Temple Grandin (born August 29, 1947) is a
DoctorDoctor, as a title, originates from the Latin word which means teacher. The word is originally an agentive noun of the verb docēre . It has been used as an honored academic title for over a millennium in Europe, where it dates back to the rise of the university...
of
Animal ScienceAnimal science is described as "studying the biology of animals that are under the control of mankind". Historically, the animals studied were farm animals, but courses available now look at a far broader area to include companion animals, for example dogs, cats, horses and captive animals...
at
Colorado State UniversityColorado State University is a public institution of higher learning located in Fort Collins, Colorado in the United States. Colorado State University is the state's land grant university and the flagship campus university of the Colorado State University System. The enrollment is approximately...
, bestselling author, and consultant to the
livestockLivestock are one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food or fiber, or labor...
industry in animal behavior. As a person with
high-functioning autismHigh-functioning autism is an informal term applied to autistic people who are deemed to have "higher functioning" than other autistic people, by one or more metrics. There is no consensus as to the definition. HFA is not a recognized diagnosis in the DSM-IV-TR or the ICD-10.The amount of overlap...
herself, Grandin is also widely noted for her work in autism advocacy.
Grandin was born in Boston,
MassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. Most of its population of...
, to Richard Grandin and Eustacia Cutler. She was diagnosed as autistic in 1950. Having been labeled and diagnosed with
brain damageBrain damage, or acquired brain injury, is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells.-Causes:Brain damage may occur due to a wide range of conditions, illnesses, injuries, and as a result of iatrogenesis...
at age two, she was placed in a structured
nursery schoolA nursery school is a school for children between the ages of three and five, staffed by qualified teachers and other professionals who encourage and supervise educational play rather than simply providing childcare. It is generally considered part of early childhood education...
with what she considers to have been good teachers.
Temple Grandin (born August 29, 1947) is a
DoctorDoctor, as a title, originates from the Latin word which means teacher. The word is originally an agentive noun of the verb docēre . It has been used as an honored academic title for over a millennium in Europe, where it dates back to the rise of the university...
of
Animal ScienceAnimal science is described as "studying the biology of animals that are under the control of mankind". Historically, the animals studied were farm animals, but courses available now look at a far broader area to include companion animals, for example dogs, cats, horses and captive animals...
at
Colorado State UniversityColorado State University is a public institution of higher learning located in Fort Collins, Colorado in the United States. Colorado State University is the state's land grant university and the flagship campus university of the Colorado State University System. The enrollment is approximately...
, bestselling author, and consultant to the
livestockLivestock are one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food or fiber, or labor...
industry in animal behavior. As a person with
high-functioning autismHigh-functioning autism is an informal term applied to autistic people who are deemed to have "higher functioning" than other autistic people, by one or more metrics. There is no consensus as to the definition. HFA is not a recognized diagnosis in the DSM-IV-TR or the ICD-10.The amount of overlap...
herself, Grandin is also widely noted for her work in autism advocacy.
Early life and education
Grandin was born in Boston,
MassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. Most of its population of...
, to Richard Grandin and Eustacia Cutler. She was diagnosed as autistic in 1950. Having been labeled and diagnosed with
brain damageBrain damage, or acquired brain injury, is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells.-Causes:Brain damage may occur due to a wide range of conditions, illnesses, injuries, and as a result of iatrogenesis...
at age two, she was placed in a structured
nursery schoolA nursery school is a school for children between the ages of three and five, staffed by qualified teachers and other professionals who encourage and supervise educational play rather than simply providing childcare. It is generally considered part of early childhood education...
with what she considers to have been good teachers. Grandin's mother spoke to a doctor who suggested
speech therapy, and she hired a nanny who spent hours playing turn-based games with Grandin and her sister.
At age four, Grandin began talking, and she began making progress. She considers herself lucky to have had supportive mentors from
primary schoolA primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
onwards. However, Grandin has said that
middle schoolMiddle school or junior high school serves as a "bridge" between elementary school and high school. The terms can be used in different ways in different countries, sometimes interchangeably...
and
high schoolHigh school is the name used in some parts of the world, particularly in Scotland, Northern America and Oceania, to describe an institution that provides all or part of secondary education...
were the worst parts of her life. She was the "nerdy kid," the one whom everyone teased and picked on. She would be walking down the street and people would say "tape recorder," because she would repeat things over and over again. Grandin states that "I could laugh about it now, but back then it really hurt."
After graduating from
Hampshire Country SchoolHampshire Country School is a boarding school for gifted children in Rindge, New Hampshire, started by Henry Curtis Patey and Adelaide Walker Patey in 1948. Formerly a co-educational school, it is designed now as a residential middle school for boys with high ability who have difficulty in other...
, a boarding school for gifted children in
RindgeRindge is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,451 at the 2000 census. The estimated population was 6,331 in 2007, according to the State Data Center...
