If you say the word 'butterfly', the first picture I see is butterflies in my childhood backyard. My mind is associative and does not think in a linear manner. I was surprised to discover that the other nonautistic equipment designers could not do full motion test runs of equipment in their minds. I did not know that this was a special skill until I started interviewing other people about how they think. When I design livestock facilities, I can test run the equipment in my imagination similar to a virtual reality computer program. All my thoughts are in photo-realistic pictures, which flash up on the 'computer monitor' in my imagination.

My mind works similar to an Internet search engine, set to locate photos. They are: (i) visual thinkers such as I who are often poor at algebra, (ii) pattern thinkers such as Daniel Tammet who excel in math and music but may have problems with reading or writing composition, and (iii) verbal specialists who are good at talking and writing but they lack visual skills. I have observed that there are three different specialized autistic/Asperger cognitive types. To form the concept of orange, I see many different orange objects, such as oranges, pumpkins, orange juice and marmalade. To form concepts, I sort pictures into categories similar to computer files. All my thinking is associative and not linear. When I design equipment for the cattle industry, I can test run it in my imagination similar to a virtual reality computer program. I use language to narrate the photo-realistic pictures that pop up in my imagination. My mind is similar to an Internet search engine that searches for photographs. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society(2009) 364, 1437-1442

How does visual thinking work in the mind of a person with autism? A personal account How does visual thinking work in the mind of a person with autism? A personal accountĭepartment of Animal Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA

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