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Interview with the Creator of BitTorrent
brokencomputer writes "There is an interesting interview with Bram Cohen, the creator of BitTorrent, on my site, WrongPlanet.net. Because there is already a plethora of information about BitTorrent, this interview takes a different approach and focuses entirely on Cohen's Asperger's Syndrome. In addition to being interesting to anyone interested in BitTorrent, Cohen's story is extremely inspirational to those of us who do have Asperger's, and will probably be so even to those without Asperger's Syndrome."
There was a book I read recently which was written as if narrated by a teenage boy with Asperger's Syndrome.
It's called "The curious incident of the dog in the night time" and I recommend it to anyone who would like to learn a little more about Asperger's, or, just feels like an entertaining and moving read.
But that article seems to be sort of lacking. It seems rather short, has a few typos and errors, and doesn't really delve into anything technical about BitTorrent (admitted by the summary). Sure now the people who RTFA'd probably are a little more understanding of a certain syndrome, or are intrigued by the fact that somebody with the syndrome can achieve great things (the American Dream), but I really would have liked to see some deeper thought on the issues. Deeper sociological questions, perhaps more depth on the influence of the (lack of) college, or even his views on the future of any given tech sector or his other interests. I suppose that this all lies at the fault of the interviewer, and not the interviewee.
According to the Internet Movie Database, Steven Spielberg also suffers from Aspeger Syndrome.
A while back I was talking to this bloke who's young son has Aspberger's, and when they would be sitting watching tv and two or three ads would go by and then suddenly he would jump up and run out of the room screaming. Almost invariably one of a series of quite graphic government sponsored [TAC] road safety ads would then appear. Seems he had the ability to recognise the combination of the types of ads that immediately preceded the scary ones.
I was diagnosed with ADHD in the 4th grade. I was put on Ridilin, then switched to Wellbutrin, and then to Concerta and Strattera.
Then they diagnosed me with Aspergers Syndrome. But when I got into high school, I realized that I was not and spent a year trying to get the medical community to reavulate me. And they did.
Rediagnosed as "Deoressive and psychotic" I had such a low opinion of myself I was on the verge of suicide. there is nothing more detrimental to a person then to tell them they are basically insane.
In the meantime I was experimenting with myself and found out I was, to put it lightly, a transexual. So now I have Gender Dysophoria to throw onto the heap, but that I can live with because I myself believe it.
Two weeks ago I went under intensive treatment and testing by proffesional to see if I truly was insane.
The consensus? Severe Depression CAUSED BY Gender Dysphoria. Nothing else. I am no longer on any medecine and am instead doing therapy sessions twice a week.
Not a major success story but for me, I've managed to pick up the pieces of my life and move on.
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...is to have everyone assume that you were able to create this great original application because you have Asperger's, as opposed to crediting your creativity or perseverence.
I object to that article, and to the next reply.
actually, in some schools in my area, being diagnosed with a learning disability is quite popular. The diagnoses peak around sophomore year. Coincidentally, the College Board allows students with learning disabilities unlimited time on the SATs without being noted as such on the score.
I can tell you from personal experience it is a hell of a lot worse.
Here is the clinical criteria for it http://www.aspergers.com/aspcrit.htm Try effects like:
- inability to cope with stimulus (e.g. music on, people around)
- broken marriages
- constant problem with authority (could be boss, police or others)
Can give lots more but you probably get the idea especially if you read the URL.
Ian
I modded it insightful, because it is deserving of such; or troll if it's untrue.
I am the one of the oldest in my family (including cousins and such). I was diagnosed with a learing disability in grade school. They put me in a special class with the dumb kids (no disrespect intended). I was a poor school without the resources to even come close to diagnosing me.
In middle school and high school they told me I had ADD and put me on Ridilin. It worked. Although looking back on it, it was probably the side effects of the drug, not the intended result really.
I'm years out of school now. But I have a younger sister that is emotionally impaired. She has gone through much more extensive study than they ever gave me. After years of generalizations one doc finally came up with Asperger's Syndrome.
About the same time several other people on my Dad's side of the family were diagnosed with simial problems. Two were even directly diagnosed with Aspergers. It's genetic, skipping most of the family members. And when it does hit, the severity can vary widely.
I am a rather mild case. My sister is quite sever. I have two 2nd cousins that are sever too. And a few more family members who obviously have some form of it.
My only wish is to educate the teachers in our school systems now. So they can regonize and adapt to children who have these problems. Let me tell you first hand that generally Aspergers makes school (and work) hell.
It's not all negative though (mostly it is). Hyperfocus is one side effect of both Aspergers and ADD (ADHD too). Hyperfocus is being interested in something so far as to ignore external stimilus . You don't feel hungry, tired, don't care about the time, or mild concequences of your actions. You are focused, almost to a fault.
An insanely quick overview for the ignorant:
Aspergers is a type of Autism. General characteristics include social problems (no/few friends), disintrest in common things (sports for instance), and extreme intrest in other things (science usually). Commonly intrests are centered around scientific rules (systems like electricity, or computers, mechanical systems). Sometimes abstract rules are the intrest, commonly relationships (Soap Operas, and talk shows). See the Wiwipedia for much more information.
