NSF Grad Research Fellowship History

Some interesting history about the fellowship award that I just got. I did not know this was the oldest award. 

From their website

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program is the country's oldest fellowship program directly supporting graduate students in STEM fields. Since 1952, NSF has selected more than 46,500 students to receive graduate research fellowships, out of more than 500,000 applicants. Forty of the GRFs have gone on to become Nobel laureates, and more than 440 have become members of the National Academy of Sciences.

The GRFP has a long history of investing in students with demonstrated potential for significant achievements in science and engineering. The investments have paid off well: Among more than 200 Nobel laureates who have had NSF support, 40 were selected as Graduate Research Fellows. GRFs are also well-represented among government leaders, business executives, writers, and members of the National Academy of Sciences--from Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, to Google co-founder Sergey Brin, to Freakonomics co-author Steven Levitt.

Awarded the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship

Thrilled at the news. 

More pats of encouragement. 

Got awarded the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. 

==

April 04, 2024

Dear Hari Srinivasan:

Congratulations! You have been selected to receive a 2024 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship...

NSF publishes the names of Fellowship Offers at https://www.research.gov/grfp/. ...

Being chosen as a NSF Graduate Research Fellow is a significant national accomplishment and places you among an elite group of Fellows, many of whom have gone on to distinguished careers in STEM or STEM education. We wish you similar success in your graduate studies and continued progress toward your aspirations throughout your career.

Yours sincerely,
Jacqueline Huntoon, PhD
Division Director
Division of Graduate Education

RadMad Shoutout.

 A shoutout from my old lab, the amazing makerspace UC Berkeley Rad Mad Disability Lab

Let’s give a round of applause to our alumni Hari!! Hari, previously our lead in Team Propaganda, has recently been awarded the 2024 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship.
The RadMad Lab is proud of you!!

 

Keynote at Duke ACE

An HONEST and POWERFUL talk I've heard in a long time.

Hari Srinivasan's presentation "Redefine the Table" for the Duke Center for Autism & Brain Development / Duke Autism Center of Excellence, called for a paradigm shift!

"Only when you think [of] possibility, can the door of opportunity open."

What's wrong:

- Inequity of access to support and resources
- Systemic discrimination (!!) and low expectations in education
- Industries that exploit autism solely for massive profits and lack accountability (!!)
- Limited scope of autism research
- Language divide within the community

What needs to change:

1) Develop solutions for the most marginalized
2) Combat discrimination and raise expectations in education
3) Create affordable, accessible therapies focused on progress, not profit
4) Expand research to include diverse autistic individuals
5) Foster acceptance of both person-first and identity-first language

 

 

https://www.dailycal.org/2018/03/15/first-transitions

Keynote at Duke ACE Autism Seminar Series

Neurodiversity Inspired Science and Engineering Fellow Hari Srinivasan will speak at the Duke Center for Autism and Brain Development Autism Seminar Series on April 3rd at 4:00 pm ET, virtually on Zoom. Hari will deliver the Autism Acceptance Month Keynote Entitled "Autism Acceptance Month Keynote: 'Redefine the Table'." Registration is available at the following link: https://ow.ly/frqR50QOpaj

 

Positive Psychology and Autism

I was part of a roundtable discussion on Positive Psychology & Autism, with Dr Dan Tomasulo, Dr Jodie Wilson, Dr Sara Woods and Dr Tayyab Rashid. Hosted by Mary Ann Liebert and Proof Positive. Discussion will result in an article in the peer-reviewed journal, Autism in Adulthood.

https://www.dailycal.org/2018/04/05/access-ramp-volunteering

 

Keynote Speaker at Duke

 

My Keynote for Autism Month at Duke. 

Registration at. 

https://duke.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcrdeqorDIpHdRE-CRvLPHkzKdL_ta7eYq-#/registration

https://globalhealth.duke.edu/events/autism-acceptance-month-keynote-presentation-redefine-table

Autism Acceptance Month Keynote Presentation: "Redefine the Table"

April 3, 2024 | 4:00pm - 5:00pm ET

Zoom Webinar

Please join us for a special event in our 2023-24 Duke Center for Autism Seminar Series! Our Autism Acceptance Month Keynote presenter will be Hari Srinivasan. A self-advocate, Mr. Srinivasan is a PhD student in neuroscience at Vanderbilt University, an alumnus of the University of California, Berkeley, a Paul & Daisy Soros Fellow, a NISE fellow at the Frist Center for Autism & Innovation at Vanderbilt University, and a public member of the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee. At UC Berkeley, Mr. Srinivasan majored in psychology with a minor in disability studies and graduated as a University Medal Finalist, along with a Departmental Citation Award, Highest Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, and Psi Chi. He was an undergraduate Haas Scholar and carried out a year-long study on awe and empathy in autism. He was also lead student instructor for a weekly class on autism, creating and teaching content that covered a myriad of issues across the lifespan. As a student journalist at The Daily Californian, he wrote over 50 articles on both disability and non-disability topics. As part of his graduate program, he will research the sensorimotor space, specifically peripersonal space (PPS), which has practical implications on multiple fronts for autism. He has autism and ADHD. His autism includes limited speaking ability, sensorimotor issues, health issues, OCD, mood dysregulation and social anxiety. His non-academic affiliations span law and policy to research arenas such as IACC, DREDF, ASAN, ASA, INSAR, Autism Europe and The Brain Foundation. PLEASE REGISTER IN ADVANCE AT THE LINK PROVIDED.

