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From: conte@uicsrd.CSRD.UIUC.EDU
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Why Engineers spell so bad [sic
Message-ID: <42600009@uicsrd>
Date: Wed, 17-Dec-86 12:21:00 EST
Article-I.D.: uicsrd.42600009
Posted: Wed Dec 17 12:21:00 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 24-Dec-86 21:41:39 EST
References: <4104@videovax.Tek.COM>
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Nf-From: uicsrd.CSRD.UIUC.EDU!conte    Dec 17 11:21:00 1986



>>> ...  Of course, there are some
>>> individuals that have dyslexia or another learning disability that
>>> makes such learning difficult, but surely we aren't all brain-damaged!
>> 
>> Dystexia is *not* `brain-damage.'  Holy hell, man, get your facts straight
>> or you are going to embarrass yourself.  You might be surprised to find out
>> how many engineers are dyslexics.
>
>If hell is holy, a lot of theology is going to have to change. . .
>
>Sorry, Tom!  Dyslexia, along with a host of other problems, falls into the
>category of "minimal brain disfunctions."  In most cases, the precise nature
>of the defect is unknown, but it causes a problem that does not exist in
>most people.
>
>I'm sorry you chose to disregard the context of the sentence you quote.  The
>one following was to the effect that maybe we all are brain-damaged -- after
>all, surely we wouldn't be engineers if we were in our right minds! [ 8^) ]

Well, Steve, I take this as an apology.  Among some famous dyslexics are
ranked Nelson Rockafeller and Thomas Edison (they believe).  The term is
actually usually spelled `dysfunction,' to distinguish its technical use
from the common meaning.  And for good reasons, too.  The distinction is
that `brain-damnage,' connotes a loss of total cognative ability, whereas
a dysfunction such as dyslexia is mainly a problem in getting information
into and out of the brain and does not mean loss of cognative ability.
Recent studies have found that dyslexics are more right-brain/visually
oriented than most, actually that the visual functions seem to be shared
by both halves of the brain.  To wit, when I chose a computer, I decided
to pick one that was visually stunning as much as it was technically stunning,
which was the Amiga, of course. ;-)

(Lets let it end here, this forum is for Amiga discussions after all.)

Tom Conte      Center for Supercomputing Research & Development
               University of Illinois
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