The world needs all kinds of minds | Temple Grandin

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Published 2010-02-24
www.ted.com/ Autism activist Temple Grandin talks about how her mind works -- sharing her ability to "think in pictures," which helps her solve problems that neurotypical brains might miss. She makes the case that the world needs people on the autism spectrum: visual thinkers, pattern thinkers, verbal thinkers, and all kinds of smart geeky kids.

TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Featured speakers have included Al Gore on climate change, Philippe Starck on design, Jill Bolte Taylor on observing her own stroke, Nicholas Negroponte on One Laptop per Child, Jane Goodall on chimpanzees, Bill Gates on malaria and mosquitoes, Pattie Maes on the "Sixth Sense" wearable tech, and "Lost" producer JJ Abrams on the allure of mystery. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, and TEDTalks cover these topics as well as science, business, development and the arts. Closed captions and translated subtitles in a variety of languages are now available on TED.com, at www.ted.com/translate. Watch a highlight reel of the Top 10 TEDTalks at www.ted.com/index.php/talks/top10

All Comments (21)
  • @nprpodcasts
    Enjoying this talk? You'll love the brand new TED Radio Hour series – Mind, Body, Spirit. Hear TED speakers share their eye-opening ideas on how we think, move, and feel. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2TjQf2riraLkqqFGxK65JI-leCAxm1eD
  • @jasongrady8590
    We need her to reinvent our public education system. This woman is an absolute gem.
  • @Hadassah7000
    I love how she stands up for the weak, whether it's kids or animals. She is a real cowgirl!!
  • @stefania5882
    I appreciate this so much. Using the different kinds of minds. I have ADHD and growing up, I was the "bad kid" in class. It wasn't until my grade 11 law class that my parents got an outstanding "review" of me. The teacher kept saying he wanted to clone me and make all his students like me and my parents were like "uuummm I think you're talking about the wrong student." What so many people don't understand is that although people with ADHD find it hard to focus on things they don't care about, we hyperfocus on things that interest us. Every part of our being goes into what we do like. But the education system doesn't care about that. Why was I failing math but getting 98 in law. The media and lack of education makes kids with ADHD seem like we just "don't pay attention." But that's not it at all. The neurons in our brains fire off differently, just like those of autistic people and how Temple showed.
  • @10j5e22v26z
    Every time I watch this lecture I'm reminded of how much better I could've been raised and just how terribly I was raised. I'm glad this information is being brought to the public.
  • @lordshardik
    One of those rare times when a movie gets made about someone and the person loves it without reservation.
  • She has exceptional social skills. So inspiring to see the progress she has made. A perfect example of neuroplasticity. Humans don't necessarily have to be total victims of genes and environment - we have the ability to think, self-reflect, and modify our behavior. 
  • @claresearle9941
    With tears in my eyes, I sincerely thank you for all the amazing work u r doing in sharing your knowledge and insight with the world. As the mother of an autistic girl, you have given me more hope and information than any other. Thank you, and God bless you.
  • @emmacat3202
    I am Autistic and proud! I don't need a cure, thank you very much. :)
  • @rain360
    "They're not ending up in Silicon Valley, where they belong." That statement is so true. My little brother has Aspergers syndrome and he wants to go into the technical field.
  • I completely slipped through the cracks as a child with obsessive interest in video games and computers. The school system considered this nonsense, and never encouraged my learning causing me to have severe PTSD about school all through my 20s. Got diagnosed with Aspergers a few years ago and now I'm designing an extremely complex online video game. I don't really know how much the school system has changed, but I pray that no other spectrum child has to go through that same torture that I did.
  • @josephagar1005
    I just saw her movie so I decided to watch this. Both the movie and the person are amazing.
  • @xChemicalCobrax
    She is so wildly intelligent. A real inspiration, I love her!
  • We need someone like her to change the world to be a better place.Very inspiring speech
  • @j.hindle9243
    I absolutely love her. My counsellor recommended that I look up Temple, and I'm so glad that she did. Honestly, she needs to help make very significant changes to the education system.
  • I'm autistic and was diagnosed as an adult. Something that I've seen a lot is that neurotypical people are SO fixated on the question of whether their autistic child really loves them or not and I cannot stress enough that this is not important to be focused on. Obviously we aren't going to show love in the way you expect us to- that might be in the form of physical affection like hugs and kisses or even verbalizing that we love you. I feel like for people to fixate on that sends a message that the only thing that matters is that we appear to love you, because you would know if you took the time to learn how the autistic person in your life shows their love. The concept of love languages is trendy right now and I wish people would make that connection to neurodivergent people, if "normal" people show their love in different ways such as gift-giving or affirmation, then you need to accept the ways we show it too. For example, I like doing tasks like cleaning or running errands when I know someone is stressed or behind on those things. I like to share food and be a helpful person. Saying "I love you" is extremely uncomfortable for me for most people in my life, even family that I do care about. The more I'm forced to say it, the less it feels genuine to me.
  • This is such a comforting talk. I have 3 close to severe autistic siblings and I was finding it so hard to understand why they are the way they are because I felt no closeness to them and it was discouraging to me that I lived with them all my life but took so long to find some level of understanding. Thank you, Temple Grandin.
  • @WiddoMouse
    I absolutely love this woman.  I listen to as many of her talks as I can find.  Her life is so valuable.  Had she not been directed toward things that she found interesting, this world would have missed so much.  Equally important, she was directed toward things that she didn't find interesting.....table manners, conversation, cooking for herself, etc.  She has made a positive impact in today's world but also in tomorrow's world.  She is teaching parents of autistic children to make them fit in.  Once they fit in, there is no end to what they can do.  God bless her.
  • @davidsharif2696
    I watched this TED TALK in my English Class, and saw the movie when I was young with my parents. I really have a lot of respect for Temple Grandin and Claire Danes who played Temple Grandin in the movie.