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Not to be confused with Baronet.

Royal, noble and chivalric ranks

Emperor & Empress consort Empress & Emperor consort

Empress dowager or Empress mother

King & Queen consort or Princess consort Queen & King consort or Prince consort

Queen dowager or Queen mother Princess dowager or Princess mother

Grand Duke & Grand Duchess Grand Prince & Grand Princess

Viceroy & Vicereine

Archduke & Archduchess Infante & Infanta

Duke & Duchess Prince & Princess

Marquess & Marchioness Marquis & Marquise Margrave & Margravine

Count & Countess Earl & Countess

Viscount & Viscountess

Baron & Baroness Freiherr & Freifrau

Baronet & Baronetess Hereditary Knight, Ritter

Knight & Dame

Nobile, Edler von

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A British Baron's coronet.

Baron is a title of nobility. In the kingdom of England, the medieval Latin word baro, baronis, was used originally to denote a tenant-in-chief of the early Norman kings, who held his lands by the feudal tenure of "barony", in Latin per baroniam, and who was entitled to attend the Great Council which by the 13th century had developed into the Parliament of England.^[1]

The title was quite common in most European countries often in a slightly modified form. In Italian, the word used was Barone. The corresponding title in the Holy Roman Empire was Freiherr.

Etymology[link]

The word baron comes from the Old French baron, from a Late Latin baro "man; servant, soldier, mercenary" (so used in Salic Law; Alemannic Law has barus in the same sense). Isidore in the 7th century thought the word was from Greek βαρύς "heavy" (because of the "heavy work" done by mercenaries), but the word is presumably of Old Frankish origin, cognate with Old English beorn meaning "warrior, nobleman"). Cornutus in the first century already reports a word barones which he took to be of Gaulish origin. He glosses it as meaning servos militum and explains it as meaning "stupid", by reference to classical Latin bāro "simpleton, dunce";^[2] because of this early reference, the word has also been suggested to derive from an otherwise unknown Celtic *bar, but OED takes this to be "a figment".^[3]

Barons in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth[link]

In the Peerage of the United Kingdom, barons form the lowest rank, placed immediately below viscounts. A female of baronial rank has the title baroness. Feudal baronies (or "baronies by tenure") are now obsolete in England and without any legal force but any such historical titles are held in gross, that is to say are deemed to be enveloped within a more modern extant peerage title also held by the holder, sometimes along with vestigial manorial rights and tenures by grand serjeanty.

William I introduced "baron" as a rank in England to distinguish the men who had pledged their loyalty to him under the feudal system. Previously, in the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England, the king's companions held the title of earl and in Scotland, the title of thane. All who held their feudal barony "in-chief of the king", that is with the king as his immediate overlord, became alike barones regis ("barons of the king"), bound to perform a stipulated annual military service, and obliged to attend his council. Eventually the greatest of the nobles, especially those in the marches, such as the Earls of Chester or the Bishops of Durham, whose territories were often deemed palatinate, that is to say "worthy of a prince", might refer to their own tenants as "barons", where lesser magnates spoke simply of their "men" (homines).

The robe worn by a baron during his creation ceremony in 17th-century Britain, engraved by Wenceslas Hollar.

Initially those who held land directly from the king by military service, from earls downwards, all bore alike the title of baron, which was thus the factor uniting all members of the ancient baronage as peers one of another. Under King Henry II(1135-1154), the Dialogus de Scaccario already distinguished between greater barons, who held per baroniam by knight's service, and lesser barons, who held manors. Technically, Lords of Manors are barons, or freemen, however they do not use the term as a title. John Selden in his esteemed work Titles of Honour writes, "The word Baro (Latin for Baron) hath been also so much communicated, that not only all Lords of Mannors have been from antient time, and are at this day called sometimes Barons (as in the stile of their Court Barons, which is Curia Baronis, &c. And I have read hors de son Barony in a barr to an Avowry for hors de son fee) But also the Judges of the Exchequer have it from antient time fixed on them."^[4] Within a century of the Norman Conquest of 1066, as in the case of Thomas Becket in 1164, there arose the practice of sending to each greater baron a personal summons demanding his attendance at the King's Council, which evolved into the Parliament and later into the House of Lords, whilst as was stipulated in Magna Carta of 1215, the lesser barons of each county would receive a single summons as a group through the sheriff, and representatives only from their number would be elected to attend on behalf of the group. These representatives developed into the Knights of the Shire, elected by the County Court presided over by the sheriff, who themselves formed the precursor of the House of Commons. Thus appeared a definite distinction, which eventually had the effect of restricting to the greater barons alone the privileges and duties of peerage.

Later, the king started to create new baronies in one of two ways: by a writ of summons directing a chosen man to attend Parliament, and in an even later development by letters patent. Writs of summons became the normal method in medieval times, displacing the method of feudal barony, but creation of baronies by letters patent is the sole method adopted in modern times. Since the adoption of summons by writ, baronies thus no longer relate directly to land-holding, and thus no more feudal baronies needed thenceforth to be created. Following the Modus Tenendi Parliamenta of 1419, the Tenures Abolition Act 1660, the Feudal Tenure Act (1662), and the Fines and Recoveries Act of 1834, titles of feudal barony became obsolete and without legal force.

