| Handicapped doctor forced to climb three floors to meet Health Ministry officials | ||
| Story by Sinniah Gurunathan, Trincomalee correspondent | ||
| It was a cruel and embarrassing irony that a disabled doctor who uses crutches to get about had to haul himself, step by painful step, up several flights of stairs to reach an office of the Ministry of Health, in Colombo. Dr. Kanagarajah Nandakumaran, a polio victim since childhood, was describing his ordeal to the audience at a special event held in Trincomalee to mark International Disabled Persons Day.
Dr. Nandakumaran is the Provincial Director of Health Services for the North. The Disabled Persons Day programme was organised by the Eastern Province Department of Social Services, with the support of several non-government organisations. The event took place in the auditorium of the Trincomalee Vigneswara Maha Vidiyalayam. “It is a pity that the authorities have no thought for disabled people when they construct buildings,” said the doctor, who had to climb three floors to meet Health Ministry officials in Colombo. Dr. Nandakumaran was stricken by poliomyelitis (infantile paralysis) at the age of two, and has used crutches all his life. After qualifying as a medical practitioner, he served in several government hospitals before taking up his job as a medical overseer in the North and East. Speaking seated on a chair in front of the stage, Dr. Nandakumaran told his audience that there were laws to ensure equal treatment for disabled persons. “Unfortunately, these laws are only in writing and not sufficiently enforced,” the doctor said. “The disabled should not have to be confined to their homes. They should be given all the facilities they need to enjoy a normal life, just like other normal people. “The days of treating disabled persons as sympathy-seeking social outcasts are long over. The public and the authorities have a duty to ensure that the disabled enjoy equal rights, equal opportunity and parity of status in every aspect of life. “A person’s physical mobility is something he or she can lose very easily, in a matter of minutes, irrespective of caste, creed and race. The number of disabled in this country is increasing by the day. People are losing limbs and the use of their limbs in different situations – the conflict in the north, accidents and natural disasters. On average, some 180 citizens are disabled every day. “Considering the alarmingly high, and growing, number of permanently disabled people, it is surprising we have so few disabled-friendly buildings,” Dr. Nandakumaran said. The chief guest at the International Disabled Persons Day event was Trincomalee High Court Judge, M. Ilancheliyan. In his address, the judge appealed to the public to bring to the notice of the police or other relevant authorities any instance of disabled persons being treated badly or with disrespect. He said the law protected the disabled, and that legal action could be taken against parents who failed to provide their disabled children with a proper education and the facilities they needed. |
Thursday, December 18, 2008
bitter truth
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
new approach
To Sea with a Blind Scientistby Geerat J. VermeijReprinted from the Braille Monitor
Editor's Note: Scientific research is not a career most people believe to be suitable for the blind, but such beliefs are changing. Dr. Geerat Vermeij isa nationally recognized marine biologist. He conducts research and teaches students at the doctoral level. Dr. Vermeij tells us that science is competitive,tedious, and hard—and, that he loves it. Here is what he has to say:
How, a skeptic might ask, could a blind person ever hope to be a scientist? After all, science is difficult if not impenetrable even for many sighted people;and, in any case, there is almost nothing in the way of books about science available to the blind. How would one carry out experiments? How would onegain access to the huge scientific literature? Perhaps a blind person could be a physicist, at least a theoretical physicist, but surely not a biologist.Why would the blind willingly choose biology, that most visual of all the sciences?
The answer is very simple. Science, and for me biology in particular, is absolutely fascinating. Someone is actually paying me to study shells—some of themost beautiful works of architecture in all of nature—in the expectation that broad principles with implications for our own species will emerge.
What is more, I get to travel to exotic places, to read the scientific literature in all its fantastic diversity, to see my own papers and books published,and to teach others about science, that most powerful of all ways of knowing. What more could one ask of a profession?
Like many of my colleagues, I came to science early in life. Even as a small boy growing up in the Netherlands, I picked up shells, pine cones, pretty stones,and the like. My parents, both of whom are avid natural historians, took pains to acquaint me with all kinds of creatures that lived in the grassy poldersand in the innumerable ditches that crisscrossed the Low Land. The fact that I was totally blind made no difference at all. At the age of ten, shortlyafter moving to the United States, I became seriously interested in shells. Almost immediately I started my own collection, which soon grew to includeall manner of other objects of natural history. My parents and brother were enthusiastic; they read aloud, transcribed, or dictated every book on naturalhistory they could find.
The reactions of my teachers in the local public elementary school ranged from polite acceptance to genuine enthusiasm when I told them of my intentionsto become a conchologist, a malacologist, or a biologist. If they thought about the incompatibility between blindness and biology, they kept it to themselves,or perhaps they expected my obsession to be a passing fancy soon to be replaced by more realistic plans.
The interest in biology did not flag. As counselors more openly expressed their fears that I would be unable to find employment if I persisted in my plansto study biology, I entered Princeton University to concentrate on biology and geology. There I received strong support from nearly all my professors;they were giants in their fields, and their enthusiasm sustained my youthful confidence.
