Innovations by Neurodiverse Individuals
Welcome to Living With An Invisible Learning Challenge, where we will discuss and discover the challenges and tribes of those living with NLD, nonverbal Learning Disability and other learning challenges such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and any other invisible learning differences that one may live, may one may live with, and. I like to interview individuals as well, who live with various learning challenges. So if you know anybody, please point me their way, or if you are that individual, I would love to interview you on various topics. So please let me know. And I welcome you to this podcast.
Inventions that neurodiverse individuals have created. Neurodiverse individuals have created many inventions, including the model T invented by Henry Ford. Ford who struggled with dyslexia, the hug machine invented by Temple Grandin, a well known autistic individual, the kindling cracker invented by Alea Hutchinson who credits her dyspraxia for the invention, the farm animal handling system invented by Temple Grandin, the massaging vest invented by Ella Holanren. Hollerann, sorry, who created it to help her sister. Grandin uses AI to help people create mind maps and organize information. Other neurodivergent individuals include Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft. Richard Branson, founder of Virginia Records and Virgin Atlantic. Alan Turing, mathematician who helped shorten World War II. Niccolo Tesla, who is believed to have been neurodiverse and created the AC and DC current. The first article is titled, Thinking Outside the Box, Celebrating Neurodivergent Inventors. ", Many renowned innovators have overcome neurodiverse challenges to achieve extraordinary success. Henry Ford, likely dyslexic, revolutionized mash production through the Ford Motor Company and held over 50 patents.
Bill Gates, who managed ADHD, excuse me, transformed the computing role as Microsoft's co-founder and remains a symbol of innovation with multiple patents to his name. Suzuki, an AI expert and inventor, excels despite autism and ADHD, leading data practices at Google Cloud and collaborating with NASA. Temple Grandin, a prominent advocate for autism, developed the Hug machine, a therapeutic device for stress relief, while Aaliyah Hutchinson at just 13 invented the kindling cracker, a safe, Log splitting device inspired by her dyspraxia. These stories emphasize the incredible contributions of neurodivergent individuals and the importance of embracing neurodiversity. By fostering inclusive environments, organizations can help people harness their unique talents, driving innovation and creativity across industries. Research continues to shed light on neurodiversity Encouraging better support and representation, which benefits both individuals and society. Groups like THE actively promote diversity and inclusive inclusion, ensuring near divergent professionals thrive in their careers.”
I think that article is good because it talks about different inventions of Bill Gates, Henry Ford, Temple Grandin, Laura Suzuki, and Alaya Hutchinson,and, it also says why, it's important to include neurodiversity in companies and celebrates that.
Next one is titled Five Famous Achievements Found by Neurodivergent Individuals by Louise Conhan. Sorry, blog author, posted in Neurodiversity. "Many of history's greatest innovators overcame neurodiverse challenges to achieve groundbreaking success. Considered the father of artificial intelligence, cracked the German enigma code during World War II, saving millions of lives, despite struggling in school and being labeled antisocial, he made lasting contributions, including the creation of the Turing test to assess. machine intelligence. Similarly, Albert Einstein, known for his theory of relativity and a nobel prize in physics, faced delayed speech and struggling with spelling, possibly due to dyslexia, yet revolutionized modern physics.
Henry Ford, who founded the phone murder company, battled dyslexia by mastering repetition, enabling him to develop the assembly line and make automobiles accessible to the masses. Other influential figures also turned neurodiversity into a strength. Richard Branson, diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD, built the Virginia Group empire by leveraging his creativity and focus on customer experiences. Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft and a visionary behind the personal computing revolution, overcame dyslexia to lead one of the world's most successful technology companies. These stories highlight how embracing neurodiversity paired with supportive tools like digital whiteboards and mind mapping software can unlock the potential for transformative innovation."
So that one was basically about inventors and their inventions and how they overcome their challenges to create some pretty remarkable mentions. I mean, if Alan Turing didn't, You know, create artificial intelligence, then we wouldn't have that today. And if he didn't crack that German, igninima, sorry, code, during World War II, he would, we probably wouldn't have those millions of lives that he saved, because he developed the turing test for machine intelligence and Albert Einstein was really good for the theory of relativity and he created a light bulb, and, Henry Ford. I mean, he definitely was the, sorry, he, definitely was the creator of the assembly line and making automobiles more affordable for people. And, before I go into that, I thought I would address that this election is going to be very important, and I am not telling you how to vote. I'm just encouraging you to vote. If you are 18 years old or older, I encourage you to vote and to do a lot of research so that you are informed on what you're voting on and that you are able to do, I guess do well with the voting process and be informed on it. And I am also an ambassador for the NVLD project. And then NVLD project is trying to get the, NVLD back on the DSM, which is a manual for, mental, and learning disabilities and it helps people get accommodations in school and in, life by defining what the, disability is and how it affects you in life and, by showing examples and evidence of it and by giving it clear definition of it.
So, that's what the DSM is, and they're trying to get NVLD back in there. And in order to do that, they renamed NVLD to, Visual Spatial Disorder Sorry, developmental visual spatial disorder. I always forget the D. And, my hope is that when they do that, they will list all the symptoms because, nonverbal wasn't a very good name for it either, but neither is developmental visual spatial disorder, because it's not just developmental and visual spatial. It's also social, which nonverbal doesn't have either. So it's like, My name that I've kind of developed for, which I'm not sure if it's very good either, is Invisible Learning Spectrum Disorder. but, I don't know if that's very good either. So, anyways, oh, and this podcast is also supported by Patreon and Spotify and BetterHelp.
