Study Title: Attention and Perception in Autism Spectrum Conditions

A personal account of taking part in a study at the Autism Research Centre in Cambridge,, accompanied by photographs, with some interesting and important links and some more photographs.

INTRODUCTION

The main body of this post is a personal account of my involvement in the study whose title I have used for the whole post, run as so often at the Autism Research Centre in Cambridge. I also have a variety of links and a few photos that are not directly connected with the title piece but which I wish to share. I hope you will all enjoy this post and that you will take the opportunity of sharing it.

ATTENTION AND PERCEPTION IN AUTISM SPECTRUM CONDITIONS

THE PRELIMINARIES

i found out about this study just five days ago, and made contact with the person conducting it. A brief exchange of emails concluded with an arrangement for me to attend at 11AM today. As part of the preparation I had to answer various questions and solve various puzzles online.

GETTING THERE

An scheduled start of 11AM meant getting the 8:57 from King’s Lynn, and to make sure that I got my travel expenses reimbursed I carefully got a receipt. It was shortly after getting on to the platform that I brought the camera into action for the first time of the day…

DSCN8526

Pictures taken through the windows of moving trains are tough to get right, but these two worked out okay…

"A goods train: the shame of it" Gordon the Big Engine in the Rev W Awdry series — “A goods train: the shame of it” Gordon the Big Engine in the Rev W Awdry series

I could get a clear shot of the whole of Ely Cathedral, but this shows the main tower and the octagonal construction designed by a 14th century Prior known only and uninformatively as Alan of Norwich. — I could not get a clear shot of the whole of Ely Cathedral, but this shows the main tower and the octagonal construction designed by a 14th century Prior known only and uninformatively as Alan of Norwich.

Arriving in Cambridge I decided to take a longer route than usual to the Autism Research Centre, heading towards town as far as this church…

DSCN8531 DSCN8532

Turning on to the link road that connects to the town end of Trumpington Road I passed the Scott Polar Research Institute, named in honour of Robert Falcon Scott, one of the most famous runners up in history. Scott also gave his name to an itinerant cricket team some of whose deeds are chronicled in Penguins Stopped Play by Harry Thompson and Rain Men by Marcus Berkmann. Although I could not get a shot of the whole building without crossing to the wrong side of a busy road I did get these shots…

DSCN8533 DSCN8534 DSCN8535

Next up was the Cambridge University Chemical Laboratory…

DSCN8537

At the very point of turning onto Trumpington Road I passed Hobson’s Conduit…

DSCN8538 DSCN8539 DSCN8540 DSCN8543

This is the first major building on Trumpington Road itself, on the opposite side of ti to me…

DSCN8547 DSCN8548 DSCN8549 DSCN8550 DSCN8551

A shot of the water alongside Trumpington Road…

DSCN8552

I next passed the public entrance to Cambridge Botanic Gardens (the admission price convinced me to go no further than the gates)…

DSCN8553 DSCN8554 DSCN8555 DSCN8557 DSCN8558

A little bit further along I passed a locked gate into the same establishment, with some red flowers growing next to it…

DSCN8559 DSCN8560

The last shot I got before arriving at the Autism Research Centre was of this dragon fly (or similar), which although quite large was moving exceedingly fast, hence why I got only the one usable shot…

DSCN8561

AT THE AUTISM RESEARCH CENTRE

I arrived at the centre at about 10:40, and did not have to wait too long for Owen Parsons, who was conducting the study, to put in an appearance. After the usual preliminaries of form signing and checking the experiment itself ran in three parts…

MIND YOUR TS AND LS

For this test one had eight seconds in total to view an intermittent display of red and blue letters, most of which were Ls but one of which was a T. The task was to identify which colour the T was and click the appropriate button to record that identification. A wrong identification, or wrong button pressed, or being timed out generated a horrible beep.

IDENTIFYING DUPLICATION

For this part of the process one was required to press the space bar each time the same image was shown twice consecutvely. The images were all of full scenes, but shown at thumbnail size. Again, a misidentification or a failure to identify within the time limit generated a beep. There was then a second part to this section, involving familiarity. One was shown sequences of three images and asked to identify the set that looked more familiar. The pictures were similar in nature and size to those previously shown, but some were definitely new.

WHICH BOX WAS THAT X IN?

