Living with Autism

When pioneering developmental psychologist Professor Uta Frith started her training back in the 1960s, she met a group of beautiful, bright-eyed young children who seemed completely detached from the rest of the world. It turned out they had just been given the then-new diagnosis of autism. Uta passionately wanted to know more about these children, and they inspired her to dedicate the rest of her career to studying the autistic mind. On the eve of National Autism Day, Horizon reveals how Uta's lifetime study of people with autism has transformed our understanding of this mysterious condition. In this film Uta shows how people with autism perceive and interact with the world and how, for them, another kind of reality exists. She meets people with autism who have extraordinary talents, and explains why they often fail to understand jokes. She also explores whether many of us could be just a little bit autistic.

Other episodes for this season

Monitor Me
Episode 1 - Monitor Me
Defeating the Hackers
Episode 2 - Defeating the Hackers
Dinosaurs: The Hunt for Life
Episode 3 - Dinosaurs: The Hunt for L...
Sugar v Fat
Episode 4 - Sugar v Fat
Swallowed by a Sink Hole
Episode 5 - Swallowed by a Sink Hole
Man on Mars - Mission to the Red Planet
Episode 6 - Man on Mars - Mission to...
The Power of the Placebo
Episode 7 - The Power of the Placebo
How You Really Make Decisions
Episode 8 - How You Really Make Decis...
Living with Autism
Episode 9 - Living with Autism
Where is Flight MH370?
Episode 10 - Where is Flight MH370?
What's Wrong with Our Weather?
Episode 12 - What's Wrong with Our Wea...