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http://chronicle.com/weekly/v52/i08/08a01001.htm


Relieved by explanation


Dawn Prince-Hughes took a different approach to her diagnosis of autism five years ago at age 36. The adjunct professor of anthropology at Western Washington University says she was relieved to have a name for her differences. It allowed her to explain to others why she isn't any good at small talk and why, when she
enters a room, she looks at everything, not just the people.

Ms. Prince-Hughes says that despite her difficulties, her colleagues know she has something unique to offer. In fact, she says, having autism makes her a better anthropologist. Social norms that most people take for granted never came naturally for her, so she can see things with a different eye, an advantage in her line of work.

She wasn't always so at ease. As a student, she says, she never fit in, and dropped out of high school when she was a sophomore. She was homeless for five years and worked as an exotic dancer for three. A visit to the zoo changed everything. Ms. Prince-Hughes observed the gorillas, and they taught her how to
connect with others, she says, something she hadn't previously understood. The gorillas became the subject of her college studies and her professional research. Last year she published a memoir.