At one time or another we have probably all heard the names Sir Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein and/or Nikola Tesla in our academic careers. For the few who didn't pay much attention examining the work of these men, all three were practically "rock stars" in their respective fields of physics and engineering. What then about names like Vincent van Gogh, Mark Twain, Mozart and Bill Gates? What might three men who helped shape our understanding of the world have in common with a post-impressionist painter, an American author, a distinguished composer and a multibillionaire? The answer…autism. Through diagnosis and retrospective research, it was hypothesized that all seven men had autism or exhibited symptoms and behavioral traits of autistic individuals. Truth be told, when I first chose to explore autism, I thought it would be an easier psychological issue to discuss than bi-polar disorder or schizophrenia. Only after studying autism for about an hour did I quickly realize that this wasn't the case. Autism may very well be one of the most complex and examined disorders, as it is a disorder that raises so many questions but provides very few answers. So what is it exactly? What are the causes and symptoms? Is there a cure? How many people are affected by autism? Is it adequately represented in the mainstream media? In this article, I will do my best to address these questions and hopefully leave the reader with a better understanding of this disorder. First of all, autism is not a form of mental retardation, despite what the general public might have you believe. . In reality, autism, which was first described by Kanner (1943) in his study of 11 children with “autistic disorders of affective contact” (USA: American Psychological Ass... half of the document... genetics and environment play a role. Researchers have identified a number of genes associated with the disorder. Studies in people with ASD have found irregularities in several brain regions. Other studies suggest that people with autism have abnormal levels of serotonin or other brain neurotransmitters These abnormalities suggest that autism may result from disruption of normal brain development in the early stages of fetal development caused by defects in genes that control brain growth and regulation of how brain cells communicate with each other With so many answers as to what causes autism, it makes treating autism particularly difficult since there is currently no standard “solution.” In fact, there are several types of therapy that can help minimize the symptoms of ASD, and the effectiveness of each program differs for each individual.