New autism study (Curious what u all think)

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http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/281463.php

I have heard of this before and I think it does have a basis to it. Autistics do have traits such as inability to block out background noise, metldowns, hypersensitivities etc. This excessive dentritic concentration would fit in with that.

Yeah, I remember reading something about this months ago. Sounds like it could have some merit to it for sure. Not so sure I'd want to be in any sort of drug test group, though.. seems a bit iffy, you know, pruning the brain and all lol

I wonder what the side effects are for the drug that might not make it suitable for human use. Also just curious about other effects anything to block this protein aside from helping the brain discard unwanted matter. Also would changes be permanent, like no going back if you don't like the effects.

Also I have noticed while i hate sensory over-stimulation I also notice sometimes I am more sensitive to some things I enjoy. So I'd be worried about losing some positive aspects not sure how I'd react to that.

If the drug was administered to NTs, would it trim down their synaptic branches to the point where they would exist in a semi-conscious, zombie-like state?

Scary stuff.

Honestly it sounds a it scary to me.

I'm not sure about the drugs part.

While that theory actually does make a lot of sense, taking any sort of drug that would result in "pruning unwanted synapses" sounds like it could go very badly...

I wonder about the background of the study.....why funded it and why? Because it could just be funded by, and therefore biased positively, towards the drug and the company that makes it.
I don't trust big Pharma at all.

In Freefall (the webcomic by Mark Stanley), AIs are infected with a neural pruning program called "Gardener in the Dark", a sort of planned obsolescence for robots that prunes synaptic connections in the brains of self-aware robots, and reverts them to a non-self-aware state of utter subservience to humans.

Imagine what society would be like if the "One Percenters" doped our water supplies with this drug (especially in places like Los Angeles, California and Ferguson, Missouri), while they sipped Perrier and champagne. Very soon, they would not have to worry about us huddled masses demanding fair wages and legal justice from them.

"Big pharma" freed me from soul crushing anxiety and allowed me to find joy in life. What your talking about is just marketing. The chemicals themselves are extremely important advancements in science specifically engineered to help people with mental illness.

I trust these medications to defeat anxiety and they really do a wonderful job. I can't think of a reason NOT to trust "big pharma" and all the science being done.

I agree. The theory is very plausible but "pruning unwanted synapses" .....what could possibly go wrong

You don't have to trust 'big pharma' which is an atrocity of corporatism, to acknowledge there are useful/drugs chemicals to help treat symptoms that work for various people. The problem is a lot of big phamacutical companies sort of push their drugs so you end up having drugs that may not be best for an individual prescribed as its about what brings in profit rather than making sure its the right medication for the individual. Of course drugs are useful and can be used to treat things...but when there is a major profit motive that can corrupt things so no way I'd just blindly trust 'big pharma' seems like a rather stupid thing to do.

I take valium for anxiety and have trazodone for sleep, and those don't always work the greatest but better to have them than not I suppose.

Oh I don't know perhaps one could get prescribed too high of a dosage and it would prune wanted synapses, or maybe it would just do that anyways...the article does not go into detail about whether the drug would only prune unwanted ones, is there even any way for them to ensure it would leave the healthy synapses alone?

thanks for linking this

It's a very good question... I don't know how it could distinguish. When I read the article the first thing that crossed my mind was "chemical lobotomy".