In the twentieth century Britain introduced the concept of non-hereditary life peers. All appointees to this distinction have been at the rank of baron. Life-peers are not counted as part of the aristocracy although in accordance with the tradition applied to hereditary peers they too are formally addressed in parliament by their peers as "The Noble Lord".

In addition, baronies are often used by their holders as subsidiary titles, for example as courtesy titles for the son and heir of an Earl or higher peer.

Scotland[link]

A Scottish Baron's helmet.

In Scotland, the rank of baron is a rank of the ancient feudal nobility of Scotland and refers to a holder of a feudal barony, formerly a feudal superiority over a proper territorial entity erected into a free barony by a Crown Charter, and is not usually considered a rank of Peerage; as such it can be transferred by either inheritance or conveyance.

The Scottish equivalent of an English baron is a Lord of Parliament.

Style of address[link]

Normally one refers to or addresses Baron [X] as Lord [X] and his wife as Lady [X]. In the case of women who hold baronies in their own right, they can be referred to as Baroness [X] as well as Lady [X]. In direct address, they can also be referred to as My Lord, Your Lordship, or Your Ladyship, but never as My Lady (except in the case of a female judge). The husband of a Baroness in her own right does not receive any style in her right. Children of Barons and Baronesses in their own right, whether hereditary or for life, have the style The Honourable [Forename] [Surname]. After the death of the father or mother, the child may continue to use the style Honourable.

Scottish feudal barons style their surnames similarly to Clan Chiefs, with the name of their barony following their name, as in John Smith of Edinburgh or John Smith, Baron of Edinburgh.^[5] Most formally, and in writing, they are styled as The Much Honoured Baron of Edinburgh. Their wives are styled Lady Edinburgh, or The Baroness of Edinburgh. The phrase Lady of Edinburgh is wrong, if the lady in question does not hold a Scottish barony in her own right. Orally, Scottish barons may be addressed with the name of their barony, as in Edinburgh or else as Baron without anything else following, which if present would suggest a peerage barony. Informally, when referring to a Scots feudal baron in the third person, the name Laird of [X] is used or simply [X].

Non-Scottish barons are styled The Right Honourable The Lord [Barony]. Barons' wives are styled The Right Honourable The Lady [Barony]. Baronesses in their own right are either titled The Right Honourable The Baroness [Barony] or The Right Honourable The Lady [Barony], mainly based on personal preference (e.g., Margaret, Lady Thatcher and Brenda, Baroness Hale, both created baronesses in their own right). Note the order of the names. 'Lady Margaret Thatcher' would denote that she was the daughter of an earl, marquess or duke. Right Honourable is frequently abbreviated to Rt Hon. When referred to by the Sovereign in public instruments, The Right Honourable is changed to Our right trusty and well-beloved, with counsellor attached if they are a Privy Counsellor.

Courtesy barons are styled simply Lord [Barony], and their wives are Lady [Barony]. The style of Right Honourable and/or the article "The" in front of the title is not used for them.

Coronet[link]

A baron, in the peerage of England and Wales, Great Britain, (Northern) Ireland, or the United kingdom, or lord, in the peerage of Scotland, is entitled to a coronet bearing six silver balls (called pearls, but never real pearls) around the rim, equally spaced and all of equal size and height. The rim itself is neither jewelled, nor "chased" (which is the case for the coronets of peers of higher degree).

The actual coronet is mostly worn on certain ceremonial occasions, such as the coronation of a new monarch, but a baron can bear his coronet of rank on his coat of arms above the shield. In heraldry, the baron's coronet is shown with four of the balls visible.

Scottish feudal barons were entitled to a red cap of maintenance (chapeau) turned up ermine if petitioning for a grant or matriculation of a coat of arms between the 1930s and 2004. This chapeau is identical to the red cap worn by an English baron, but without the silver balls or gilt. This is sometimes depicted in armorial paintings between the shield and the helmet. Additionally, if the baron is the head of a family he may include a chiefly coronet which is similar to a ducal coronet, but with four strawberry leaves. Because the chapeau was a relatively recent innovation, a number of ancient Arms of Scottish feudal barons do not display the chapeau. Now Scottish feudal barons are principally recognised by the baron's helm, which in Scotland is a steel helmet with grille of three grilles, garnished in gold. Occasionally the great tilting-helm garnished with gold is shown, or a helmet befitting a higher rank, if held.^[6]

Continental Europe[link]

The Low Countries[link]

In the medieval era, some allodial and enfiefed lands held by nobles were created or recognized as baronies by the Holy Roman Emperors, within whose realm most of the Low Countries lay. Subsequently, the Habsburgs continued to confer the baronial title in the Southern Netherlands, first as kings of Spain and then, again, as emperors until abolition of the Holy Roman Empire, but these had become titular elevations rather than grants of new territory.

In the Netherlands after 1815, titles of baron authorized by previous monarchs (except those of the Napoleonic Kingdom of Holland) were usually recognized by the Dutch kings. But such recognition was not automatic, having to be authenticated by the Supreme Council of Nobility and then approved by the sovereign. This ceased to be possible after the Dutch constitution was revised in 1983. More than one hundred Dutch baronial families have been recognized. The title is usually inherited by all males descended patrilineally from the original recipient of the title, although in a few noble families baron is the title of cadet family members, while in a few others it is heritable according to primogeniture.

After its secession in 1830, Belgium incorporated into its nobility all titles of baron borne by Belgian citizens which had been recognized by the Netherlands since 1815. In addition, its monarchs have since created or recognized other titles of baron, and the sovereign continues to exercise the prerogative to confer baronial and other titles of nobility.