Speaker(s): Hari Srinivasan

Duke Event Series: Duke Center for Autism Seminar Series

Duke Event Co-Sponsor(s): Duke Center for Autism and Brain Development, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke Global Health Institute (DGHI), Duke Institute for Brain Sciences (DIBS)

Duke Event Type(s): Diversity/Inclusion, Lecture/Talk, Webcast

https://autismcenter.duke.edu/events/autism-acceptance-month-2024

Autism Acceptance Month 2024

Our keynote for Autism Acceptance Month 2024 will be Hari Srinivasan, presenting "Redefine the Table."

Our keynote presenter for Autism Acceptance Month 2024 will be Hari Srinivasan. A self-advocate, Mr. Srinivasan is a PhD student in neuroscience at Vanderbilt University, an alumnus of the University of California, Berkeley, a Paul & Daisy Soros Fellow, a NISE fellow at the Frist Center for Autism & Innovation at Vanderbilt University, and a public member of the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee.

At UC Berkeley, Mr. Srinivasan majored in psychology with a minor in disability studies and graduated as a University Medal Finalist, along with a Departmental Citation Award, Highest Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, and Psi Chi. He was an undergraduate Haas Scholar and carried out a year-long study on awe and empathy in autism. He was also lead student instructor for a weekly class on autism, creating and teaching content that covered a myriad of issues across the lifespan. As a student journalist at The Daily Californian, he wrote over 50 articles on both disability and non-disability topics.

As part of his graduate program, he will research the sensorimotor space, specifically peripersonal space (PPS), which has practical implications on multiple fronts for autism. He has autism and ADHD. His autism includes limited speaking ability, sensorimotor issues, health issues, OCD, mood dysregulation and social anxiety. His non-academic affiliations span law and policy to research arenas such as IACC, DREDF, ASAN, ASA, INSAR, Autism Europe and The Brain Foundation.

VR Research Cave

With lab mates from Wallace Lab helping set up the VR immersive environment cave being installed at my research lab.

I'm going to get to use this cool tech in my research design to study sensorimotor issues in autism. 

Predictive Coding

Concepts in Sensorimotor Processing

Predictive coding is a theory that suggests our brain constantly makes predictions about the environment based on past experiences and then updates these predictions with incoming sensory information. When there's a mismatch between prediction and sensory input, the brain makes adjustments to reduce this error, improving future predictions. This process is crucial for efficient sensory processing and can influence how we perceive and interact with our surroundings.

Processing loss and grief is even more intense for autistics.

Another excellent and deep article from Hari Srinivasan about how loneliness, lack of support, disruption in schedules and being the child of immigrants, can make processing loss and grief even more intense for autistic people.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/giving-voice/202402/the-spectrum-of-loss-grief-through-the-autistic-lens

 

 https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/giving-voice/202402/the-spectrum-of-loss-grief-through-the-autistic-lens

ADOS-2 Training

ADOS-2 Training Certificate

Related Posts

• Screening & Diagnostic Measures
• ADOS Screening Tool
• DSM v ADOS
• Cognitive Dissonance around ADOS

 

https://www.dailycal.org/2018/04/12/compulsion-complexity

 

Cognitive dissonance on ADOS

I was in an ADOS training this week. I can kind of get at the intended usefulness of this instrument.

But disappointed at a few things that caused a lot of cognitive dissonance for me.

Video of kid who repeated back 2-3 words of one question of the clinician before responding - behavior marked as “echolalia”. But NT folks do this all the time, eg: common tactic in interviews as it buys you time to think. In the NT world this is called "active listening" Yet given as a negative label of echolalia in an autistic child instead of useful social strategy.

"Severe autism has reduced in the last 40 years." Not accurate!! It's just that autism includes many other dx since DSM-V and expanded to accommodate all ages, resulting in a bigger pool, so obviously that %severe looks smaller.

The type of ADOS module used depends on the oral level of the child. Module 1 is the one used for non-verbal/ minimally verbal kids.  Seemed to imply that oral communication mandatory for ADOS, cannot be coded if child uses AAC.

Justification given is that use of AAC means

• "It changes nature of eye contact." 
• "Are they modulating eye contact in some way"
• "It changes the nature of what is happening." 
• They are not making eye contact when they are looking at device.
• They are not doing social engagement with you while looking at device
• There may be some pre-made phrases on device they are making use of

Seems like a fundamental problem if you run the module 1 on a child but say , oh by the way, you can’t communicate unless you can talk with your mouth. 

So my question was whether ADOS then is not applicable to the 20-30% of autistics who have no to little spoken language.

Apparently ‘gestures’ are allowed but how much can you communicate with gestures unless you are fluent with ASL. And it is likely that kids with oral communication issues usually also have motor apraxia so their gesturing ability will not good as well.

Less likely to use AAC. Changes nature of eye contact.  

Changes nature of what is happening.  

Are they modulating eye contact in some way.  

DCC Art Gallery

Disability Cultural Center at UC Berkeley. 

I had 2 poems with accompanying art exhibited 

Kinda cool!!

 

Keynote at Duke ACE on Apr 3.

We are thrilled that Hari Srinivasan will deliver the keynote for our #AutismAcceptance Month Event, Wed, Apr 3 at 4pm EST. Hari Srinivasan is a self-advocate, neuroscience PhD student and @PDSoros Fellow at Vanderbilt, & ACE committee member. Register at

https://duke.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcrdeqorDIpHdRE-CRvLPHkzKdL_ta7eYq-#/registration

 

https://time.com/6299599/autism-research-limited-essay/

 Media Mention by India Autism Center Nayi Disha

 

Interoception

Interoception refers to the perception of internal bodily states and is a critical component of emotional awareness and regulation. In autism, interoceptive experiences can be distinct, potentially influencing the recognition and communication of needs and emotions (Quattrocki & Friston, 2014). This divergence in interoceptive processing underscores the complexity of understanding internal states and managing emotions in autism.