I applied to do doctoral work at Yale. When I arrived for my interview in the biology department, the director of graduate studies was more than a littleapprehensive. During my talk with him, he took me down to the university's shell collection in the basement of the Peabody Museum. Casually he picked uptwo shells and asked me if I knew them. He fully expected me to draw a blank, in which case he planned to tell me as gently as possible that biology wasnot for me after all.
Fortunately, however, the shells were familiar to me. All of the misgivings of the director instantly evaporated. Thanks to his enthusiastic endorsement,I was able to enter Yale with a full graduate fellowship that left me free to travel and to carry out an ambitious research project culminating in thePh.D. dissertation. After Yale, I joined the Department of Zoology at the University of Maryland at College Park in 1971, first as an instructor. Movingup through the academic ranks, I was appointed professor in 1980. Along the way, I married Edith Zipser, a fellow biologist whom I had met at Yale, andwe had a daughter Hermine, who is now six. Very recently I accepted a new appointment to become Professor of Geology at the University of California, Davis.What do I actually do in my job that seemed so improbable to the skeptics? Again the answer is simple. I do what my sighted colleagues do: research, teaching,and service.
My research centers on how animals and plants have evolved to cope with their biological enemies—predators, competitors, and parasites—over the course ofthe last six hundred million years of earth history. When I was still a graduate student, working at the University of Guam Marine Laboratory, I noticedthat many of the shells I was finding on the island's reef-flats were broken despite their considerable thickness and strength. It soon became clear thatshell-breaking predators, especially crabs and fishes, were responsible for this damage. I began to suspect that many of the elegant features of tropicalshells—their knobby and spiny surfaces, their tight coiling, and the narrow shell opening often partially occluded by knob-like thickenings—were interpretableas adaptations which enabled the snails that built the shells to withstand the onslaughts of their predators.
Most interestingly, the shells I had collected in the West Indies and the Atlantic coasts of South America and Africa seemed to be less well endowed withthis kind of armor than were the shells from comparable sites in the tropical Western Pacific. Armed with these observations and hypotheses, I appliedfor funding from the National Science Foundation to continue my work upon my arrival at Maryland.
When the program director called me to say that I would be funded, he also informed me that the Foundation would not sponsor my proposed field work in theIndian Ocean because he could not conceive of a blind person's doing field work. I reminded him that I had already worked in field situations throughoutthe tropics, and that the proposed research critically depended on the work in the Indian Ocean. After a few minutes of conversation he relented and awardedme the full amount.
How do I do my research? It is a combination of field, laboratory, museum, and library work that has taken me all over the world to coral reefs, mangroveswamps, mud-flats, rock-bound open coasts, deserts, rain forests, research vessels, marine biological stations, secret military installations, great libraries,and big-city museums.
I make large collections of specimens in the field, work with living animals in laboratory aquaria, measure shells in museums and in my own very large researchcollection, and read voraciously. Wherever I go I am in the company of a sighted assistant or colleague.
Often this is my wife, but there are many others as well. There is nothing unusual about this; every scientist I know has assistants. I keep detailed fieldand laboratory notebooks in Braille, usually written with slate and stylus. Once a week I go to the U.S. National Museum of Natural History, part of theSmithsonian Institution in Washington in order to work with the outstanding collection of mollusks and to peruse carefully all the scientific periodicalsthat came into the library the previous week. While my reader reads to me, I transcribe extensive notes on the Perkins Brailler. Sometimes I will makejust a few notations of the main point of a scientific paper, but at other times I transcribe all the data contained in a paper. My Braille scientificlibrary now comprises more than eight thousand publications compiled in more than one hundred forty thick Braille volumes.
Like many of my colleagues, I spend a great deal of time writing. First, I prepare drafts on the Perkins Brailler, using the seemingly inexhaustible supplyof memos and announcements that flood my mailbox daily. Once I am satisfied with the text, I type the manuscript on an ink typewriter. An assistant proofreadsand corrects the manuscript, which is then submitted to an appropriate scientific periodical or book publisher for a thorough evaluation.
In all my work I find Braille to be vastly more efficient than any other form of communication. I also prefer live readers to tape recorders. How can youask a machine to spell words, to ferret out a detail in a graph or table, and most importantly to skip whole sections or to scan the text for a particularpoint?
Teaching has always been inextricably intertwined with research for me. I can point to several papers that would not have been written were it not for thefact that I was forced to think about problems in connection with a lecture on a topic quite far removed from my immediate research interests.
Over the years I have taught a great variety of courses—animal diversity, evolutionary biology, ecology, marine ecology, malacology, the mathematics andphysics of organic form, and a seminar on extinction—ranging from the introductory to the advanced graduate level.
In the large introductory courses, teaching assistants take charge of the laboratory sections and help in grading papers. Again, there is nothing unusualin this. Professors in science departments at most universities depend heavily on teaching assistants. Like other research-oriented professors, I traingraduate students. Thus far, seven students have received their Ph.D. degrees under my direction.
The service part of the job is highly varied as well. There are the inevitable committee meetings and the many tasks that help make the department or theuniversity run smoothly. I head search committees to find new faculty members, I conduct reviews of faculty performance, and I write as few memos as Ican. An important service to the profession is the review of dozens of manuscripts and grant proposals. If one writes them, one ought to be willing toreview them as well.