,
New HampshireNew Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian province of...
in the 1960s, Grandin went on to college. She received her bachelor's degree in
psychologyPsychology is an academic and applied discipline involving the systematic, and sometimes scientific, study of human or animal mental functions and behavior...
from
Franklin Pierce CollegeFranklin Pierce University is a four-year liberal-arts university in rural Rindge, New Hampshire, founded in 1962 and named after Franklin Pierce, the New Hampshire-born 14th President of the United States. The university has an enrollment of 1,700 students, and is located a few miles from Mount...
(also located in Rindge) in 1970, her master's degree in
animal scienceAnimal science is described as "studying the biology of animals that are under the control of mankind". Historically, the animals studied were farm animals, but courses available now look at a far broader area to include companion animals, for example dogs, cats, horses and captive animals...
from
Arizona State UniversityArizona State University is the largest public research university in the United States under a single administration, with total student enrollment of 68,064 as of fall 2009...
in 1975, and her Ph.D. in animal science from the
University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignThe University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public research university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the oldest and largest campus in the University of Illinois system....
in 1989.
Career, celebrity, advocacy
Grandin became well known after being described by
Oliver SacksOliver Wolf Sacks, CBE, FRCP , is a British neurologist residing in New York City. Sacks is the author of several bestselling books, including several collections of case studies of people with neurological disorders...
in the title narrative of his book
An Anthropologist on MarsAn Anthropologist on Mars: Seven Paradoxical Tales is a 1995 book by neurologist Oliver Sacks consisting of seven medical case histories of individuals with neurological conditions such as autism and Tourette syndrome...
; the title is derived from Grandin's description of how she feels around "
neurotypicalNeurotypical is a term that was coined in the autistic community as a label for people who are not on the autism spectrum: specifically, neurotypical people have neurological development and states that are consistent with what most people would perceive as normal, particularly in regards to their...
" people. Grandin has also been featured on major television programs, such as ABC's
Primetime Live, the
Today Show, and
Larry King LiveLarry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN. The show debuted in 1985, and is CNN's most watched program, with over one million viewers nightly.The show broadcasts from CNN's Los Angeles studios...
, and written up in
TimeTime is an American newsmagazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong. As of 2009, Time no longer publishes a Canadian advertiser edition...
magazine,
PeoplePeople is a weekly American magazine of celebrity and human-interest stories, published by Time Inc. As of 2006, it has a circulation of 3.75 million and revenue expected to top $1.5 billion. It was named "Magazine of the Year" by Advertising Age in October 2005, for excellence in editorial,...
magazine,
ForbesForbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, Forbes magazine, is published fortnightly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published fortnightly, and Business Week...
, and
The New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded in 1851 and published in New York City. The largest metropolitan newspaper in the United States, "The Gray Lady"—named for its staid appearance and style—is regarded as a national newspaper of record...
.
She was the subject of the
Horizon documentary "The Woman Who Thinks Like A Cow," first broadcast by the BBC on June 8, 2006 and
Nick News in the spring of 2006. She has also been a subject in the series
First PersonFirst person may refer to:* First-person narrative, a literary device* First-person interpretation, a museum technique* First Person , an interview-based television series created by Errol Morris...
by
Errol MorrisErrol Morris is an American Academy Award winning documentary film director. In 2003 The Guardian listed him as number seven in their list of the world's 40 best directors.-Early life and education:...
. She is the focus of a semi-biographical HBO film, currently titled
Temple Grandin Thinking in Pictures, starring
Claire DanesClaire Catherine Danes is an American actress, perhaps best known for her role as Angela Chase in the television series My So-Called Life, and for starring in films such as Romeo + Juliet , Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and Stardust...
as Grandin. The film is due for release in 2009.
Based on personal experience, Grandin advocates early intervention to address autism, and supportive teachers who can direct fixations of the autistic child in fruitful directions. She has described her
hypersensitivityThe sensitivity or insensitivity of a human, often considered with regard to a particular kind of stimulus, is the strength of the feeling it results in, in comparison with the strength of the stimulus...
to noise and other sensory stimuli. She claims she is a primarily visual thinker and has said that language is her second language. Temple attributes her success as a humane livestock facility designer to her ability to recall detail, which is a characteristic of her visual memory. Grandin compares her memory to full-length movies in her head that can be replayed at will, allowing her to notice small details that would otherwise be overlooked. She is also able to view her memories using slightly different contexts by changing the positions of the lighting and shadows. Her insight into the minds of cattle has taught her to value the changes in details to which animals are particularly sensitive, and to use her visualization skills to design thoughtful and humane animal-handling equipment. She was named a fellow of the
American Society of Agricultural and Biological EngineersThe American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers , was founded in 1907 and is based in St. Joseph, Michigan. It is an international engineering society with about 9000 members in over 100 countries...
in 2009.