So, BetterHelp is a therapy company that does therapy online and remotely. I have not used BetterHelp, but I know they're very good and I have been in therapy for, eight, more than eight years. I think eight and a half. I'm not doing it currently, but I was doing it. Last year, it was very helpful for me when I was doing it online and remotely. And, it was very helpful for me. It was able to change a lot of things in my life and. Make, make my life better. So, if you want a discount for better help, I'll include the link for that. And, Patreon is a way for me to give you the episodes without any ads like I'm doing right now.
And, I give you access to transcripts as well, and to the episodes without any ads. So, if you want that, it's either 5 for the episode without any ads, or 10 with the transcript. I know that might seem like a lot of money, but I'm not really making it, not doing it for the money. I'm trying to do it so I can donate the money to the NVLD project. Or so I can do it to pay back on my website subscription fee. So, if you're willing to do that, please do. I will get the link for that as well in the description. And, I also have podcast swag. I will get the link for that as well, t-shirts and water bottles, tote bags and other pretty cool stuff.
So I will give the link for that as well. You know, with Bill Gates being the co-founder of Microsoft, he was able to, you know, create laptops and mobile computers and, so I'm sorry for the delay. But yeah, I'm not going to be able to, you know, help technology be more innovative, excuse me.So neurodiverse individuals have made remarkable contributions to innovation, overcoming challenges to create transformative in event inventions and ideas. Henry Ford revolutionized mass production with the model T despite dyslexia. Temple Grandin, an advocate for autism developed the hug machine.
I like that and the Humane Farm Animal Handling System. Alea Hutchinson, inspired by her dyspraxia, invented the cannelling cracker at just 13. And Ella Halloran created a massaging vest to help her sister. Visionaries like Alan Turning, Bill Gates, and Richard Branson used their neurodiversity perspectives to shape fields. Ranging from artificial intelligence to global business. These achievements highlight the power of embracing neurodiversity to foster creativity and innovation, benefiting individuals and society alike. And, I'm going to look up some of these inventions and see what they actually do because I haven't heard of some of them before, like the hug machine.
Let's see what that does. So Temple Grandin's hug machine, also called a squeeze machine, is a therapeutic device that applies deep pressure to the body to help calm people with sensory processing disorders. How it works. The user lies down or squats inside a V shaped enclosure and pad its sideboards. A lever activates an air cylinder that pushes the sideboards together, the machine applies pressure evenly across the body.
The benefits, it helps people with autism and sensory issues. It helps people to learn how to use their hands. It helps people, is tolerant of touch, reduces anxiety and nervousness, helps people learn to self soothe. How it was invented. Granin invented the Hug machine in 1965 at age 18 to help her with her own symptoms of autism.The idea came to her while observing cattle shoots on her aunt's farm. Studies have shown That deep touch pressure can be beneficial for children with autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. Some programs have used the hug box to help children and adults with autism. Oh, okay. Let's see, what does the let's see what the kindling cracker does.
So that one, when you are cold, you can never get the fire going fast enough. Lots of little kindling helps to, helps fire to start quickly, and this is why I invented the kindling cracker, firewood splitter, that And to make sure my mom kept all her fingers and limbs intact. Okay, that makes sense. What was the other one I was going to look up?
Let's look up the Turing test as well. So the Turing test, also known as the intimidation game, is a way to measure a machine's intelligence by testing if it can convince a human That it's human. Okay. Alan Turney proposed the test in his 1950 paper Computing Machinery and Intelligence. How does the Turney test work? A human Inter, inter, inter grader, sorry.
Interrogator asks a series of questions to a hidden computer and an unseen person. The computer tries to convince the interrogator that it's human. The interrogator tries to determine which of the two is the human. Ah, okay. So the micing is trying to convince the human that it's human and then. The human has to determine which one is human because there's an insane person. Okay, that makes sense. What does the test measure? The training test measures a machine's ability to understand and generate human language. Handle the manipulate, handle and manipulate knowledge and provide contextually relevant responses. Why is the Turing test important? The Turing test is considered a basis for artificial intelligence.
AI is the ability of a computer to perform tasks that are usually associated with human intelligence, such as reasoning. Has a computer ever passed the Turing test? No, no computer has ever passed the Turing test. Heh heh. Okay. I guess it's a good test then. Alright, so I hope that episode was informative for you. It was a short one, but sometimes short is good. Sorry, I was struggling to record this because of the migraine, but I think I got it done. I hope that episode was Well worth it for you to listen to and that you were able to take something away from it even if you don't have a learning challenge or if you do I hope it was extra worthwhile for you so that you are able to learn something and maybe journal and jot down some few takeaways so that the next time you experience that challenge yourself, you're able to, learn how to breathe through it more easily or maybe not have a meltdown or a tantrum or be able to take away more learning from it and not make the same mistake twice, you know, and, be able to also help somebody else go through that experience if you have a friend who has a learning difference and you are neurotypical. So I hope you will be able to have those experiences in your life now that you have listened to this episode.
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