A Spectrum Disorder

There are a lot of question out there as to what exactly it means for something to be a spectrum disorder. I think the easiest way to explain it is by comparing it to color. Imagine every shade of blue ordered from darkest to lightest. At the lower end you have the darkest colors and at the higher end you'll find the lighter colors. Autism is similar in that people on the lower end of the spectrum are more likely to have extreme difficulty living alone, severe mental retardation, and physical symptoms such as tuberous sclerosis. Those on the higher end are usually able to live alone and tend to have high IQ. Someone with autism could be placed anywhere on the spectrum, just as the color blue can be any shade.
Asperger's is a bit controversial when it comes to fitting in with autism. Right now, it's officially a type of high-functioning autism discovered by Hans Asperger. However, some think that it should not have a unique name and just be diagnosed as high-functioning autism. Others say that Asperger's is too different from classic autism (autism on the lower end of the spectrum) and should be separated from autism completely. I honestly don’t care what they do, the name they give it won’t change anything.
Another thing about Asperger’s is how people pronounce it. The most common pronunciation sounds like as-burgers, and can be quite embarrassing to say. It is also sometimes pronounced as-per-jers, which is slightly less embarrassing but not technically correct. It's no wonder that you find statements like "I think I'll just say I have nerditis," on autism-related forums (nerditis coming from the high IQ and lack of social skills often found among those with Asperger's, fitting the stereotype of a nerd.) To avoid being ridiculed, the term aspie is often used on the internet for people with Asperger's.
The number of people being diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum has grown dramatically over the years. Experts can't agree if this is cause by it being under-diagnosed in the past, over-diagnosed now, or both. People are also wondering if environmental triggers are causing autism in higher rates, but there is no definitive proof of this.
I've heard people who think autism is severely over-diagnosed because many of the people on the spectrum are simply spoiled brats with parents that can't accept they are doing anything wrong. I kindly ask these people to take a long walk off a short pier. Yes a spoiled child and an autistic child may both have a meltdown over something simple as a slight change in schedule, but the reasons are different. The spoiled child throws a fit because he/she believes the world revolves around them and that they should be able to do anything they want whenever they want it. An autistic child has a meltdown at a schedule change because they need an exact schedule like fish needs water and a change in schedule results in huge amounts of anxiety.