Luxembourg's monarch retains the right to confer the baronial title. Two of the grand duchy's prime ministers inherited baronial titles that were used during their tenures in office, Victor de Tornaco and Félix de Blochausen.

France[link]

During the Ancien Régime, French baronies were very much like Scottish ones. Feudal landholders were entitled to style themselves baron if they were nobles; a roturier (commoner) could only be a seigneur de la baronnie (lord of the barony). These baronies could be sold freely, until the abolition of feudalism in 1789. The title of baron was assumed as a titre de courtoisie by many nobles, both members of the Nobles of the Robe and cadets of Nobles of the Sword who had no legal right to any noble title. Napoléon created a new empire nobility, in which baron was the second lowest title. The titles followed a male-only line of descent and could not be purchased. In 1815, King Louis XVIII created a new peerage system based on the British model. Baron-peer was the lowest title, but the heirs to pre-1789 barons could remain barons, as could the elder sons of viscount-peers and younger sons of count-peers. This peerage was abolished in 1848, though some titles still exist today.

Germany[link]

In pre-republican Germany all the knightly families of the Holy Roman Empire (sometimes distinguished by the prefix von or zu) eventually were recognised as of baronial rank, although Ritter is the literal translation for "knight", and persons who held that title enjoyed a distinct, but lower, rank in Germany's nobility than barons (Freiherren). Families which had always held this status were called "original nobility" (Uradel), and were heraldically entitled to a three pointed coronet. Families which had been ennobled at a definite point in time (Briefadel or "nobility by patent") had seven points on their coronet. These families held their fief in vassalage from a suzerain. The holder of an allodial (i.e. suzerain-free) barony was thus called a Free Lord, or Freiherr. Subsequently, sovereigns in Germany conferred the title of Freiherr as a rank in the nobility, without implication of allodial or feudal status.

Today there is no legal privilege associated with hereditary titles in Germany, and in Austria they have been banned (though persisting in social use). In republican Germany, Freiherr and Baron remain heritable only as part of the legal surname, (and may thereby be transmitted by females to their husbands and children, without implication of nobility).

In Luxembourg and Liechtenstein (where German is the official language), barons remain members of the recognized nobility, and the sovereigns retain authority to confer the title (morganatic cadets of the princely dynasty received the title Baron of Lanskron, using both "Freiherr" and "Baron" for different members of this branch).

Generally, all legitimate males of a German baronial family inherit the title Freiherr or Baron from birth, as well as all legitimate daughters inherit the title of Freiin or Baroness. As a result, German barons have been more numerous than those of, e.g., France, Spain, and the United Kingdom, where primogeniture prevails.

Nordic countries[link]

The corresponding title is Baron in the Danish nobility and that of Norway, Friherre in the Swedish nobility, and Vapaaherra in the nobility of Finland.

In the beginning, Finnish nobles were all without honorific titulature, and known simply as lords. Since the Middle Ages, each head of a noble family had been entitled to a vote in any of Finland's provincial diets whenever held, as in the realm's Herrainpäivät, later Aatelissääty of the Riksdag of the Estates. In 1561, Sweden's King Eric XIV granted the hereditary titles of count and vapaaherra to some of these, but not all. Although their cadet family members were not entitled to vote or sit in the Riksdag, they were legally entitled to the same title as the head of the family, but in customary address they became Paroni or Paronitar. Theoretically, in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, families elevated to vapaaherra status were granted a barony in fief, enjoying some rights of taxation and judicial authority. Subsequently, the "barony" was titular, usually attached to a family property, which was sometimes entailed. Their exemptions from taxes on landed properties continued into the twentieth century, although in the nineteenth century tax reforms narrowed this privilege. Nobility creations continued until 1917, the end of Finland's grand ducal monarchy.

Spain[link]

In Spain the title follows Vizconde in the noble hierarchy, and ranks above Señor. Baronesa is the feminine form, for the wife of a baron or for a woman who has been granted the title in her own right. In general, titles of baron created before the nineteenth century originate from the Crown of Aragon. Barons lost territorial jurisdiction around the middle of the nineteenth century, and from then on the title became purely honorific. Although most barons have not also held the rank of grandeza, the title has been conferred in conjunction with the grandeza. The sovereign continues to grant baronial titles.

Italy[link]

In Italy barone was the lowest rank of feudal nobility except for that of signore or vassallo (lord of the manor). The title of baron was most generally introduced into southern Italy (including Sicily) by the Normans during the 11th century. Whereas originally a barony might consist of two or more manors, by 1700 we see what were formerly single manors erected into baronies, counties or even marquisates. Since the early 1800s, when feudalism was abolished in the various Italian states, it has often been granted as a simple hereditary title without any territorial designation or predicato. The untitled younger son of a baron is a nobile dei baroni and in informal usage might be called a baron, while certain baronies devolve to heirs male general. Since 1948 titles of nobility have not been recognised by the Italian state. In the absence of a nobiliary or heraldic authority in Italy there are, in fact, numerous persons who claim to be barons or counts without any basis for such claims. Baron and noble (nobile) are hereditary titles and, as such, could only be created or recognised by the kings of Italy or (before 1860) the pre-unitary Italian states such as the Two Sicilies, Tuscany, Parma or Modena, or by the Holy See (Vatican) or the Republic of San Marino. Beginning around 1800, a number of signori (lords of the manor) began to style themselves barone but in many cases this was not sanctioned legally by decree, while there was even less justification in the holder of any large (non-feudal) landed estate calling himself a baron. Unfortunately, both were common practices. In most of peninsular Italy the widespread medieval introduction of the of the title was Longobardic, while in Sicily and Sardinia it was coeval with Norman rule some centuries later, and one referred to the baronage when speaking of landed nobles generally.

