| I first postulated my hypothesis concerning a link between the autism spectrum and atheism back in 2007 in response to a post by PZ Myers at Pharyngula in which he and other atheists were bragging about their relatively high Asperger's Quotient scores. I wrote: "Obviously, more comprehensive and scientific tests would be advised before any definite conclusion can be reached, but these initial observations do appear to indicate a possibility that atheism could be nothing more than a minor mental disorder." |
In that connection it may be noted that alleles for autism are reported to overlap broadly with alleles for high intelligence.
This correlation supports the notion that atheism is a consequence of rational thought. Certainly, there's little rational basis for theism, other than the fact that a society without a religion is doomed to self-destruction as is evident in the West today.
Unfortunately, it requires more than a couple of extra IQ points to recognize the necessity of irrational faith. It takes a civilization and an proper education system, both of which the Western nations have now jettisoned.
