what kind of work do people do?

Broadly I am a Systems Engineer (computers, electrics, electronics, mechanical, hydraulics, Pneumatics) with a hobby/background in Personal Computers since the early 1980's.  

I can visualise across Automotive, military, naval, space, aviation and home automation and provide excellent analogies to get those less technical to understand.

I want to follow up on the analogies... if I may?

I 'self-label' as having 'analogy Tourette's' - I'm a Business Analyst and use them all the time to facilitate understanding of non-technical stakeholders of technical (and sometimes non-technical!) issues, solutions concepts etc.

I have had people say on numerous occasions "I wish I could have put it like that..." usually after I've got frustrated by someone's Nth abortive attempt to explain something to the room and I've stepped in...

I'm also a highly visual thinker...

Is this an ASD thing?

+1 for analogies and visual preference.

Engineering degree, physics-y PhD, career in analysis & helping people think and communicate complex ideas simply. I've toured engineering analysis, business analysis, process analysis, commercial analysis, modelling, and a lot of people-oriented stuff before I realised it was bad for my health. 

I also get "I wish I could have put it like that" all the time!

Oh god... when EVERYONE in your family acts like you're their personal IT support...

"Have you tried turning in off and back on again...?"

Though with my in-laws it's often a case of "Have you tried turning it on...?"

So here's a funny thing.

I wouldn't describe myself as "into tech" - in fact I've put a lot of effort into distancing myself from techy stuff at work. There is undoubtedly some lack of confidence playing into this, but it's also that I so, so often find myself asking "why?" when it comes to techy invention. (Someone invents a remote-controlled calculator pen watch calendar with internet connectivity for e.g.).

There's also a big part of me reacting against the decades of expectations from my family that I will know everything and anything about any kind of science and tech, and be interested in it. I'm not. I enjoy maths, algorithms (from software to business processes), and speculation about how the universe works (cosmology, quantum mechanics, relativity, philosophy, arrow of time etc) but I have no interest in the latest Mars probe or chip manufacturing process.

Human minds are strange - mine certainly is!

So here's a funny thing.

I wouldn't describe myself as "into tech" - in fact I've put a lot of effort into distancing myself from techy stuff at work. There is undoubtedly some lack of confidence playing into this, but it's also that I so, so often find myself asking "why?" when it comes to techy invention. (Someone invents a remote-controlled calculator pen watch calendar with internet connectivity for e.g.).

There's also a big part of me reacting against the decades of expectations from my family that I will know everything and anything about any kind of science and tech, and be interested in it. I'm not. I enjoy maths, algorithms (from software to business processes), and speculation about how the universe works (cosmology, quantum mechanics, relativity, philosophy, arrow of time etc) but I have no interest in the latest Mars probe or chip manufacturing process.

Human minds are strange - mine certainly is!

Oh god... when EVERYONE in your family acts like you're their personal IT support...

"Have you tried turning in off and back on again...?"

Though with my in-laws it's often a case of "Have you tried turning it on...?"