FreeBSD: The Power to Serve!
Interesting point. I remember my mom always tried to win arguments with me when I was a kid by the "stop it! You're just being argumentative. Remember the psychologist said you have... Oppositional Defiance Disorder? You're arguing because you have ODD." argument. When, looking back, she was indeed wrong on many arguments and I was indeed clearly in the right. Parents really don't like to be called out that they're wrong when they are indeed wrong, and even if ODD is real, it's certainly abused by some to the point of being a condescending form of a lame cop-out by parental figures during arguments, rather than owning their kids with logic and reason. And then we wonder why some people grow up into adult life with below-average reasoning skills.
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I knew someone with AS. He went to college and was in our little circle. I even lived with him for a short time. If I had to guess I'd say he had mildly severe AS. He violated people's space all the time. He'd want to know what you were eating and would have his face an inch or so from your food. Saying hi was a in your face experience.
The kid was smart, but not super smart. He'd try so hard but would end up jumbling everything he learned. Confusing one fact with another. His problem was he'd believe anything anyone said to him. He definitely had preoccupations. Spaghetti was the main course every dinner. Despite his anability to function around many people, we liked him the same. Always had some great new fact for us.
It's not a guarantee that they'll have a higher IQ. It's not an east thing to deal with. It could reach the point of self confusion. It's not fun when you work on a weather map, draw everything in. It's full of high end stuff, but it's all wrong, or doesn't make sense. I feel sorry because it may not have any possitive sides for some.
For example during Ghostbusters I could somehow feel that confusing anti-drug ad with skateboarders coming up.
You mean "Be An Original" listed here?
Actually, I wish they'd run some anti-drug PSAs against Lilly, Pfizer, GSK, Novartis, etc.
What would you say is quality 'X' that differentiates Asperger's Syndrome people from non-AS people who have many of the common AS-indicative qualities?
Every time I hear AS described -- difficulty in social situations, sometimes unintentionally rude, intelligent but horrible at academia, etc -- I think, "well that describes a lot of people who don't necessarily have AS". What would you say would be THE defining quality, if you had to pick one, that defines (beyond a shadow of a doubt) a person with AS from people who are just merely shy/smart-but-reserved/etc?
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:-D
tell me the feeling that face has.
when people say a rise in autism, do they not mean a rise in the classical autistic disorder and not the higher functioning parts of the autistic spectrum?
I am the Alpha and the Omega-3
Medication? Certainly not everybody needs medication, the most common need is to treat anxiety and depression brought on by unrelenting mistreatment by peers, or by parents and doctors not accepting anything less than complete 100% normality, and not letting you do things like stim to relieve stress or indulge a perserveration. Not everybody needs medication, my daughter and I don't.
A psychologist can be helpful, as they usually know how to get you the resources you need to learn how to read others, as well as appropriate responses to social rituals. Kind of like businesspeople learn how not to make cultural asses of themselves in Japan.
Above average intelligence, obsession with a single subject area, often a form of transportation... encyclopedic knowledge of that subject... delayed social skills...
This describes at least half the people I know, and 90% of the ones you meet at a Star Trek con. [I mean, not that I've ever been to one, I'm just you know, assuming]
That is why Asperger's is categorized as a form of High Functioning autism, not to be confused under any circumstances with full-blown autism. Your knee-jerk reaction and confusion of the two conditions suggests that you really don't know that much about Asperger's, else you would STFU and educate yourself before jumping down people's throats for merely suggesting that they or someone they know might have this disorder. I know I have AS, and after all of the research I have done, I don't really need a so-called expert to corroborate it, since I am not interested in medicating myself into a stupor again, the way I did when I was mis-diagnosed with ADD and put on every pharmaceutical in the book by three different pill-pushing doctors.
People who are actually suffering from Asperger's are blind, in a way. They can honestly not perceive things like sarcasm, emotional stress, etc. There is a part of the world they cannot perceive. This is not the same as the geek who is frustrated by his dating difficulties. This is a real, bona-fide disability, which is relatively rare and quite difficult to overcome.
Perhaps not as rare as you think, and it does occur along a wide range of severities. If a person reads the diagnostic criteria in the DSM and all kinds of bells and lights go off in their head and they say, "This is me!" perhaps there really is a connection beyond what you dismiss as "pop psychology".
All we need to do is work hard at being better at it, practice, and want to get better.
Been "working hard" at "being better at it" all my life, but still have the symptoms, every last fucking one of them. But thanks, Sigmund. Having you tell me it's all in my head makes me feel so much better. As Daniel Day Lewis said in My Left Foot, "I don't need a fucking psychology lesson, I just need a fucking light."
The diseases are very real and can cleary be seen. The problem is that people use these diseases as crutches. By that I mean while there is a small percentage of people who do have to deal with these very serious diseases, there are a plethora of people who get misdiagnosed through incompetent or unqualified medical personnel or by exaggerating their own symptoms. They use this as an excuse as to why they, their kids, or whatever aren't doing well in school, work, socially, what have you.