Grandin is considered a philosophical leader of both the
animal welfareAnimal welfare, the health and well-being of animals, represents a systematic concern for people who believe that nonhuman animals are sentient beings that deserve consideration, respect, and care...
and
autism advocacyThe autism rights movement is a social movement that encourages autistic people, their caregivers and society to adopt a position of neurodiversity, accepting autism as a variation in functioning rather than a mental disorder to be cured...
movements. Both movements commonly cite her work regarding animal welfare,
neurologyNeurology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system. Specifically, it deals with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of disease involving the central, peripheral, and autonomic nervous systems, including their coverings, blood vessels, and all effector tissue,...
, and philosophy. She knows all too well the anxiety of feeling threatened by everything in her surroundings, and of being dismissed and feared, which motivates her in her quest to promote humane livestock handling processes. Her business website has entire sections on how to improve standards in
slaughter-People:* Anne-Marie Slaughter, Dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University* Enos Slaughter, Hall of Fame baseball player* Frank G...
plants and livestock farms. In 2004 she won a "Proggy" award, in the "visionary" category, from
People for the Ethical Treatment of AnimalsPeople for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is an animal rights organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, USA. With two million members and supporters worldwide, it claims the status of the largest animal rights group in the world...
.
One of her most important essays about animal welfare is "Animals are not Things," in which she posits that animals are technically property in our society, but the law ultimately gives them ethical protections or rights. She uses a screwdriver metaphor: a person can legally smash or grind up a screwdriver but a person cannot legally
tortureTorture, according to the United Nations Convention Against Torture, is:In addition to state-sponsored torture, individuals or groups may be motivated to inflict torture on others for similar reasons to those of a state; however, the motive for torture can also be for the sadistic gratification of...
an animal.
As a proponent of
neurodiversityNeurodiversity is an idea which asserts that atypical neurological development is a normal human difference that is to be recognized and respected as any other human variation. The concept of neurodiversity is embraced by some autistic individuals and people with related conditions...
, Grandin has expressed that she would not support a cure of the entirety of the autistic spectrum.
Personal life
Grandin says "the part of other people that has emotional relationships is not part of me" and she has neither married nor had children. She lives alone in
Fort CollinsFort Collins is a Home Rule Municipality situated on the Cache La Poudre River along the Colorado Front Range, and is the county seat and most populous city of Larimer County, Colorado, United States. Fort Collins is located north of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. With an estimated 2008...
,
ColoradoColorado is a U.S. state located in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States of America. It may also be considered to be part of the Western and Southwestern regions of the United States. Colorado entered statehood in 1876 and was nicknamed the “Centennial State”...
. Beyond her work in animal science and welfare and autism rights, her interests include horse riding, science fiction, movies, and biochemistry. She describes socializing with others as "boring" and has no interest in reading or watching entertainment about emotional issues or relationships.
She has noted in her autobiographical works that autism affects every aspect of her life. She has to wear comfortable clothes to counteract her
sensory integration dysfunctionSensory integration dysfunction is a term used to describe difficulty with sensory integration. The more current diagnostic nosology uses the term Sensory Processing Disorder to describe this condition.-As a symptom:...
and has structured her lifestyle to avoid sensory overload. She regularly takes anti-depressants and uses a squeeze-box (
hug machineA hug machine — also known as hug box, squeeze machine, or squeeze box — is a deep pressure device designed to calm hypersensitive persons, usually individuals with autism spectrum disorders...
) that she invented at the age of 18 as a form of stress relief therapy.
Despite this anxiety, she has stated that, "If I could snap my fingers and become nonautistic I would not do so. Autism is part of who I am."
Quotes by Temple Grandin
Autism is an extremely variable disorder. ~Temple Grandin
Children between the ages of five to ten years are even more variable. They are going to vary from very high functioning, capable of doing normal school work, to nonverbal who have all kinds of neurological problems.~Temple Grandin
I can remember the frustration of not being able to talk. I knew what I wanted to say, but I could not get the words out, so I would just scream.~Temple Grandin
See also
- Controversies in autism
Controversies in autism encompass the disagreement over the exact nature of autism, its causes and manifestations. Autism is considered to be a neurodevelopmental condition which manifests itself in markedly abnormal social interaction, communication ability, and patterns of interests.The cause of...
- Sociological and cultural aspects of autism
Sociological and cultural aspects of autism come into play with recognition of autism, approaches to its support services and therapies, and how autism affects how we define personhood. The autism rights movement is based on a belief that autism is a different way of being and not a disorder to be...
- Wendy Jacob
- Net Koene
Over the past decades, Netta "Net" Frederika Koene , independent linguist and philosopher, has developed a theory within the field of empirical semantics that starts from the forms of language recognized in the speaker's sequence of sounds. These include systematic choices in intonation and rhythm...
Temple Grandins ideas and linguistics
External links