Other[link]

Like other major Western noble titles, baron is sometimes used to render certain titles in non-western languages with their own traditions, even though they are necessarily historically unrelated and thus hard to compare, which are considered 'equivalent' in relative rank.

This is the case with China's nán (男), hereditary title of nobility of the fifth rank (男爵), as well as its derivatives and adaptations:

• the Indian equivalent damapati
• the Japanese equivalent danshaku (だんしゃく, 男爵)
• the Georgian equivalent samefo aznauri
• the Korean equivalent namjak (남작, 男爵)
• the Manchu equivalent ashan-i hafan
• the Vietnamese equivalent nam tước
• the Romanian equivalent Baroneasă for Baroness.

In some republics of continental Europe, the unofficial title of "Baron" retains a purely social prestige, with no particular political privileges.

In the Polynesian island monarchy of Tonga, as opposed to the situation in Europe, barons are granted this imported title (in English), alongside traditional chiefly styles, and continue to hold and exercise some political power.

See also[link]

• Barony (country subdivision)
• Scottish feudal barony
• English feudal barony
• Irish feudal barony
• Feudalism
• Fief
• Lord
• List of baronies in the peerages of the British Isles
• List of Scottish feudal baronies
• Scottish feudal lordship
• Marcher Lord
• List of Marcher lordships
• Tenures Abolition Act 1660
• Land tenure
• Land tenure in England
• Honour (feudal land tenure)

Sources[link]

• Sanders, I. J. English Baronies: A Study of their Origin and Descent, 1086–1327. Clarendon Press, 1960.
• Round, J. Horace, "The House of Lords", published in: "Peerage and Pedigree, Studies in Peerage Law and Family History", Vol.1, London, 1910, pp.324-362
• Heraldica
• The Royal Ark
•  Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Baron". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

References[link]

This page or section lists people that share the same given name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change that link to point directly to the intended article.

Sugar Aloes, aka Michael Anthony Osuana, is a prominent Calypsonian hailing from Trinidad and Tobago. Singing local hits such as "Party Time" and parang favorite "Juanita", Aloes has amassed a fan base of at least three generations of Trinidadians and calypso lovers region-wide. Sugar Aloes is also famous for his songs "I love being me" and "Signs of the end of Time". On Sunday February 3, 2008 Michael Anthony Osuana, aka Sugar Aloes, was crowned the winner of the Calypso Monarch 2008 Competition at Queens Park Oval in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad. He won this competition singing a song entitled "Look in the Mirrow". In this song, he made some sarcastic remarks about government, which maintained a certain degree of humour.< [1] [2] [3]

This Trinidadian biographical article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

This article on a Caribbean musician is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Simon Baron-Cohen
Born	(1958-08-15) 15 August 1958 (age 53) London, England
Residence	England
Citizenship	British and Canadian
Nationality	British
Fields	Psychologist
Institutions	University of Cambridge
Alma mater	New College, Oxford King's College London University College London
Doctoral advisor	Uta Frith
Known for	Autism research

Simon Baron-Cohen FBA^[1] (born 15 August 1958) is professor of Developmental Psychopathology in the Departments of Psychiatry and Experimental Psychology at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. He is the Director of the University's Autism Research Centre,^[2] and a Fellow of Trinity College.^[3] He is best known for his work on autism, including his early theory that autism involves degrees of "mind-blindness" (or delays in the development of theory of mind); and his later theory that autism is an extreme form of the "male brain", which involved a re-conceptualisation of typical psychological sex differences in terms of empathizing–systemizing theory.

Education[link]

Baron-Cohen completed an MA in Human Sciences at New College, Oxford, and an MPhil in Clinical Psychology at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London. He did his PhD in Psychology at University College London under the supervision of Uta Frith.

Research areas[link]

Baron-Cohen was a co-author of the first study to show that children with autism have delays in the development of a theory of mind (ToM) (Cognition, 1985).^[4]

Baron-Cohen’s research over the subsequent 10 years provided much of the evidence for the ToM deficit, culminating in two edited anthologies (Understanding Other Minds, 1993, and 2000). His research group have linked the origins of the ToM deficit to joint attention (Brit J. Dev Psychol, 1987) and showed that absence of joint attention at 18 months is a predictor of later autism (British Journal of Psychiatry, 1992, 1996).^[5] Based on these and other findings, he proposed a model of the development of ‘mindreading’ in his widely cited monograph (Mindblindness, 1995 MIT Press). Baron-Cohen has also conducted brain imaging work examining the autistic brain. These studies highlighted differences between the typical and autistic brain in the orbitofrontal cortex (Brit. J. Psychiatry, 1994) PMID 7866679 and the amygdala (Euro. J. Neuroscience, 1999), the latter leading him to propose the amygdala theory of autism (Neurosci. Behav. Rev. 2000). In 2010, with his former doctoral student Michael Lombardo, they showed that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex does not differentiate self from other in autism and accounts for variation in social deficits.^[6] In 2011, with Lombardo, they also showed that the right temporoparietal junction was hypoactive in autism during ToM tasks and also accounted for variation in social deficits.^[7]