I can see why someone might get the impression that these diseases are somehow fake or a product of societies narrow view on what's considered 'normal' but I can assure you they're not.
I like a post somewhere in this thread where the author revealed some sound advice he got from his psychiatrist and at the end of the post he says he won't tell anyone if he's autistic or not. People don't go around saying, "I have AIDS" or, "I have Crohn's disease." I've known many people here at university who will happily claim they have ADHD and blame a myriad of problems on in, including poor marks. I'm sure a select few do have it, in fact I had a class with someone who had Asperger's syndrome this semester. The point is way too many people happily use the ease of a misdiagnoses as an excuse for doing poorly while the people who really do have these diseases and disorders really do suffer from what they have and from the bad reputation they get because of poseurs.
I think a large percentage of us can relate to what this guy is about...Trouble making friends, hates school, college dropout, awkward in social situations. Hell I thought I was reading my own interview...Well, except that I'm a lousy programmer.
:)
Anyway, I got to thinking, is the majority of cases of this so called "Asperger's Syndrome" really a "disease", or simply a consequence of being an introvert? Practice makes perfect, and if you like being by yourself and don't enjoy talking to people, then of course you are not going to be very good in social situations. That explains problems making friends and problems with social situations.
As such, what is there to do by yourself besides partake in intellectual pursuits? School is the devil for those who truly love to learn. "Here's a piece of paper, now regurgitate all of the pointless information you have learned this year with a reasonable percentage of accuracy and guess what, you go to the next level. Yay!"
I'm not saying that Asperger's Syndrome does not exist, but I think it's over diagnosed just like most other conditions out there that gives drug companies an excuse to sell their wares. Only in the most extreme cases where someone cannot function should treatment be required. Other than that, it does not to be "cured". IMHO, mild "cases" are little more than a personality trait.
Read Bram's interview. Looks to me like he was able to figure out how to read people in social situations and wishes he could go back in time and smack his previous self around a little. I think he got over his problem (look, he's got a kid to prove it!) the same way I did...By being in situations that require social interaction. Being a consultant, this happens a lot. When I first started off as a tech monkey visiting customers on site or deal with them directly, I got reports from my boss that they thought I was a pretty weird dude. Eventually I learned that the customer does not want to hear how many transistors a Pentium has when they want Windows working again. Anyway, I think I'm able to handle people better today, and if my customers still think I'm weird, at least they aren't telling anyone about it.
-R
I feel for you. A girl (and very good friend of mine) I know has Asberger's. I didn't take it that seriously because she seemed almost completely normal. Then one night we went to a party, and about an hour in, she sat down on the floor against the wall and started crying. About three minutes later she stopped and got up as if nothing was wrong, and kept telling me she was fine, she was fine, over and over. Over the weeks, similar actions manifested. Completely illogical environmental (temperature, lighting) preferences. Wandering around at night. Honestly, it's frightening.
I've since come to terms with it all, but it took me a while. Recognising that Asberger's is simply a part of who someone is can help you accept its presence in the life of someone you love. I don't mean to be pessimistic, but in all forms of autism, it's hard. Really hard. Expect the most unpredictable and unexplainable behaviour from your son. Even has he grows older, he'll develop more intricate ways of communicating and interacting with people around him, but at the same time, develop more engrained and intricate habits that may very well be with him for life. I highly recommend group support sessions. It's easier knowing you aren't alone in this.
Take off every sig. For great justice.
I know exactly what you're talking about. I get that all the time. For myself at least, it can easily be explained by coincidence the the brains insane ability to detect patterns.
The thing is, these sorts of coincidences are likely to happen all the time, its just the way the world is, can't be any other way. However, not everyone will notice them. I find I notice them more often. Just by NOTICING it, it makes you feel like the two matching events are somehow special, if you get what I mean.
As for situations spanning just a few seconds, often it can be due to the way the brain treats time. I sometimes feel like I was thinking about the word someone says just a few seconds before, but probably what happened was my brain changed my memory and got the times mixed up.(Same sort of thing when you 'wake up JUST before the alarm clock goes off'. What actually happens is you are woken by the alarm clock, but your sense of time is distorted, and your brain gets confused).
Normally it IS just coincidence though. I believe if you studied it a bit more, you'll find you can never actually -predict- something, you can only match up the two events AFTER they have both occured. Since the brain is hard-wired for pattern recognition, it can make you think you predicted it earlier, when infact there were hundreds of other thoughts also going on inside your head, which didn't end up with another matching event, but you're brain ignores those BECAUSE they don't match.)
Sorry if that didn't make sense, but hopefully you get the general gist of what I'm saying.
printf("Goodbye cruel world!\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b");
Don't know this for certain but based on the info i read on Asperger's Syndrome (focused intelligence in one area, inability to read body language in others- social akwardness), doesn't it seem like Chloe from 24 is the hollywood version of Asperger's?