TEDWomen 2015
Alix Generous: How I learned to communicate my inner life with Asperger's
Alix Generous: 我的內心怎樣學會跟阿氏保加症對話
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Alix Generous 是一位年輕女性，她常有無數的念頭。Alix 曾經因為研究科學而獲獎，又協助發展新科技，更會講要命的笑話（你遲一點便知道）。 她患有阿氏保加症，那是自閉光譜障礙的一種。她努力多年，為了學懂怎樣跟㚈界分享她的心得。她在這次風趣的個人演說中，分享她的故事，還希望更多方法，幫助更多人表達自己偉大的構想。
Alix Generous - Advocate
Alix Generous is a college student and biology researcher with Asperger syndrome. She stresses the importance of building accepting environments for all kinds of minds. Full bio
Alix Generous is a college student and biology researcher with Asperger syndrome. She stresses the importance of building accepting environments for all kinds of minds. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
Today, I want to talk to you about dreams.
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今日我想跟大家談談夢想
00:15
I have been a lucid dreamer my whole life,
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我一直都發着清醒夢
00:18
and it's cooler than in the movies.
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它比看電影 還要酷
00:20
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
00:22
Beyond flying, breathing fire,
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除了飛天 噴火㚈
00:25
and making hot men
spontaneously appear ...
spontaneously appear ...
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還可以讓性感的帥哥 自動走近眼前
00:28
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
00:30
I can do things like read and write music.
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我可以做很多事 例如閱讀和作曲
00:33
Fun fact is that I wrote
my personal statement to college
my personal statement to college
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最有趣的是我在夢中 寫了一篇自我介紹
00:36
in a dream.
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用來申請入大學
00:38
And I did accepted. So, yeah.
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後來我真的獲取錄了 所以很棒
00:41
I am a very visual thinker.
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我擅長用視覺思考
00:44
I think in pictures, not words.
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不用文字 而是用圖像思考
00:47
To me, words are more like
instincts and language.
instincts and language.
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我覺得文字比較像本能和語言
00:51
There are many people like me;
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有很多人像我一樣
00:53
Nikola Tesla, for example,
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例如尼古拉特斯拉
00:56
who could visualize, design,
test, and troubleshoot everything --
test, and troubleshoot everything --
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他所有發明 都來自腦中閃出的靈感
01:01
all of his inventions --
in his mind, accurately.
in his mind, accurately.
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他準確地想像細節 再設計 測試 最後解決所有問題
01:06
Language is kind of exclusive
to our species, anyway.
to our species, anyway.
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語言對於我們這類人來說比較高檔
01:09
I am a bit more primitive,
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我比較有點粗鄙
01:12
like a beta version of Google Translate.
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好像谷歌翻譯的試用版
01:14
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
01:18
My brain has the ability
to hyper-focus on things that interest me.
to hyper-focus on things that interest me.
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我腦內有種能力
讓我非常專注有興趣的事物
讓我非常專注有興趣的事物
01:23
For example, once
I had an affair with calculus
I had an affair with calculus
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例如一旦我愛上了微積分
01:25
that lasted longer
than some celebrity marriages.
than some celebrity marriages.
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比那些名人的婚姻 更來得長久
01:28
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
01:32
There are some other
unusual things about me.
unusual things about me.
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我還有其他奇異的特徴
01:36
You may have noticed
that I don't have much inflection
that I don't have much inflection
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你會發現我談話時
01:39
in my voice.
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聲音缺少抑揚頓挫
01:40
That's why people
often confuse me with a GPS.
often confuse me with a GPS.
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所以別人常常誤會我是一把GPS聲帶
01:43
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
01:48
This can make basic communication
a challenge, unless you need directions.
a challenge, unless you need directions.
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除非你只需要問路 否則很難溝通
01:52
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
01:56
Thank you.
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多謝
01:57
(Applause)
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（鼓掌聲）
02:02
A few years ago, when I started
doing presentations,
doing presentations,
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幾年前 我要發表演說
02:05
I went to get head shots done
for the first time.
for the first time.
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第一次拍頭部照片
02:09
The photographer told me to look flirty.
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攝影師叫我扮成風情萬種
02:12
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
02:14
And I had no idea
what she was talking about.
what she was talking about.
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我不明白她説什麼
02:17
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
02:18
She said, "Do that thing,
you know, with your eyes,
you know, with your eyes,
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她説：妳向男性調情時
02:21
when you're flirting with guys."
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妳知道怎樣表示眼神
02:23
"What thing?" I asked.
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我問：怎樣什麼？
02:25
"You know, squint."
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＂瞇瞇眼＂
02:27
And so I tried, really.
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於是我試試看
02:29
It looked something like this.
