The Rosie Result Quotes

“I had observed that neurotypicals criticised autistic people for lacking empathy… but seldom made any effort to improve their own empathy towards autistic people.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“In the adult world, an uneven distribution of abilities is more valuable than mediocrity at everything. It is irrelevant to me whether or not my doctor is adept at hitting a ball with a stick—or finding her way to work without looking at street signs—but I would like her to be as proficient as possible in the practice of medicine. Conversely, at school, being other than unobtrusively average in every area (with the exception of sports) is a distinct disadvantage.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“See how it works? When men are the majority, they make the rules; when they're a minority they get special treatment.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“It’s better to learn from people who have had to work hard to achieve their skills, rather than the naturally talented.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“None of us is expert in all situations. It is a sign of intelligence to recognize our limitations and of maturity to seek help when required.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Rational argument seldom overcame irrational resistance.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Lack of coolness can be pretty cool.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Get this in your head, you are not responsible for the consequences of other people's decisions.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Academics always think they can do any job better, until they try it.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Resilience appeared to be the equivalent of toughening up, which, when I was a child, was a general excuse for bullying.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“It seems to me that you've been giving a lot of encouragement to his friend, but you've been critical of him. Maybe that's because you're more concerned about his development than hers, but all he's going to hear at his age is the criticism. And he'll translate that as you loving him less than her.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“In the adult world, an uneven distribution of abilities is more valuable than mediocrity at everything. It is irrelevant to me whether or not my doctor is adept at hitting a ball with a stick – or finding her way to work without looking at street signs – but I would like her to be as proficient as possible in the practice of medicine. Conversely, at school, being other than unobtrusively average in every area (with the exception of sport) is a distinct disadvantage.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“I don’t want him regarding women as some other species.” I pointed out that I had attended a co-educational public school and had ended up regarding the majority of the human race as another species.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Kellie’s concern with Hudson being coached seemed unreasonable. None of us is expert in all situations. It is a sign of intelligence to recognize our limitations and of maturity to seek help when required. The school had zero problem with him being coached in the physical aspects of the cross-country run but apparently would have thought him deficient if he had sought help with the psychological component.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“You both think her work’s more important than me?” “At a global level, yes. If it saves at least two lives, which is likely, then rationally it’s more important. But your mother and I place a huge weighting on your welfare because you’re our son. Fortunately, you have two parents, and I can function as backup. I can perform all tasks that your mother performs.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“We’ll have to decide if that’s a mandatory requirement or negotiable. If it’s negotiable then we have more scope for innovative solutions.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“I had long ago learned that withholding information from Rosie was unwise. The reduction in her stress levels was more than offset by the increase when she detected deceit.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Most people found dissection unpleasant, yet it was important to be able to perform unpleasant tasks. Changing diapers, cleaning up vomit, and hugging relatives were life skills.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“It is a sign of intelligence to recognise our limitations and of maturity to seek help when required.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“If you’re intellectually capable, it’s advisable to become an expert on your own body and treatments,’ I said. ‘Medical practitioners observe you far less frequently than you observe yourself. Also, they care less. With children and people with diminished cognitive function, we may need to take that role on their behalf.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Rationally, it seems the obvious thing to do. Which is frequently a trap in situations involving humans.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“For many years I had ignored sports, but Dave had encouraged an interest in baseball and I had slowly acquired the ability to engage emotionally with the outcome of a contest that had no direct bearing on my life.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“It is traditional to encourage questions, but they typically reflect the concerns of one student and are of minimal relevance to the rest of the class.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“People don’t always mention their motivations. They don’t always know them. That’s why I have a job.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“It would have been a disaster if Laszlo’s Asperger’s had prevented him from contributing to a cancer cure; if Rosie’s status as a mother had resulted in her removal from the bipolar-disorder project; and if Hudson’s autistic traits had blocked his journey to high school, human-rights advocate, and possibly—as suggested by the anonymous voice at the cross-country race—prime minister, where he would have the power to change the system. And if Laura and I had been prevented from changing the world by our failure to resolve a personal issue.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Humans instinctively trust personal experience over research”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“This was becoming ridiculous. Vast numbers of questions were unanswered, vast amounts of information needed to be exchanged, and now Claudia was introducing further topics. It was fortunate that I was among friends and family, or I would have had some sort of brain-overload-related breakdown. We needed to prioritize the issues to deal with them one by one.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“This is likely to be the most important work I - we - will ever do. One day, out of this lab, is going to come something that changes the world for the better, in a big way... And all of us are going to be a part of it. Even if it doesn't come out of this lab, we'll be part of the global effort, part of the community that pulls it off...
We're not going to let anything smaller than that stand in our way. If we have problems - with technology, with resources, with each other - we solve them, we get past them, and we're never afraid to ask for help to do that, because what we're creating matters so much more.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“I was a scientist. I was autistic. These were my key strengths.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result

“Any break from the pressure to fit in was to be exploited without hesitation.”
― Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Result