For this third and final part of the experiment, there were four boxes in which an X could appear. When it appeared one had to identify the box as follows: X for leftmost, Z for left-centre, N for right-centre, M for rightmost. Thus, the duration of this section of the experiment was spent with the index and middle fingers of each hand poised over the keys in question. There was then a second subsection, involving pattern identification and made more complicated by two factors:

1)Obviously enough, not knowing about this in advance I was not especially looking for a pattern in the first stage of the process.

2)The pattern was not adhered to at all times (about 15% of the time, the X appeared in a box it was not ‘supposed’ to).

All in all, I quite enjoyed performing these tests, and would say that it is a worthwhile study. If you are aged 18-45, have been diagnosed with an Autistic Spectrum Condition and can get to Cambridge, contact Owen Parsons: oep20@cam.ac.uk about taking part in the study.

GETTING BACK

There was a small delay getting back to the main building from the place where the study had been set up as Owen initially came out without his swipe card, during which I snared this shot…

DSCN8571

On my way back to the street I took a shot of the front of the main building…

DSCN8572

I opted for the short route back to the station,along Brooklands Avenue and past the new bus interchange to approach the train station from that angle. I got these shots in the course of that walk…

DSCN8573 DSCN8574 DSCN8575

I got a couple of shots en route to the platform as well…

A worthy effort to represent all of Britain's railways on one map. — A worthy effort to represent all of Britain’s railways on one map.

A somewhat loose definition of London & the Southeast!

On my way off the train at King’s Lynn I took the opportunity to capture this plaque on camera…

DSCN8579

LINKS

As regular readers of this blog or those who follow me on twitter will be well aware I regularly sign and share petitions, and my first link is to a piece from Huffington Post detailing the success of one such, concerning the Henry family.

My next link is to Mike Sivier of Vox Political on the subject of a possible Greek default.

Next up is this about the effect of London on social housing.

Then we have this on the origins of turtles.

WELCOME TO A NEW FOLLOWER

The next two links both relate to autism, and indeed to the website of a recent follower of mine:

1)The main website, ambitiousautismambassador

2)A particular impressive post taking on stereotyping.

AN IMPORTANT PETITION

My final link is to a petition on change.org protesting against a planned European law that will mean the end of photography as we know it – PLEASE SIGN AND SHARE!!

A FEW FINAL PICTURES

While my right to do so remains I am sharing these photos…

Stand E, on the occasion I first used it, Tuesday AM

The new electronic displays now at every stand.

I realised before using it as part of my bus fare that this 50p was of a style I had not previously seen.

A close up of the detailed board at Stand E

Special Post: Aldgate and Aldgate East

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to the latest post in my series “London Station by Station”. I hope you will enjoy this post and will be encouraged to share it.

A FOUR WAY TRIANGLE

I am treating two stations together because they are so close to one another that one can stand o the platforms of one and watch trains pulling into the other. The title refers to the number of current lines using this segment of the system and the shape it very roughly resembles. Aldgate opened in 1876 and has been open ever since. The first Aldgate East station opened in 1884 and was closed in 1938, with the current station opening the very next day.

The confluences and divergences are as follows: at Liverpool Street the triple route of Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines diverge, with the H&C going to Aldgate East and the other two to Aldgate, where the Met terminates. At Tower Hill the District and Circle part ways the Circle continuing round to Aldgate and the District going to Aldgate East where it joins the H&C.

To assist with orientation and to finish this brief post here are my usual map pics…

DSCN8518

King’s Lynn Transport Interchange

INTRODUCTION

This post deals with the redevelopment of my local bus station, a process which began in January, and has finally reached the stage at which all bus services will once again be departing from the bus station. You could therefore say that this is a celebration of the ending of one cause of disruptions.

THE NEW BUS STATION

APPROACHES TO KING’S LYNN

King’s Lynn is a splendid town, badly let down by the ways in which people approach it. Neither the bus station nor the train station drop people in particularly good locations, and the main approach by car, via London Road is not beautiful either. However, after almost six months of work and attendant disruption to services, at least the bus station now looks presentable. I will end this section with a link to a previous post about King’s Lynn and both sides of a new promotional document for the town…

DSCN8516

THE REDEVELOPMENT

Work started on the redevelopment on January 6th, but the big disruptions did not hit until March, when services heading south started departing from Portland Street and northbound buses made use of the only three stands still available at the bus station. In the week beginning on May 18th all was confusion (we had been warned about the following week), as northbound buses started making use of two of the new stands, which were ready for use but no one had thought to advertise this! The following week was the one week in which northbound buses did not depart from the bus station – they made use of Clough (pronounced Clow not Cluff) Lane instead.