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就是這個樣子
02:31
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
02:33
I looked like I was searching for Waldo.
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我像搜尋威利（兒童繪本）的樣子
02:36
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
02:40
There's a reason for this,
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其實這是有原因的
02:42
as there is a reason that Waldo is hiding.
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威力躲在那裡 是有道理
02:44
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
02:52
I have Asperger's,
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我有阿氏保加症
02:54
a high-functioning form of autism
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它是一種高功能自閉症
02:56
that impairs the basic social skills
one is expected to display.
one is expected to display.
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缺乏應有的社交能力
03:02
It's made life difficult in many ways,
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於是在日常生活 遇上不少困難
03:05
and growing up,
I struggled to fit in socially.
I struggled to fit in socially.
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長大後 我吃力地適應社交生活
03:09
My friends would tell jokes,
but I didn't understand them.
but I didn't understand them.
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朋友說笑話時 我懵然不知
03:14
My personal heroes were George Carlin
and Stephen Colbert --
and Stephen Colbert --
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我最崇拜喬治卡林和史提芬科拜爾
03:19
and they taught me humor.
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他們敎曉我什麼是幽默
03:22
My personality switched
from being shy and awkward
from being shy and awkward
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自己的性格由笨拙害羞
03:26
to being defiant and cursing out a storm.
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變成大膽 常常口出狂言
03:30
Needless to say,
I did not have many friends.
I did not have many friends.
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不用說 我交不到幾個朋友
03:33
I was also hypersensitive to texture.
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我對質感非常敏感
03:36
The feel of water on my skin
was like pins and needles,
was like pins and needles,
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當皮膚踫到水 就有如針刺的感覺
03:40
and so for years, I refused to shower.
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所以多年來 我不肯洗澡
03:43
I can assure you that my hygiene routine
is up to standards now, though.
is up to standards now, though.
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但我可以保證 現在日常衞生已達標
03:47
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
03:50
I had to do a lot to get here,
and my parents --
and my parents --
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我克服很多東西 才有今日 我父母⋯
03:54
things kind of got out of control
when I was sexually assaulted by a peer,
when I was sexually assaulted by a peer,
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那時有一個同事侵犯我 一切失控
03:59
and on top of everything,
it made a difficult situation worse.
it made a difficult situation worse.
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平時我已經夠多問題 這樣更加雪山加霜
04:05
And I had to travel 2,000 miles
across the country to get treatment,
across the country to get treatment,
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我要穿州過省 橫越二千公里求醫
04:10
but within days of them prescribing
a new medication,
a new medication,
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但數日內 醫生開了一種新藥給我
04:14
my life turned into an episode
of the Walking Dead.
of the Walking Dead.
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從此我走進了 如行屍電視劇的世界
04:18
I became paranoid,
and began to hallucinate
and began to hallucinate
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患上了妄想症 開始幻想
04:21
that rotting corpses
were coming towards me.
were coming towards me.
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有一羣腐爛的死屍 向我迎面而來
04:24
My family finally rescued me,
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最後家人救了我出來
04:27
but by that time, I had lost 19 pounds
in those three weeks,
in those three weeks,
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我在那
04:32
as well as developing severe anemia,
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還有患了嚴重貧血
04:34
and was on the verge of suicide.
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而且瀕臨自殺的邊緣
04:38
I transferred to a new treatment center
that understood my aversions,
that understood my aversions,
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我轉到新的治療中心 他們知道
04:42
my trauma, and my social anxiety,
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我的反感 創傷及患有社交恐懼症
04:46
and they knew how to treat it,
and I got the help I finally needed.
and I got the help I finally needed.
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懂得怎樣治療我 給我適當的照顧
04:50
And after 18 months of hard work,
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經過18個月的努力
04:52
I went on to do incredible things.
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我繼續做一些令人難以置信的事
04:56
One of the things with Asperger's
is that oftentimes,
is that oftentimes,
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很多時 亞氏保加症患者
05:00
these people have
a very complex inner life,
a very complex inner life,
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內心很複雜
05:02
and I know for myself,
I have a very colorful personality,
I have a very colorful personality,
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我知道自己性格變化多端
05:05
rich ideas, and just a lot
going on in my mind.
going on in my mind.
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有很多想頭 在我腦袋不停在轉
05:08
But there's a gap
between where that stands,
between where that stands,
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但有一條鴻溝在那
05:12
and how I communicate it
with the rest of the world.
with the rest of the world.
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我跟外面的世界表達自己的意念
05:15
And this can make
basic communication a challenge.
basic communication a challenge.
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這樣做成溝通的障礙
05:20
Not many places would hire me,
due to my lack of social skills,
due to my lack of social skills,
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因為缺乏社交技巧 沒有太多人請我
05:23
which is why I applied to Waffle House.
