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Autistic kids learn to smile with Ali G's cousin
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by Paul Conneally | January 18, 2009 at 03:47 am
285 views | 22 Recommendations | 5 comments
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Simon Baron-Cohen is the cousin of Ali G and Borat creator Sacha Baron-Cohen and is the brainchild behind a new DVD which seeks to help autistic kids learn to smile.
Baron-Cohen is Professor of Developmental Psychopathology at the University of Cambridge and Fellow at Trinity College, Cambridge and has been working in the field of autism for some years now trying to find ways to unlock the emotional interaction skills that blight children and adults suffering from autism.
The DVD uses vehicles with faces on them that show their emotions as they interact with the world in many ways not unlike Thomas the Tank Engine DVDs.
The DVD is funded by the British Government but experts are keen to point out that just plonking autistic kids in front of the TV is unlikely to help build emotional literacy although the DVD could be a tool towards doing so.
"It was revelatory," his mother, Caron Freeborn told AP Television News in Cambridge, England. Before watching the video, Jude didn't understand what emotions were and never noticed the expressions on people's faces, even those of his parents or younger brother.
Jenny's adventures are part of a DVD for autistic children released this week in the United States called The Transporters.
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Paul Conneally
Loughborough, Leicestershire, United Kingdom
Recommendations (22)
Mary Richard
Toronto, Canada
Jordan Yerman
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Uwe Paschen
Narita, Chiba, Japan
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (5)
at 05:37 on January 18th, 2009
Good story and good read Lotus, Thanks
at 05:38 on January 18th, 2009
Good story and good read Lotus, Thanks
Weird Most recommend keeps disappearing, only to reappear after I submit a comment, I would contact Jordan on this Lotus
at 05:48 on January 18th, 2009
Interesting, I would not mind finding out more about this DVD.
at 08:00 on January 18th, 2009
What is it with that family and making people smile? It must be genetic.
at 08:58 on January 18th, 2009
I first saw Simon on the BBC and said to a friend 'hey his chins like Borat's' and then his name came up...