Then it was back to the bus station for good, and eventually an announcement appeared stating that all services would resume running from the redeveloped bus station from June 29th (today). I thought to myself “I’ll believe that when I see it” but decided I would call in at the bus station just in case it did happen, and it had.

THE BUS STATION TODAY

I took various photographs to show what the bus station now looks like, including threeKing’s Lynn Transport Interchange from the car park above Sainsbury’s (the most elevation I could gain). I hope that you enjoy these photos, which will conclude the post, and that you will be inspired to share…

This departure board was the first novelty that greeted me.

The new guard fences at the new bays - interleaved pictures of the Custom House and Captain vancouver) — The new guard fences at the new bays – interleaved pictures of the Custom House and Captain vancouver)

DSCN8500 DSCN8501 DSCN8502

The board at stand D (I could not get a clear shot of the one at stand E which I shall actually be using).

The first of two shots of the frontage of the new Visitor's Centre — The first of two shots of the frontage of the new Visitor’s Centre

DSCN8505 DSCN8506

A thoroughly modern map of King's Lynn — A thoroughly modern map of King’s Lynn

DSCN8510

Stand E, whence Fakenham buses will depart.

The first of three shots from such elevation as I could gain.

DSCN8513 DSCN8514

The Day Of The Great Centenary Charity Auction

INTRODUCTION

This post is a personal account of the day of the Great Centenary Charity Auction, before I switch focus to writing some official accounts for the website. I hope that you will enjoy this post and be encouraged to share it.

THE AUCTION

My presence was not required right from the start, so I was able to get to Fakenham Racecourse at about 10:20 by taking the first bus of the day (leaves King’s Lynn at 9:25 and walking from the town centre). The first photo opportunity came long before I was at the auction venue – just after getting up I saw this little beauty…

DSCN8380

I had decided to dress up extra smartly, a decision I was to regret by the end of a hot day – although if the evidence of this photograph, the only one I shall be using today that I did not take is anything to go on I did succeed in looking smart…

Auction Underway

Here was the first sign that I was approaching the venue (not that I needed reassurance – I know that particular route and venue as well as anyone)…

The venue was already fairly busy by the time I got there, but front line customer service and autistic spectrum conditions are not a good mix, so I would not have been of much assistance in that role…

DSCN8393 DSCN8424 DSCN8427 DSCN8433 DSCN8450

Although both lots 1 and 2 fared well, the auction took a while to really take off. Lot 101, a very elaborate Crimean War helmet, well displayed at the venue and well imaged previously, sold for a colossal £1,300…

This was the image that was used for the sale.

This is lot 101 as displayed at the venue with two other lots.

Lot 101 in all it's glory at the venue. — Lot 101 in all it’s glory at the venue.

The auction ran rather more slowly than usual, so I was not able to stay right to the finish, as I had a bus to catch at 17:35. My colleague Andrew took over for the home straight (well we were at a racecourse!)

DSCN8492

As well as James and Sons employees and volunteers and the odd Royal British Legion functionary, Fakenham Air Training Corps were present in force…

DSCN8414

I departed just after seeing one final high note hit – lot 535, a collection of cloth patches expected to raise £10-15 actually sold for £50.

A second auction, for which we already have a considerable number of lots, is planned for March 2016, and I hope lots of you will attend or sign up to bid online.

I will finish by showing some pictures of the racecourse itself, looking resplendent in the sun…

DSCN8451 DSCN8454 DSCN8458 DSCN8459

Special Post: Southfields

INTRODUCTION

This is the latest post in a series I have been running on this blog called “London Station by Station“. This particular post as you will see has extra special relevance, and could only go up this morning. I hope you will enjoy it and be encouraged to share it.

THE HOME OF THE WORLD’S GREATEST TENNIS TOURNAMENT

Yes folks, Wimbledon is upon us once more. As usual, full coverage will be being provided by the BBC. Southfields, the third to last stop going south on the Wimbledon branch of the District line, opened in 1889 (so after William Renshaw’s seven titles) is the local station for these championships, as this reproduction of an old poster shows…

DSCN8495

As someone who grew up in South West London this tournament has particular meaning for me. I only got to see it at the venue once, but have always followed the tournament as closely as circumstances allow.

