Temple Grandin was born in 1947, is a professor of Animal Science, a public speaker, and a person living with Autism. Dr. Grandin “didn’t talk until she was three and a half years old, communicating her frustration instead by screaming, peeping, and humming. In 1950, Temple was diagnosed with autism. She tells her story of ‘groping her way from the far side of darkness’ in her book Emergence: Labeled Autistic, a book which stunned the world because, until its publication, most professionals and parents assumed that an autism diagnosis was virtually a death sentence to achievement or productivity in life.” (http://www.templegrandin.com)

“Grandin is a prominent and widely cited proponent for the humane treatment of livestock for slaughter,” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_Grandin) and she invented the “squeeze machine” that is a “novel” treatment addition for people with some kinds of Autism. According to her website, the squeeze machine has not undergone rigorous scientific testing, but it seems to help calm people with certain types of Autism who are experiencing distress. (http://www.grandin.com/inc/squeeze.html).

Find out more about Dr. Grandin at http://www.templegrandin.com

Also be sure to check out some of her books at:
http://www.templegrandin.com/templegrandinbooks.html

Photo Credit: By Steve Jurvetson from Menlo Park, USA – Rain Man’s Rainbow, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9578213