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這是我到窩夫專門店 見工的原因
05:25
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
05:32
Waffle House is an exceptional
24-hour diner --
24-hour diner --
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窩夫專門店是間頂級的24小時食店
05:35
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
05:37
(Applause)
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（鼓掌聲）
05:41
thank you --
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多謝
05:42
where you can order your hash browns
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你在那
05:44
the many ways that someone
would dispose of a human corpse ...
would dispose of a human corpse ...
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這是有人想棄屍的途徑
05:47
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
05:49
Sliced, diced, peppered, chunked,
topped, capped, and covered.
topped, capped, and covered.
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切片切粒 撒上糊椒粉 或切塊加蓋⋯
05:54
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
05:56
As social norms would have it,
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由於易受社會束缚
05:57
you should only go to Waffle House
at an ungodly hour in the night.
at an ungodly hour in the night.
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所以只在大家不方便的晚上 光顧這食店
06:01
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
06:02
So one time, at 2 am, I was chatting
with a waitress, and I asked her,
with a waitress, and I asked her,
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有一晚兩點 我跟女侍應閒聊 我問她：
06:07
"What's the most ridiculous thing
that's happened to you on the job?"
that's happened to you on the job?"
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妳工作時 遇到什麼最荒謬的事情？
06:10
And she told me that one time,
a man walked in completely naked.
a man walked in completely naked.
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她告訴我有一次看見一個全棵的男人走進來
06:14
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
06:15
I said, "Great! Sign me up
for the graveyard shift!"
for the graveyard shift!"
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我說：好啊！請我做夜班吧！
06:18
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
06:20
Needless to say,
Waffle House did not hire me.
Waffle House did not hire me.
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不用說 窩夫專門店並没有聘請我
06:25
So in terms of having Asperger's,
it can be viewed as a disadvantage,
it can be viewed as a disadvantage,
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提到阿氏保加症 人們認為是一種缺陷
06:30
and sometimes it is
a real pain in the butt,
a real pain in the butt,
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有時真是有點惱人
06:32
but it's also the opposite.
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但是也有相對的好處
06:34
It's a gift, and it allows me
to think innovatively.
to think innovatively.
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它給予我天賦 讓我創意無限
06:38
At 19, I won a research competition
for my research on coral reefs,
for my research on coral reefs,
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我19歲就以珊瑚礁的硏究 奪得研究比賽
06:45
and I ended up speaking
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最後更要發表演講
06:47
at the UN Convention
of Biological Diversity,
of Biological Diversity,
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到聯合國生物多樣性公約會議
06:49
presenting this research.
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介紹這次研究
06:50
(Applause)
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（鼓掌聲）
06:52
Thank you.
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多謝
06:53
(Applause)
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（鼓掌聲）
06:58
And at 22, I'm getting ready
to graduate college,
to graduate college,
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我22歲快將大學畢業時
07:02
and I am a co-founder of a biotech
company called AutismSees.
company called AutismSees.
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就是一間生物科技公司的共同創辦人 它名叫AutismSees
07:08
(Applause)
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（鼓掌聲）
07:09
Thank you.
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多謝
07:10
(Applause)
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（鼓掌聲）
07:13
But consider what I had to do to get here:
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但想到我經歷了什麼 才有今日：
07:16
25 therapists, 11 misdiagnoses,
and years of pain and trauma.
and years of pain and trauma.
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我看過25個治療師 遭到11次誤診和受到多年的痛苦折磨
07:22
I spent a lot of time thinking
if there's a better way,
if there's a better way,
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我費煞思量 希望找到更好的方法
07:25
and I think there is:
autism-assistive technology.
autism-assistive technology.
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我想是有的 就是自閉症輔助科技
07:30
This technology
could play an integral role
could play an integral role
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這類科技對幫助自閉光譜障礙人士
07:32
in helping people
with autistic spectrum disorder,
with autistic spectrum disorder,
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起著不可缺少的作用
07:35
or ASD.
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它簡稱叫做ASD
07:38
The app Podium, released
by my company, AutismSees,
by my company, AutismSees,
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我的公司AutismSees 發放了Podiom 手機程式
07:43
has the ability to independently assess
and help develop communication skills.
and help develop communication skills.
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可以獨立評估和提升溝通技巧
07:49
In addition to this, it tracks
eye contact through camera
eye contact through camera
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而且它用相機 捕捉用者的眼神接觸
07:53
and simulates a public-speaking
and job-interview experience.
and job-interview experience.
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也可以模擬公開演講 和見工的過程
08:00
And so maybe one day,
Waffle House will hire me,
Waffle House will hire me,
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所以或許有一日 窩夫專門店會請我
08:03
after practicing on it some more.
