I wonder if autistic people is a nature's way of keeping the species alive in case of high mortality epidemic/pandemic. Since autistic people tend to live alone, it seems they're less vulnerable to highly contagious virus or bacteria. Even if they're living in a group, they will be ok if they survive such an event, because they won't feel so bad to be left behind, i.e. they won't die of "loneliness". I also wonder if there are "autistic" individuals in other animals with social behavior.