I have a few random thoughts as a parent of an autistic child.  I recognise they are anecdotal.<p>The head doctor of an Autism centre told me there was a strong correlation between autism and genetics. I mentioned my wife (and her father) were almost certainly autistic but never diagnosed. This was confirmed as very common: one side or both usually have a history.<p>My wife and I met at University, doing the same degree. She was had a very logical and analytical mind, which is what attracted me to her.<p>We have an autistic child with a very strong aptitude for language conventions and solid mathematical reasoning (although the real strength is in language which is very common in Aspergers - a now defunct classification that I believe added value in understanding and finding like-minded children who were compatible socially).<p>My wife and I do not look alike, nor are we from a common ethnic background, unless you consider different parts of Western Europe to be sufficiently common genetics.<p>Anecdotally: I have spoken with quite a few Aspergers mums and dads.  Most dads are in engineering or mathematics based jobs.  Most of the mums I can recall are logical and have good analytical skills (employment status varies for mums).  When I&#x27;ve met parents of Autistic children that were not Aspergers, I did not find a consistency of logical thinking.  However, this could be my own selection bias. I&#x27;ve tried not to have bias, but I can&#x27;t discount it.<p>Every person is on the spectrum. There are significant variations in the group defined as Autistic.  It would be interesting to know if this group in the statistics were higher functioning (HFA) and to compare the results from HFA vs non-HFA.<p>What I found interesting is that teachers assumed my child had learning difficulties until we booked a formal assessment (classification: gifted or near gifted).  My father in law was overlooked in a similar way and paid the penalty (at least, career wise).