The Science of Samuel

Researchers have started developing theories about structural problems in the brain that result in autism. My theory is that eventually they'll find specific processing difficulties that aren't necessarily visible. (Scans of Samuel's brain look normal according to the neurologist that reviewed the images last year.)

I'm not talking sensory processing disorder per se, although that may well be a major symptom. Instead, Samuel seems to have a delay in language he hears -- but not consistently. And he often speaks like someone for whom English is a second language.

The "delay" is easy enough to describe -- I tell him something and sometimes he doesn't respond or react until a few moments go by. When I'm reading to him,  he'll let several sentences go by, then ask about a word that he doesn't know.

Speech-generation delays are harder to explain. Often while talking, we form ideas in our heads and the words just seem to be ready to express those ideas. Every once in a while, we'll forget a name, or even a word that we don't use often -- then we see how the process bogs down while our brain examines and rejects numerous possibilities. What is normally instantaneous is suddenly much slower and requires greater "processing" power.

Think about being in a country that speaks something other than your native language. You spend a lot more time trying sifting through the words you need to generate the idea you need to get across. Or you stretch what you do know to cover a concept for which you have no word -- or you apply what you think is a logical extension from what you already know.

I think it is this logic and "stretching" that occurs every time Samuel talks. If you can remember something why can't you unmember it? That's a perfectly logical use of English prefixes, but if you've ever tried to follow instructions from a manufacturer who uses software for a "logical" translation, you may end up with gibberish. Sadly, that's the threshold Samuel faces as he tries to express himself.

Oddly, this is in a child that has a remarkable memory. The problem appears to be in linking to that memory verbally. Something in his brain somehow doesn't fire quite right when he's hearing words or trying to generate his own. I'm convinced he uses the strong areas of his brain (like his memory) to try to compensate. This leads to delays or frustration.

This has one confirmation. Many spectrum kids, including Samuel script (simply reciting favorite lines from movies) or display echolalia (by parroting back whatever you've said or asked). These resources are in the memory and can simply be thrown out effortlessly without all the trouble of correctly generating the words to match the idea to be expressed.

This is a scientific sample of exactly one -- anecdotal at best. But I'd be willing to bet its a good description of what's going on with my Samuel.