Marc Riddell wrote:
on 2/28/07 2:42 PM, Ray Saintonge at saintonge@telus.net wrote:
Sometimes I'm inclined to believe that the disorder is relevant to our context. Can ADHD be channeled into productive activity rather than suppressed?
Are you really serious with this question?
It's not an unreasonable question.
Some people argue that ADHD is an adaptive trait, just not in the modern context. And as Jameson shows pretty well in "Touched with Fire: Manic-Depressive Illness and the Artistic Temperament," even things that we clearly consider maladaptive can be channeled into outlets with substantial societal value, even when they are personally harmful. Another good example is Temple Grandin, a high-functioning autistic whose substantial successes are rooted directly in her autism. And in my own field, top-performing computer people are notoriously quirky.
I would be unsurprised to learn that a disproportionate share of Wikipedia contribution comes from people with traits considered diagnosable by what the Aspberger's community somewhat sneeringly refer to as "neurotypicals". And not in spite of their differences, but because of them.
William