In the late 1990s Baron-Cohen developed the hypothesis that typical sex differences may provide a neurobiological and psychological understanding of autism (the empathizing–systemizing theory). The theory proposes that autism is an extreme of the male brain (J. Cog. Neurosci, 1997; TICS, 2002). This led to him situating ToM within the broader domain of empathy, and to the development of a new construct (systemizing). The extreme male brain (EMB) theory of autism sees autism as being on a continuum with individual differences in the general population (sex differences). Baron-Cohen proposes that the cause of autism at a biological level may be hyper-masculinization. This hypothesis posits that certain features of autism (‘obsessions’ and repetitive behaviour, previously regarded as ‘purposeless’) as being highly purposive, intelligent (hyper-systemizing), and a sign of a different way of thinking. He wrote a popular book on the topic of sex differences and its relationship to autism (The Essential Difference, 2003).

Baron-Cohen launched the Cambridge Longitudinal Foetal Testosterone (FT) Project in the late 1990s, a research program following children of mothers who had amniocentesis. This aimed to study the effects of individual differences in FT on later child development. This is summarised in a technical monograph (Prenatal Testosterone in Mind, 2004 MIT Press). This study revealed that FT is negatively correlated with social and language development, and is positively correlated with attention to detail and a number of autistic traits (Brit. J. Psychology, 2009). His work studying FT led him to test the hyper-masculinization of autism at the psychometric level and in regard to developmental neurobiology (Science, 2005; PLOS Biology, 2011). The role of foetal testosterone in autism remains to be assessed in clinical cases, but gains some support from the recent discovery from Baron-Cohen's lab of androgen-related genes being associated with autistic traits, empathy, and Asperger Syndrome (Autism Research, 2009), and from the finding that a precursor to testosterone (androstenedione) is elevated in autism (Psychoneuroendocrinology, 2011). With Mike Lombardo he conducted the first study in humans of where FT influences grey matter in the brain (J. Neuroscience 2012). He is currently collaborating with the Danish Biobank to test if FT is elevated in people who go on to develop autism.

Baron-Cohen has developed software for special education (Mindreading)^[8] and an animation series to teach children with autism to recognise and understand emotions (The Transporters)^[9] both of which were BAFTA nominated and have been scientifically evaluated to show that they have benefit to emotional and social learning in autism. Baron-Cohen's work was applied to intervention in the book "Teaching Children With Autism To Mindread" (Wiley, 1997).

Baron-Cohen has worked in another research area: synaesthesia, a neurological condition in which a sensation in one modality (e.g., hearing) triggers a perception in another modality (e.g., colour). He and his colleagues were the first to develop the Test of Genuineness (Perception, 1987) and suggest that synaesthesia is the result of a breakdown in modularity (Perception, 1993). They were also the first to confirm the existence of synaesthesia using neuroimaging (Brain, 1995 and Nature Neuroscience, 1999) and to demonstrate that it is a heritable condition, conducting the first genetic study of synaesthesia (Perception, 1996; American Journal of Human Genetics, 2009).

Baron-Cohen is co-editor in chief of the journal Molecular Autism.^[10] and is Chair of the NICE Guideline Development Group for adults with autism.

Media[link]

Baron-Cohen appeared on Private Passions, on 13 April 2008, the biographical music discussion programme hosted by Michael Berkeley on BBC Radio 3.^[11]

He was featured on the BBC news page calling for an ethical debate on the issue of a prenatal test for autism, arguing it is important to debate this in advance of such a test existing, given the pace of biomedical research in autism.^[12] In an article in 2000 (Development and Psychopathology) Baron-Cohen argued that high-functioning autism or Asperger Syndrome need not just lead to disability, but can also lead to talent.^[13] He has found over 25 years that the media largely report his work accurately but in March 2009, he wrote a piece in New Scientist on the misrepresentation over his group's research into foetal testosterone in typically developing children.^[14]

He has appeared in many television science documentaries, one example being Brainman in which he diagnosed Daniel Tammet (who has extreme memory) with both synaesthesia and Asperger Syndrome.

In 2008 Baron-Cohen assessed Gary McKinnon, the British computer hacker who had been accused of breaking into 97 United States military and NASA computer networks in 2001 and 2002, and diagnosed him as having Asperger Syndrome. McKinnon's lawyers used this diagnosis in their appeal against his extradition to the U.S., but the British High Court nonetheless ruled that McKinnon should be extradited to the U.S. to face trial.

He appeared in TIME Magazine, featuring his 'assortative mating' theory of autism.^[15]

Personal life and awards[link]

Baron-Cohen was awarded the Spearman Medal from the British Psychological Society (BPS), the McAndless Award from the American Psychological Association, the May Davison Award for Clinical Psychology from the BPS, and the Presidents Award from the BPS. He was President of the British Association for the Advancement of Science Section for Psychology in 2007, and was Vice President of the International Society for Autism Research (INSAR) for 2009-11. He is also a Vice President of the National Autistic Society (UK). He is a Fellow of the BPS, the BA, and the Association of Psychological Science.

