Advancing knowledge of human development, developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases.
Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, often have significant delays with expanding their vocabularies and other language skills compared to typically developing children. Yet, “we know very little about [language] processing in [children with ASD] or the mechanisms underlying it,” says Susan Ellis Weismer, a professor of communication sciences and disorders at UW-Madison …
The environments children are in, including how much and what kinds of stimulation they are exposed to, influence what and how they learn. One important task for children is zeroing in on the information that’s relevant to what they’re learning and ignoring what isn’t. A new study has found that the presence of background noise …
Luke Holzem sped from door to door, his orange t-shirt transforming him into a bright blur of 6-year-old energy. His grey-green eyes sparkled and he looked expectantly at his mother, Shannon. The question was clear: which of the numbered doors did he have to vanquish to get to his appointment at the Communication Aids & …
It has been said that communication is the essence of human life. In fact, our ability to communicate an unlimited number of thoughts and ideas separates humans from all other creatures.
April 01, 2016 Adityarup “Rup” Chakravorty “Excelente!” exclaims 12-year-old Xander Trinkner, grey eyes shining behind glasses, sandy-brown hair tousled. His latest iPad mission, protecting the world from droves of alien invaders, is a success. Dressed in a grey-and-green Packers t-shirt and a pair of jeans, Xander could be any 12-year old. But his journey so …
Jaden Cassidy is three years old and a whirlwind of energy. He bursts into the exam room, jumps on the exam table, flings off his jacket and cowboys boots and whirls around with a beaming smile, expecting—and getting—an enthusiastic round of applause. Jaden’s vibrant nature masks the difficult journey he and his family and friends …
Jenny Saffran, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of psychology and an expert on how infants learn, is among leaders in academia, business, public affairs and the arts elected to membership in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Imagine that you’ve been dropped into an unfamiliar country. People are speaking all around you. But you don’t recognize the sounds or objects surrounding you. You don’t even hear words; all the sounds are mushed together. It is very confusing.
MADISON–In the current issue of Pediatrics, Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison clinical psychologist Megan Farley and colleagues share important insights in the paper “Identifying autism in a brief observation,” which examines how brief clinical appointments are often not long enough to determine if a child has an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), or even if a …
From the research lab to the patient’s bedside, research and clinical care focused on cerebral palsy (CP) encompass the essence of the Waisman Center’s mission: scientists and clinicians using an interdisciplinary approach to improve the lives of children and adults with developmental disabilities.