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待我再練習多一些
08:05
(Laughter)
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（笑聲）
08:09
And one of the great things
is that I've used Podium
is that I've used Podium
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我採用Podium 其中最棒的地方
08:14
to help me prepare for today,
and it's been a great help.
and it's been a great help.
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它幫我一個大忙 準備今天的演講
08:19
But it's more than that.
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它還有很多好處
08:21
There's more that can be done.
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還可以做到很多事情
08:24
For people with ASD --
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關於患有ASD人士
08:27
it has been speculated
that many innovative scientists,
that many innovative scientists,
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人們都推測有很多有創意的科學家
08:31
researchers, artists,
and engineers have it;
and engineers have it;
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研究學者 藝術家和工程師都有ASD
08:36
like, for example, Emily Dickinson,
Jane Austen, Isaac Newton, and Bill Gates
Jane Austen, Isaac Newton, and Bill Gates
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例如 埃美莉狄更生 珍奧斯汀 艾薩克牛頓和比爾蓋茨
08:42
are some examples.
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都是這些例子
08:44
But the problem that's encountered
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但問題是
08:46
is that these brilliant ideas
often can't be shared
often can't be shared
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這些好主意常常不能一切分享
08:49
if there are communication roadblocks.
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因為溝通遇到阻滯
08:53
And so, many people with autism
are being overlooked every day,
are being overlooked every day,
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每日有很多自閉症人士遭別人忽視
08:57
and they're being taken advantage of.
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讓人佔了便宜
09:01
So my dream for people with autism
is to change that,
is to change that,
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所以我希望替這些人改善情況
09:08
to remove the roadblocks
that prevent them from succeeding.
that prevent them from succeeding.
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折除他們步向成功的障礙
09:11
One of the reasons I love lucid dreaming
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我愛發清醒夢的原因
09:14
is because it allows me to be free,
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就是它讓我感覺自由自在
09:17
without judgment of social
and physical consequences.
and physical consequences.
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不用理會社會的評價 和給身體帶來後果
09:21
When I'm flying over scenes
that I create in my mind,
that I create in my mind,
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我的腦設計了場景 讓我在那裡飛翔
09:24
I am at peace.
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那時我心境平靜
09:27
I am free from judgment,
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不受別人的評頭品足
09:29
and so I can do whatever I want, you know?
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想做什麼都可以
09:31
I'm making out with Brad Pitt,
and Angelina is totally cool with it.
and Angelina is totally cool with it.
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跟畢比特親熱 但安祖蓮娜毫不在意
09:36
(Laughter)
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笑聲）
09:39
But the goal of autism-assistive
technology is bigger than that,
technology is bigger than that,
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這種科技還有更高的目標
09:43
and more important.
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更加重要的使命
09:45
My goal is to shift people's perspective
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我要改變人們對自閉症的想法
09:49
of autism and people
with higher-functioning Asperger's
with higher-functioning Asperger's
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包括高效能阿氏保加症人士
09:54
because there is a lot they can do.
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因為社會還可以多出幾分力
09:58
I mean, look at
Temple Grandin, for example.
Temple Grandin, for example.
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你看天寶葛蘭汀便是一個例子
10:02
And by doing so, we allow people
to share their talents with this world
to share their talents with this world
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如果那樣的話 他們便可以發揮所長 貢獻社會
10:07
and move this world forward.
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推動世界前進
10:09
In addition, we give them the courage
to pursue their dreams
to pursue their dreams
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還有我們可以鼓勵他們追逐夢想
10:12
in the real world, in real time.
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在這真實的時候 真實的世界
10:15
Thank you.
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多謝
10:16
(Applause)
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（鼓掌聲）
10:19
Thank you.
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多謝
10:21
(Applause)
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（鼓掌聲）
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Alix Generous - AdvocateAlix Generous is a college student and biology researcher with Asperger syndrome. She stresses the importance of building accepting environments for all kinds of minds.
Why you should listen
Alix Generous has Asperger syndrome, but was misdiagnosed for years. A student and researcher who is passionate about molecular biology and neuroscience, she encourages people like her to share their intelligence and insights. She is a co-owner of the startup AutismSees, which develops technology tools to help all kinds of people give presentations.
At 19, Generous won first place in a nationwide competition for her work in quorum sensing and coral reefs. Her paper titled "Environmental Threats on the Symbiotic Relationship of Coral Reefs and Quorum Sensing," was published in Consilience. In November 2013, she was a youth delegate for the UN Convention of Climate Change (COP19), where she negotiated technology transfers and issues of medical importance. She has assisted neuroscience researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina, Tufts University School of Medicine, and the University of Vermont.
Alix Generous | Speaker | TED.com