Baron-Cohen is the son of Judith and Vivian Baron-Cohen. He is married to Bridget Lindley^[16] and together they have three children: independent film maker Sam Baron, Robin Lindley-Baron, and songwriter Kate Baron.^[17] His brothers are film director Ash Baron Cohen and Dan Baron Cohen (International Drama and Education Association). His sisters are Suzannah Baron Cohen and acupuncturist Aliza Baron Cohen. His cousins include computer scientist Amnon Baron Cohen, composer and musician Erran Baron Cohen, comic actor Sacha Baron Cohen,^[18] composer Lewis Furey, film producer Daniel Louis, playwright Richard Greenblatt, University of Washington chemistry professor Seymour Rabinovitch, University of Montana Japanese professor Judith Rabinovitch, and film-director Mark Robson.

Selected publications[link]

Books[link]

Baron-Cohen's single authored books:

• Baron-Cohen, S (1995) Mindblindness: an essay on autism and theory of mind. MIT Press/Bradford Books.
• Baron-Cohen, S (2003) The Essential Difference: men, women and the extreme male brain. Penguin/Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-7139-9671-5
• Baron-Cohen, S (2008) Autism and Asperger Syndrome: The Facts. OUP.
• Baron-Cohen, S (2011) Zero Degrees of Empathy: A new theory of human cruelty. Penguin/Allen Lane. This appears under a different title in the US:
• Baron-Cohen, S (2011) The Science of Evil: On empathy and the origins of human cruelty. Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-465-02353-0

His multi-authored and edited books include:

• Baron-Cohen, S, and Bolton, P, (1993) Autism: the facts. Oxford University Press.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Tager-Flusberg, H, and Cohen, D.J. (eds,) (1993) Understanding other minds: perspectives from autism. Oxford University Press.
• Baron-Cohen, S, & Harrison, J, (eds: 1997) Synaesthesia: classic and contemporary readings. Blackwells.
• Baron-Cohen S, ed. (1997). The maladapted mind: classic readings in evolutionary psychopathology. East Sussex, UK: Psychology Press/Taylor Francis Group. ISBN 0-86377-460-1. http://books.google.com/?id=Rdz8voFlsZAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=maladapted+mind#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 21 January 2011 </ref>
• Howlin, P, Baron-Cohen, S, Hadwin, J, & Swettenham, J, (1999). Teaching children with autism to mind-read. Wiley.
• Robertson, M, & Baron-Cohen, S, (1998) Tourette Syndrome: The facts. Oxford University Press.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Tager-Flusberg, H, & Cohen, D, (eds. 2000). Understanding other minds: perspectives from developmental cognitive neuroscience. Oxford University Press.
• Baron-Cohen, S & Wheelwright, S, (2004) An exact mind. Jessica Kingsley Ltd. Artwork by Peter Myers.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Lutchmaya, S, & Knickmeyer, R, (2005) Prenatal testosterone in mind: Studies of amniotic fluid. MIT Press/Bradford Books.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Tager-Flusberg, H, and Cohen, D.J. (eds,) (2007) Understanding other minds: perspectives from developmental cognitive neuroscience – 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press.
• Hadwin, J, Howlin, P, & Baron-Cohen, S, (2008) Teaching children with autism to mindread: a handbook. Wiley.

Papers[link]

Baron-Cohen has authored over 250 peer-reviewed papers, including:

