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| Steve Silberman | |
Steve Silberman, a science journalist "whose award-winning book about the history of autism helped broaden the public's understanding of that often-misunderstood condition and those diagnosed with it," died August 29, the New York Times reported. He was 66.
In 2000, Silberman, who was then a contributing editor at Wired magazine, began an investigation that would become his 2001 Wired article "The Geek Syndrome," in which he explored the increase in autism diagnoses in California; the early research into autism by Hans Asperger, a pediatrician in Vienna, and Leo Kanner, a child psychiatrist at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore; and the range of behaviors exhibited by autistic children.
Although he received many e-mails from autistic people and parents, as well as requests from literary agents, to expand the article into a book, he wasn't ready yet. The Times noted that it took nearly eight years--and prodding from his friend Oliver Sacks, the neurologist and author, among others--for him to begin NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity (2015). The book won the Samuel Johnson (now the Baillie Gifford) Prize for Nonfiction.
One of those children featured in the book was Leo Rosa, with whom Silberman spent significant time. In an interview, Leo's mother, Shannon Des Roches Rosa, a founder of the news website Thinking Person's Guide to Autism, said, "Steve changed the conversation around autism. He really popularized the idea that autistic people aren't broken and are part of the tapestry of humanity. It's a unique condition that's always been here, and we need to do better by autistic people than punishing them for having different brains."
Ari Ne'eman, founder and former executive director of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, noted that Silberman "told our story in a way that hasn't been done in the past by placing autistic people at the center. He spent time with autistic people at conferences and gatherings. He had a real respect for autistic culture."
Silberman's encyclopedic knowledge of the Grateful Dead brought him into the band's inner circle of archivists, leading him to write liner notes for several of albums, along with the book Skeleton Key: A Dictionary for Deadheads (1994) with David Shenk.
At his death, Silberman had been working on a book about breakthroughs in the treatment of cystic fibrosis that, under the title The Taste of Salt, was to be published in 2026. Lucia Watson, v-p and editor-in-chief of the PRH imprint Avery, said the manuscript was incomplete and the book would not be published, but the partial manuscript "showcased Steve's incredible ability to weave together immersive storytelling and fascinating science."
Clare Drysdale, Atlantic Books associate publisher, told the Bookseller: "Steve's deep empathy shone through on every page of NeuroTribes. He was endlessly curious and very careful not to overstep in his unusual role as a neurotypical spokesperson for the autistic community, a position he regarded as an absolute privilege. He was unbelievably generous, forever offering blurbs to help less-established writers on their way, and an absolute delight to work with. We are all diminished by his loss and send our deepest sympathies to his family.”