong, commentator on NT culture: ‘I see friends shaking hands, saying “how do you do?” They’re really saying, “I love you.”’ Autistic people: But if that's what they mean Louis, why don’t they just say that?

Your brain evolved in a hunter-gatherer band of 50… and then got parachuted into a fluorescent-lit office job with 6 hours of daily Zoom meetings. That’s evolutionary mismatch.

An unfortunate side effect of my autism special interest is that I now spot autistic traits everywhere. And I have to muster every last fiber of willpower to avoid blurting out: "Have you looked into autism?"

I’m in search of an online nonfiction writing class that’s not focused on longform essays or commentary, but good old historic or biographical nonfiction. Like nuts and bolts for David McCulloch-type works. Does it exist? #writing #classes #bookbluesky #books

1/ Time just published an article by @alanasemuels.bsky.social listing sweeping Trump admin cuts to autism research and support, even as RFK Jr., HHS Sec, commits to finding the "cause" of autism. We need to look at what people do, not just what they say. Here’s a thread on what’s being cut.

Why should we pay attention to the genetic bases of autism? And should we be concerned about eugenics? Here's my take. This is a long one but it's vitally important.

The research I posted earlier today shows that the majority of autism cases are caused by common gene variants found in the population at large. When many of these variants are concentrated in one person, there's a presentation of autism.

The autism spectrum may have two main genetic roots: one rare and more easily detected in studies, the other inherited and more subtle. Both matter. And both are under political attack. I want to make this science clearer, before it gets erased: strangeclarity.substack.com/p/what-we-kn...

People often call autistic folks selfish, but I think it’s better viewed as a difference in priorities. Autistic people often value social bonding less, so they make the “antisocial” choice more often, on a comparative basis. It’s a different cost-benefit analysis at play.

I zeroed in on the autism budget cuts here: strangeclarity.substack.com/p/breaking-l...

Tired of explaining that there’s no autism epidemic? I got you. Here’s a list of reasons to share with friends, family, people you’re arguing with online, etc. As this admin continues to cut research funding, it’s more important than ever that we don’t chase bogus theories. 1/9

I have this thing where I’m often more interested in the artists than the art. Like I read biographies of people (Kahlo, Kierkegaard, VS Naipaul, Brontes) without engaging as much with their works. Not sure what that’s about. Anyone else do this?

Why fairies undermine RFK Jr’s insistence that we’re in an autism epidemic and that some environmental aspect of modernity is causing it. strangeclarity.substack.com/p/before-vac...

Love me some data in table format

If Renaissance masters are credited as the creators of works envisioned by them but executed by assistants, why can’t we take the same approach to AI-generated art? Especially art that reflects multiple stages of refinement and regeneration to realize a person’s vision.

An essay offering a counterpoint to the anti-AI arguments in the creative space. It’s possible to see AI as extending our human agency, not replacing it.

Good time to bump the persuasive theory that changelings were folkloric representations of autism. There’s no epidemic. We’ve always been here. awnnetwork.org/changelings-...

I’m doing a research deep dive on medieval polymath Hildegard of Bingen while listening to a modern recording of her music to help me focus. The meta-est of meta. open.spotify.com/album/5o5TCl...

A study I unpacked on Substack found high empathy can lead girls to internalize the stereotype that they’re bad at math and actually perform worse. Today, boys on average underperform girls in the classroom. If empathetic boys take that as a stereotype, the same mechanism could hurt them too.

I posted about my latest newsletter on empathy & math achievement in girls on Reddit, and I’m loving the reception and engagement with my piece. I only wish these comments were happening on Substack! Such a good discussion.

Thanks Wirecutter for your concern; and now I'm going to go panic-buy an iPhone

My latest newsletter examines a gendered theory of autism & a later study that debunked it. In the process, I learned that high empathy can harm girls in a surprising way.

Shop small: just did my Easter shopping at Fair Play Toys, an indie shop located in St Paul MN with an indie storefront. It’s charming. I got Washi tape and stickers, small charms, and little candies to fill Easter eggs. Highly recommend if you’re looking to replace the big box stores this season!

In my never-ending autism research, I came across a startling study that a surplus of empathy in girls can lead to reduced math ability... currently finishing up a research deep dive that I'll release on my Substack later this week

My latest newsletter: dispatches from a four-year-old's birthday party. For those of us who struggle with group socializing (due to autism, introversion, or something else), parenthood unlocks a whole new dimension.

When you realize Timothy Ratliff in White Lotus is the same actor as Lucius Malfoy in Harry Potter… 🤯 Jason Isaacs should get a Golden Globe

I thought White Lotus season 3 was the best yet! I never felt so emotionally invested in the characters as I did this season.