• Baron-Cohen, S, Leslie, A.M., & Frith, U, (1985) Does the autistic child have a “theory of mind?” Cognition, 21, 37-46.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Wyke, M, & Binnie, C, (1987) Hearing words and seeing colours: an experimental investigation of a case of synaesthesia. Perception, 16, 761-67.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Allen, J, & Gillberg, C, (1992) Can autism be detected at 18 months? The needle, the haystack, and the CHAT. British Journal of Psychiatry, 161, 839-843.
• Baron-Cohen, S, (1994) How to build a baby that can read minds: Cognitive mechanisms in mindreading. Cahiers de Psychologie Cognitive/ Current Psychology of Cognition, 13, 513-552.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Ring, H, Moriarty, J, Shmitz, P, Costa, D, & Ell, P, (1994) Recognition of mental state terms: a clinical study of autism, and a functional neuroimaging study of normal adults. British Journal of Psychiatry, 165, 640-649.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Cox, A, Baird, G, Swettenham, J, Drew, A, Nightingale, N, Morgan, K, & Charman, T, (1996) Psychological markers of autism at 18 months of age in a large population. British Journal of Psychiatry, 168, 158-163.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Jolliffe, T, Mortimore, C, & Robertson, M (1997) Another advanced test of theory of mind: evidence from very high functioning adults with autism or Asperger Syndrome. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 38, 813-822.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Wheelwright, S, Stott, C, Bolton, P, & Goodyer, I, (1997) Is there a link between engineering and autism? Autism, 1, 101-108.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Ring, H, Wheelwright, S, Bullmore, E, Brammer, M, Simmons, A, & Williams, S, (1999) Social intelligence in the normal and autistic brain: an fMRI study. European Journal of Neuroscience, 11, 1891-1898.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Ring, H, Bullmore, E, Wheelwright, S, Ashwin, C, & Williams, S, (2000) The amygdala theory of autism. Neuroscience and Behavioural Reviews, 24, 355-364.
• Connellan, J, Baron-Cohen, S, Wheelwright, S, Ba’tki, A, & Ahluwalia, J, (2000) Sex differences in human neonatal social perception. Infant Behavior and Development, 23, 113-118.
• Baron-Cohen, S, & Wheelwright, S, Skinner, R, Martin, J, & Clubley, E, (2001) The Autism-Spectrum Quotient: Evidence from Asperger Syndrome/high-functioning autism, males and females, scientists, and mathematicians. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 31, 5-17.
• Baron-Cohen, S, (2002) The extreme male brain theory of autism. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 6, 248-254.
• Lutchmaya, S, Baron-Cohen, S, & Raggatt, P, (2002) Foetal testosterone and eye contact in 12-month-old infants. Infant Behaviour and Development, 25, 327-335.
• Nunn, J, Gregory, L, Morris, R, Brammer, M, Bullmore, E, Harrison, J, Williams, S, Baron-Cohen, S, and Gray, J, (2002) Functional magnetic resonance imaging of synaesthesia: activation of colour vision area V4/V8 by spoken words. Nature Neuroscience, 5, 371-375.
• Baron-Cohen, S, & Wheelwright, S, (2004) The Empathy Quotient (EQ). An investigation of adults with Asperger Syndrome or High Functioning Autism, and normal sex differences. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 34, 163-175.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Knickmeyer, R, & Belmonte, M (2005) Sex differences in the brain: implications for explaining autism. Science, 310, 819-823.
• Chapman, E, Baron-Cohen, S, Auyeung, B, Knickmeyer, R, Taylor, K & Hackett, G (2006) Foetal testosterone and empathy: evidence from the Empathy Quotient (EQ) and the ‘Reading the Mind in the Eyes’ Test’. Social Neuroscience, 1, 135-148.
• Auyeung, B, Baron-Cohen, S, Chapman, E, Knickmeyer, R, Taylor, K & Hackett, G, (2009) Foetal testosterone and autistic traits. British Journal of Psychology, 100, 1-22.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Scott, F, J, Allison, C, Williams, J, Bolton, P, Matthews, F, E, & Brayne, C, (2009) Autism Spectrum Prevalence: a school-based U.K. population study. British Journal of Psychiatry, 194, 500-509.
• Chakrabarti, B, Dudridge, F, Kent, L, Wheelwright, S, Hill-Cawthorne, G, Allison, C, Banerjee-Basu, S, & Baron-Cohen, S, (2009) Genes related to sex-steroids, neural growth and social-emotional behaviour are associated with autistic traits, empathy and Asperger Syndrome. Autism Research, 2, 157-177.
• Asher, J, Lamb, J, A, Brocklebank, D, Cazier, J-B, Maestrini, E, Addis, L, Sen, M, Baron-Cohen, S, & Monaco, A, P, (2009) A whole-genome scan and fine-mapping linkage study of autidory-visual synthethesia reveals evidence of linkage to chromosomes 2q24, 5q33, 6p12 and 12p12. The American Journal of Human Genetics, 84, 279-285.
• Baron-Cohen, S, Golan, O, & Ashwin, E, (2009) Can emotion recognition be taught to children with autism spectrum conditions? Proceedings of the Royal Society, Series B, Special Issue, 364, 3567-3574.
• Auyeung, B, Taylor, K, Hackett, G, & Baron-Cohen, S, (2010) Fetal testosterone and autistic traits in 18 to 24-month-old children, Molecular Autism, 1:11.
• Chura, L, Lombardo, M, Ashwin, E, Auyeung, B, Chakrabarti, B, Bullmore, E, T, & Baron-Cohen, S, (2010) Organizational effects of fetal testosterone on human corpus callosum size and asymmetry. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 35, 122-132.
• Golan, O, Baron-Cohen, S, Ashwin, E, Granader, Y, McClintock, S, Day, K, & Leggett, V, (2010) Enhancing emotion recognition in children with autism spectrum conditions: an intervention using animated vehicles with real emotional faces. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 40, 269-279.
• Lombardo, M, Chakrabarti, B, Bullmore, E, Sadek, S, Pasco, G, Wheelwright, S, Suckling, J, MRC AIMS Consortium & Baron-Cohen, S, (2010) Atypical neural self-representation in autism. Brain, 133, 611-624.
• Lombardo, M, Chakrabarti, B, Bullmore, E, & Wheelwright, S, Sadek, S, Suckling, J, MRC AIMS Consortium & Baron-Cohen, S, (2010) Shared neural circuits for mentalizing about the self and others. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 277, 1623-1635.
• Wheelwright, S, Auyeung, B, Allison, C, & Baron-Cohen, S, (2010) Defining the broader, medium and narrow autism phenotype among parents using the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ). Molecular Autism,1, 10.
• Lombardo, M, Chakrabarti; B, Bullmore, E, MRC AIMS Consortium and Baron-Cohen, S, (2011). Specialization of right temporo-parietal junction for mentalizing and its relation to social impairments in autism. NeuroImage 2011 Feb 26 [Epub ahead of print].
• Baron-Cohen, S, Lombardo, M, Auyeung, B, Ashwin, E, Chakrabarti, B, & Knickmeyer, R, (2011) Why are Autism Spectrum Conditions more prevalent in males? Public Library of Science Biology. 9, 1-10 And Supplementary Material to ‘Why are autism spectrum conditions more prevalent in males?’.

