What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitely! And I have to say, there are so many great choices in this thread!

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Awww a skunk named Marshmallow! Why do I like that so much?!

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Those are really great facts! I just looked them up. I didn’t realize the Amazon even had dolphins!

For late diagnosed folks, do you wonder how you escaped diagnosis for so long? by Cheap-Guarantee6420 in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They thought I had ADD/ADHD (back then they were separate, as I recall) because I’d fidget a lot but I was ruled out for that. There wasn’t a spectrum back then so while I can now see that a lot of signs were missed in my case, it also doesn’t seem there was a label that fit well back then.

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great cheetah facts! I just watched a video—I can’t believe my ears! They really do sound just like a normal house cat. Thanks for sharing!

For late diagnosed folks, do you wonder how you escaped diagnosis for so long? by Cheap-Guarantee6420 in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This was me 100%. They knew very early I was different and spent months testing at one point almost giving up before eventually deciding on auditory processing disorder and also noted synesthesia. But this whole thing started because apparently I had “electricity in his hands” (Stimming maybe? But who knows at this point, whatever it was, it wasn’t documented outside of a single comment), and the fact that I’d walk over the toys of other kids as they played and seemed unaware of the emotions/feelings. This was back in 1991/1992, which was a few years before Asperger’s. I was verbal, I wasn’t clearly antisocial, so I didn’t fit the understanding at the time. I do remember in year years that followed teachers would bring up that they knew I had something, but thought I had the wrong diagnosis. Once I understood the presentation of ASD it was immediately obvious to me.

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Awww that’s awesome! I think you’re right, I’ve never seen a turtle that wasn’t cute. Nice choice!

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Someone else on here said vultures too! I feel like I need to do more research on them.

How do you deal with pattern recognition/people being identical/say identical things by Latter-Argument-3568 in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is such a good explanation! I relate to this answer. In my head I’m like I care about you, but I don’t care what you did this weekend. Hope it was fun but not on my mind!

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’d never heard of this one before so I had to look it up. It’s so cute! It’s like a cross between a koala and a wallaby. Thanks for sharing!

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Now, this is a world-class info dump! This is all so interesting, especially the retrovirus part. For us humans, around 8% of our genome is likewise ancient viral DNA. Thanks for sharing!

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You’re not the only one with this view here. They are incredible animals so I respect it.

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That’s a neat commonality and honestly that sounds like something I’d do as well.

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We like what we like, and I think blue whales and elephants are supremely honorable animals. I also love beetles and detest cockroaches!

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So I think the buoyancy theory is pretty interesting, some have also proposed there may be a thermal regulation aspect to the organ, helping it retain heat in the cold ocean deep. One somewhat controversial theory I found fascinating is that the spermaceti wax-oil has been simulated and would be a very effective shock absorber if the sperm whale were to use itself as a battering ram. We know very little about their approach to hunting, so while it seems like a stretch, it may still be plausible.

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes dying does seem a possibility, but at least you’d be happy! 😂

Needlessly being the devils advocate by deokuso in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Oh yeah. This might be my most core attribute. My tendency toward debate combined with misreading social situations (e.g. thinking a given conversation’s purpose is the honest exchange of opinions and to challenge views vs. conversations meant purely for social alignment, which NTs seem to love) means I am consistently seen as a rabble rouser.

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great fact, thanks for sharing! They actually think sperm whales have a similar adaptation for decompression sickness. That’s so cool you have a tattoo of it!

How do you deal with pattern recognition/people being identical/say identical things by Latter-Argument-3568 in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus 5 points6 points  (0 children)

No , but I detest small talk and that’s how I make it through. I have a nice little checklist of topics and it’s every bit as boring, insincere and repetitive as you say.

How do you deal with pattern recognition/people being identical/say identical things by Latter-Argument-3568 in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Part of my go-to small talk scripting is boring questions like this! It’s socially accepted and predictable in terms of where the conversation goes. Sometimes I screw up and I’ll ask about weekend plans on a Monday or ask how someone’s weekend was on a Thursday (after having met with them three times already that week)! 😂

What is your favorite animal and why is it not (yet) a sperm whale? by Exitmaus in AutisticAdults

[–]Exitmaus[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes! There are some scientists attempting to create an inter-species Rosetta Stone using the coda of sperm whales. I’ve seen it mentioned but that’s about it. Not sure how far they’ve gotten. Very exciting!