When I first started following the tournament in the mid 1980s a Brit in the second round was cause for banner headlines. These days things are rather different, although in the Men’s game there remains a veritable “Ginnunga Gap” between Murray and the next best Brit. Things are definitely looking up for British Women though, with Johanna Konta reaching the quarter-finals at Eastbourne last week and only going out to the eventual champion Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, and Heather Watson also playing well.

During the Eastbourne coverage, various displays showing people’s possible progress if all went to plan were shown, but I paid little attention because if I learned anything from 30 years of following tennis it is that one thing that does not happen is things going according to plan. If I was a betting person I would put money on at least one of the seeds being a goner by the end of day 1.

This stretch of line includes one of only two places where London Underground trains cross the Thames by way of a bridge (the other is on the Richmond branch of the District line).

As usual with these posts I finish with a couple of map pics…

A Day Out in Norwich 5: The Cathedral Close

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to my concluding post about a day out in Norwich that i enjoyed on Thursday. Previous posts about the day are as follows:

1)Introductory Post

2)Enter the Dragons

3)Lunch at the Belgian Monk

4)The River Wensum

I hope that you will enjoy this post and will be encouraged to share it.

THE CATHEDRAL CLOSE

It is unusual in the 21st century to find a Cathedral Close, but Norwich still has one, and there were many splendid things to photograph. The first of two dragons (note the title of the second post referred to above) was Biggles, the RAF dragon…

There are also two statues of famous warriors, Nelson and Wellington…

There were also many birds around…

Of course, in a place of this nature one would expect plenty of interesting old architecture, and such expectation was met…

This iron sculpture also appealed, as did this chance to include a dragon and a blackbird in the same shot…

My survey of the Cathedral Close began with one dragon and its with another, Norwich Serafina, the Norwich School Dragon…

A Day Out In Norwich 4: The Wensum

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to this, my fourth post about a family day out inn Norwich this Thursday. Previous posts about this day are:

1)Introductory Post

2)Enter the Dragons

3)Lunch at the Belgian Monk

I hope that you will enjoy this post and be encouraged to share it.

THE WENSUM

The Wensum is the river that flows through the centre of Norwich. There are many fine sights to be seen along its banks. Here is a view looking along one bank…

You will notice a boat in this shot, here is what it looks like closer up…

DSCN8236

Is there any information available about this riverside? You bet there is…

DSCN8239

You may have glimpsed a stone bridge in the first picture I showed. I have a close up of the centre portion and two shots showing how the smooth waters of the Wensum reflect it back…

DSCN8240 DSCN8242 DSCN8243

Here is the approach to river via Ferry Lane…

DSCN8325 DSCN8331 DSCN8324

Two pub signs on opposite sides of the river provide a fine contrast – one an unusual name in a plain style and one the commonest of all English pub names in a more elaborate style…

DSCN8341

After these signs we came to a decorative wooden seat…

DSCN8344

Now we come to the exraordinarily named Cow Tower, one of Britain’s oldest artillery placements, dating from 1398…

DSCN8346 DSCN8347 DSCN8348 DSCN8349

Next, one for the swan fanciers…

DSCN8351

These water lilies made for decent picture…

DSCN8353

Two more closing shots for you, from just before we left the river for the last time…

DSCN8356 DSCN8357

A Day Out In Norwich 3: Lunch At The Belgian Monk

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to my third post about our family day out in Norwich on Thursday. For those who missed them, the first two posts were:

1)Introductory Post

2)Enter the Dragons

I hope that you will enjoy this post and be inspired to share it.

LUNCH AT THE BELGIAN MONK

A DELAYED START

A combination of rigid adherence to a silly rule (no one under 16 to sit in the bar area) and the fact that the place was busy meant that we had to wait a few minutes before a table large enough for five became available.

THE BEER

The beer was superb – I had a Petrus Dubbel Bruin and a Grimbergen Dubbel both of which were splendid drinks. I got some photos of logos etc…

This sign is outside the back of the pub, where we were sitting

My father's second beer. — My father’s second beer.

THE FOOD

My sister and my mother both opted for mussels, which come with a ‘sconce’ of chips…

My mother holding a 'sconce' of chips aloft. — My mother holding a ‘sconce’ of chips aloft.