See also[link]

• Autism Spectrum Quotient
• Empathizing-systemizing theory
• Sally-Anne test
• Empathy
• Gender differences

References[link]

External links[link]

• They just can't help it, Simon Baron-Cohen, The Guardian (17 April 2003)
• The Male Condition, Simon Baron-Cohen, The New York Times Op-Ed Section, (8 August 2005)
• The Assortative Mating Theory: A Talk with Simon Baron-Cohen, Edge Foundation discussion, 2005
• Autism Research Centre - ARC people : Simon Baron-Cohen
• The Short Life of a Diagnosis Simon Baron-Cohen, The New York Times Op-Ed Section, (November 9, 2009)
• Why a lack of empathy is the root of all evil, Clint Witchalls, The Independent Featured Book Review in Health and Families Section, (5 April 2011)
• The Psychology of Evil Radio interview on Philosophy Talk
• The Science of Evil: On Empathy and the Origins of Cruelty, Simon Baron-Cohen, (The Montréal Review, October, 2011)

]

Anna Kendrick
Kendrick at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival
Born	(1985-08-09) August 9, 1985 (age 26) Portland, Maine, United States
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1998–present
Partner	Edgar Wright (2009–present)

Anna Kendrick (born August 9, 1985) is an American actress. She rose to fame after her performance as Natalie Keener in Up in the Air, for which she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Her other work includes The Twilight Saga, Camp, Rocket Science, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, 50/50, and the Broadway musical High Society.

Career[link]

Kendrick "caught the [acting] bug" at the age of 10, when she caught a bus from Portland, Maine, to New York City so that she could attend auditions.^[1] Kendrick's first acting role was as Dinah in the Broadway musical High Society in August 1998 when she was 12 years old, a performance for which she earned Theatre World Award, Drama Desk Award, and Tony Award nominations,^[2] making her the third-youngest Tony Award nominee.^[3]

Kendrick went on to appear in a number of other theater productions, including the musical A Little Night Music, before making her film debut in the 2003 musical comedy Camp,^[2] for which she was nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category at the 2004 Chlotrudis Awards and Best Debut Performance Independent Spirit Award for her portrayal of Fritzi Wagner.

In 2007, she appeared in her next film, Rocket Science, in which she portrayed Ginny Ryerson, a fast-talking high school debater. Although she says she found the role intimidating and challenging after watching an actual national collegiate championship debate, her performance was praised by critics^[2] and she was nominated for a 2007 Independent Spirit Award in the category of Best Supporting Actress.^[4]

In late 2007, she auditioned for the role of Jessica Stanley in Twilight, a 2008 film adapted from the first book of the novel series by Stephenie Meyer.^[5] She had intended to do a mix-and-match audition with various actors, but was too ill and had to leave; she was, however, brought in for a later session where she was given the role.^[1] Screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg said that the characters Jessica Stanley and Lauren Mallory from the book were combined to create the role.^[6] Kendrick reprised her role as Jessica in the Twilight sequel, New Moon.^[7]

Kendrick's theater singing experience gave her the opportunity to star in her next project, 2009's The Marc Pease Experience, where she appears opposite Jason Schwartzman and Ben Stiller as a high school senior involved in musical theater.^[2][8]

She appeared in the 2009 films Elsewhere, in which she plays her first lead character, a girl whose best friend (played by Tania Raymonde) goes missing,^[2] and in director Jason Reitman's Up in the Air, based on Walter Kirn's 2001 novel of the same name, alongside George Clooney and Vera Farmiga.^[9] For her role in Up in the Air, the National Board of Review named her Best Supporting Actress^[10] and she has also picked up nominations from numerous critics awards and The Golden Globes^[11] and The Screen Actors Guild^[12] and the Academy Awards.

Kendrick at the San Diego Comic-Con International in July 2010

She reprised her role as Jessica Stanley in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. Screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg devised a graduation speech for her character that was not part of the novel.^[13] She appeared in Edgar Wright's adaptation of the graphic novel Scott Pilgrim, titled Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.^[14] Kendrick played Stacey Pilgrim, the sister of the lead character.

In 2010, Kendrick appeared in LCD Soundsystem's music video "Pow Pow" as a "shape-shifter" who collects "the souls of wicked men".^[15] In October 2010, she attended the 2010 Top Glamour Awards in Mexico where she won for "Best International Actress".^{[citation needed]}

In 2011, she starred in the dramatic comedy 50/50, alongside Joseph Gordon Levitt, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Seth Rogen. She also reprised her role as Jessica Stanley in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn.

In 2012, she plays the part of Rosie in the screen adaptation of the consummate baby guide, What To Expect When You're Expecting.

It has been reported that in 2012 she will star opposite John Francis Daley in Rapturepalooza,^[16] that she has been cast in The Archivist,^[17] to be directed by Robin Wright, and that she will voice a character in the stop-motion animated feature, ParaNorman.^[18] She also will star in Pitch Perfect, where she plays a rebellious and goth-like college student who discovers her voice in her school’s female a cappella group and in a political thriller called The Company You Keep starring Shia LaBeouf.

Personal life[link]

Kendrick was born in Portland, Maine, the daughter of Janice, an accountant, and William Kendrick, a history teacher.^[19] Kendrick and her older brother, actor Michael Cooke Kendrick, who appeared in the 2000 film Looking for an Echo, both attended Longfellow Elementary School, Lincoln Middle School and Deering High School in Portland.^[20]

As of 2009^[update], she is in a relationship with director Edgar Wright, whom she met during the production of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.^[21][22]

Filmography[link]