ABSTRACT
Investigation of the question of the genetic bases of language and language disorders requires information across various topics, including the clear delineation of behavioral phenotypes, identification of neurocognitive substrates, synthesis of emerging discoveries across different clinical diagnoses (e.g., Williams syndrome, fragile X, autism, specific language impairment [SLI]), new models of genetic mechanisms, new methods of gene discovery, and new quantitative techniques for estimation of genetic effects and effect sizes. Breakthrough discoveries are underway in each of these areas of investigation, but often they are developing in ways that make it difficult for scientists to be well informed. Several factors have impeded access to this information: distributed sources of funding, traditional disciplinary boundaries, and reliance on relatively circumscribed communication networks among scientists.
