Hans Asperger was born on February 18, 1906. February 18th has become International Asperger’s Day in honor of this man who identified a certain breed of humans like himself. He had difficulty finding friends and was considered a lonely, remote child. He died on October 21, 1980 at age 74. His work on Asperger’s syndrome didn’t become popular until a year after he died. Most things that remain famous start doing so after the author or artist is dead.
Postscript added on 1.19.16 – For those who are interesting in getting a highly detailed and accurate eye-opening account of the history on Aspergers, read the award winning 544 page book by Steve Silberman titled NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity. He doesn’t say as much about its future as he does about its past. However, reading the history informs readers enough for them to get an excellent perspective of how autism and Aspergers is handled by society. The first edition came out on August 25, 2015.