Autism and the blooming brain: My new column in Discover

In my new column for Discover, I write about Eric Courchesne, a neuroscientist at the University of California at San Diego. Courchesne survived childhood polio, went on to become a champion gymnast, and then turned his attention to another nervous system disorder: autism. Courchesne is one of the first researchers to find anatomical differences in the brains of people with and without autism. He believes his findings point to autism's beginnings before birth, and perhaps even to new ways to treat it. Check it out.[Image: SFARI]