Autism Nation

From a rare and obscure disorder when it was first identified, autism has become central to contemporary culture - it has been borrowed for books, films and even used as a throwaway insult. Beyond most people's casual understanding of autism, however, lies a range of conditions that make it difficult for people to interact with others and understand how the world works. Why do so many of us find autism so fascinating? What is it like to be autistic, or to have an autistic child? Is it better for autistic people to try and fit in with 'neurotypicals' or to maintain a separate identity? Can autism give us any insight into how we all understand the world - and can its causes tell us something about what it means to be human?

Kamran Nazeer, author of Send in the Idiots; Prof Simon Baron-Cohen, director of the Autism Research Centre at the University of Cambridge; Marti Leimbach, author of Daniel Isn't Talking; Michael Fitzpatrick, East London GP and author of MMR and autism: what parents need to know.