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ScienceSeeker Editor's Selections: Balint's Syndrome, Autism, and Wearing Glasses

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American


Here are my Science Seeker Editor's Selections for the past week:

"It was a quiet Thursday afternoon when 'A.S.', a 68-year-old woman from a suburb of Chicago, awakened from a nap to the realization that something was terribly wrong." It isn't the start to a mystery novel, but to a scientific paper. Jordan Gaines fills in the details: Sight without seeing: Bálint's syndrome

"This week's big autism story was a genetic test able to predict with 70% accuracy whether or not a child had autism," writes Jon Brock. And, of course, the predictable breakdown between science and science reporting. "A screening measure with 70% accuracy would only be slightly better than completely useless." Find out why.


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Here's a question you've always wanted to know the answer to, and thanks to Christian Jarrett at BPS Research Digest, you can now know the answer: What do children think of people who wear glasses?

Jason G. Goldman is a science journalist based in Los Angeles. He has written about animal behavior, wildlife biology, conservation, and ecology for Scientific American, Los Angeles magazine, the Washington Post, the Guardian, the BBC, Conservation magazine, and elsewhere. He contributes to Scientific American's "60-Second Science" podcast, and is co-editor of Science Blogging: The Essential Guide (Yale University Press). He enjoys sharing his wildlife knowledge on television and on the radio, and often speaks to the public about wildlife and science communication.

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