ABOVE: ILLUSTRATION BY CINYEE CHIU
For years, systems scientist Dora Raymaker and physician Christina Nicolaidis have spent Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Eve together. Though they are not exactly family, they are close, both figuratively and (in pre-pandemic times) literally: They are research collaborators, and their offices at Portland State University in Oregon are next to each other. Raymaker, who is autistic, and Nicolaidis, who is not, are best friends and use the same words to describe their connection: “We share a brain.”
Partnerships like that of the Portland pair are key to advancing autism research. In addition to the bond between Raymaker and Nicolaidis, what makes the collaboration work is that their brains are not the same. Raymaker brings a perspective to their projects that is different from that of a non-autistic person, and she acts as a bridge between the autism and research communities. To Nicolaidis, Raymaker’s input ...