I opted for a steak and Belgian beer pie, which was good overall but loses marks for failing to be a proper pie – it was that thoroughly annoying and difficult to eat cheat, a casserole with a ridiculously puffy layer of puff pastry on top. The chips, were excellent. Taking into account the overall quality, and inflicting three penalty points for cheating, I award the meal 6.5 out of 10.

I have a few remaining pics from the Belgian Monk to share,..

The church tower visible from the beer garden (in Norwich you are never very far from a medieval church!)

The Belgian Monk's account of their mussels. — The Belgian Monk’s account of their mussels.

A Day Out In Norwich 2: Enter The Dragons

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to this, my second post about a family day out in Norwich which happened on Thursday. You may wish to check out the first post before proceeding. I hope you will enjoy this post and will be inspired to share it.

ENTER THE DRAGONS

Norwich has an affinity for large brightly coloured model animals. There have been elephants and monkeys/apes on display at various times. The latest thing is dragons, which will be sold off at auction to raise funds for Break, the children’s charity. There are apparently 84 full size dragons and over 120 baby dragons around Norwich.

I cannot pretend that we actually spotted that many, but we did see quite a few, starting with Flambeau, just after we had left the car

Our next sighting was while we were in Jarrold’s, the Norwich department store, who are sponsors of the project…

The Jarrold's dragon — The Jarrold’s dragon

We saw one more before lunch, just outside a shop I will not name but which sells clothing and is run by people without consciences…

DSCN8220

Post lunch, the dragon count really picked up, starting with Gogohoratio, a dragon with the head of a well known admiral who was born at Burnham Thorpe in Norfolk (although they gave him a full complement of eyes – which he famously did not have)…

DSCN8237

Next up was Steam the Clockwork Dragon of whom I got several shots…

DSCN8245 DSCN8246 DSCN8247 DSCN8248 DSCN8249 DSCN8250

Our next encounter with a dragon was with Mosaic, whose name becomes understandable as soon as you get a close look…

DSCN8251 DSCN8252 DSCN8253 DSCN8254

There were two dragons in the Cathedral Close, Biggles the RAF dragon and Serafina, the Norwich School dragon, made from pupil’s fingerprints, but I will be covering the Cathedral Close in a separate post, so the next dragon you will see is Daisy, the first we saw after leaving the Cathedral Close…

DSCN8316 DSCN8317 DSCN8318 DSCN8319 DSCN8320

Down by the Wensum, the river that flows through Norwich, was Raptorsfire…

DSCN8327 DSCN8328 DSCN8329 DSCN8330

Our next dragon was glimpsed on the other side of the Wensum…

DSCN8342

Then came this one…

DSCN8359

The next dragon was this red-golden one…

DSCN8361

That was followed by a black dragon…

DSCN8362

The penultimate dragon we saw was this flint patterned chappy…

DSCN8363 DSCN8364 DSCN8365 DSCN8366

Finally, the last dragon we managed to spot was this one…

DSCN8367

A Day Out In Norwich 1: Overview

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to the first of several posts about a day out in Norwich, which took place this Thursday. I hope that you will enjoy this post and be encouraged to share it.

THE ARRANGEMENTS

A combination of a rescheduling of the Great Centenary Charity Auction which meant that I would not be able to take part in a family weekend, and a a dearth of options in terms of when I would be able to see my sister and my nephew led to the timing of the event – the only day between their arrival from the other side of the world and subsequent departure for Poland that I could take off was the Thursday. So it was that I got the 9:45 bus out of King’s Lynn to East Rudham to meet up with the others, and we travelled on to Norwich.

WHAT WE DID IN NORWICH

After a brief look at some of the shops we had lunch at The Belgian Monk, before heading off on a walk round the city, spotting some of the dragons that no adorn the place. I will conclude this introductory post with a few photographs…

DSCN8211 DSCN8221 DSCN8231

This street, Elm Hill, was almost a casualty of 1960s slum clearances.

DSCN8233 DSCN8234 DSCN8324 DSCN8333 DSCN8334 DSCN8355 DSCN8358 DSCN8360

	Thomas on World T20 Cup Underway
	Anna on World T20 Cup Underway
	London Underground t… on Project Piccadilly
	Thomas on All Time XIs – Detective…
	Anna on All Time XIs – Detective…