October 8, 2007
Bowling
Green, Ky. - Dr. Richard Grinker, author of “Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism,” will visit Western Kentucky University on Thursday (Oct. 11).
Dr. Grinker will present a lecture “What in the World is Autism? How Culture Shapes an Illness” from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at Grise Hall Auditorium. A community forum on autism with Dr. Grinker will begin at 4 p.m. at the Clinical Education Complex, 104 14th St.; a book signing will follow.
Dr. Grinker, a professor of anthropology at George Washington University, has a 15-year-old daughter with autism. When his daughter, Isabel, was diagnosed in 1994, autism was a strange word to most people; it was considered a rarity, occurring in about three of every 10,000 births. However, according to the Centers for Disease Control, the rate of autism today is one in every 150 births.
Dr. Grinker’s book is based on his experience as a father and his research as an anthropologist. In his book he combines the story of his family’s journey through autism with comparisons of autism awareness, autism treatment and struggles with autism faced by families in other countries. He discusses the history of the diagnosis and the evolution in the United States of the recognition and acceptance of the diagnosis of autism.
Dr. Grinker earned his A.B. degree from Grinnell College and his doctorate in anthropology from Harvard University.
More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you’d like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
For information, contact Clinical Education Complex at (270) 745-2183.
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