Of course, science isn't all fun and games. Science is competitive; it is hard work, full of tedious calculations, revising manuscripts for the tenth time,of coping with the disappointment of having a cherished paper or grant proposal summarily rejected, and of quibbling about grades with a frustratinglyinept student. Nobody in science is exempt from pressures and feelings such as these, but in the end the work is immensely rewarding and intellectuallyfulfilling.
In short, there is nothing about my job that makes it unsuitable for a blind person. Of course, there are inherent risks in the field work; I have beenstung by rays, bitten by crabs, and detained by police who mistook my partner and me for operatives trying to overthrow the government of their Africancountry, and I have slipped on rocks, scraped my hand on sharp oysters and pinnacles of coral, and suffered from stomach cramps. There isn't a field scientistalive or dead who hasn't had similar experiences. Life without risk is life without challenge; one cannot hope to understand nature without experiencingit firsthand. The blind, no more than the sighted, must act sensibly and with appropriate caution. Along with independence comes the responsibility ofassuming risks.
What would I say to a blind person who is contemplating a career in science? Very simple. I would tell that person exactly what I would tell a sighted one:Love your subject, be prepared to work hard, don't be discouraged by doubters and by the occasional failure, be willing to take risks, get as much basicscience and mathematics as you can take, and perhaps above all display a reasoned self-confidence without carrying a chip on your shoulder. You will needstamina, good grades, the support of influential scientists, and a willingness and ability to discover new facts and new ideas. It is not enough to dowell in courses; one must make new observations, design and carry out tests of hypotheses that have been carefully thought out, and interpret and presentthe results in such a way that the work is both believable and interesting to others. Science is not for everyone, but I can think of no field that ismore satisfying.
What would I say to the educational establishment? I would tell them that the prevailing attitudes about science and the blind must be reformed. For toolong the scientifically inclined blind have been steered only toward the social sciences and other "safe" disciplines, and away from fields in which laboratoryand outdoor studies are important.
I believe that the chief factor holding the blind back from science is ignorance, not only by virtue of woefully inadequate reading materials in the schoolsand libraries, but also because of the pervasive fear and discouragement by the establishment to let the blind observe nature firsthand. I once met a blindwoman who professed an interest in biology, yet she had never been encouraged to touch the spiny leaves of the holly.
Observation is the first, and in many ways the most important, step in a scientific inquiry. Without the freedom and encouragement to observe, a blind person(or anyone else, for that matter) is subtly but decisively turned away from science.
Editor's Note: Scientific research is not a career most people believe to be suitable for the blind, but such beliefs are changing. Dr. Geerat Vermeij isa nationally recognized marine biologist. He conducts research and teaches students at the doctoral level. Dr. Vermeij tells us that science is competitive,tedious, and hard—and, that he loves it. Here is what he has to say:
How, a skeptic might ask, could a blind person ever hope to be a scientist? After all, science is difficult if not impenetrable even for many sighted people;and, in any case, there is almost nothing in the way of books about science available to the blind. How would one carry out experiments? How would onegain access to the huge scientific literature? Perhaps a blind person could be a physicist, at least a theoretical physicist, but surely not a biologist.Why would the blind willingly choose biology, that most visual of all the sciences?
The answer is very simple. Science, and for me biology in particular, is absolutely fascinating. Someone is actually paying me to study shells—some of themost beautiful works of architecture in all of nature—in the expectation that broad principles with implications for our own species will emerge.
What is more, I get to travel to exotic places, to read the scientific literature in all its fantastic diversity, to see my own papers and books published,and to teach others about science, that most powerful of all ways of knowing. What more could one ask of a profession?
Like many of my colleagues, I came to science early in life. Even as a small boy growing up in the Netherlands, I picked up shells, pine cones, pretty stones,and the like. My parents, both of whom are avid natural historians, took pains to acquaint me with all kinds of creatures that lived in the grassy poldersand in the innumerable ditches that crisscrossed the Low Land. The fact that I was totally blind made no difference at all. At the age of ten, shortlyafter moving to the United States, I became seriously interested in shells. Almost immediately I started my own collection, which soon grew to includeall manner of other objects of natural history. My parents and brother were enthusiastic; they read aloud, transcribed, or dictated every book on naturalhistory they could find.
The reactions of my teachers in the local public elementary school ranged from polite acceptance to genuine enthusiasm when I told them of my intentionsto become a conchologist, a malacologist, or a biologist. If they thought about the incompatibility between blindness and biology, they kept it to themselves,or perhaps they expected my obsession to be a passing fancy soon to be replaced by more realistic plans.
The interest in biology did not flag. As counselors more openly expressed their fears that I would be unable to find employment if I persisted in my plansto study biology, I entered Princeton University to concentrate on biology and geology. There I received strong support from nearly all my professors;they were giants in their fields, and their enthusiasm sustained my youthful confidence.
I applied to do doctoral work at Yale. When I arrived for my interview in the biology department, the director of graduate studies was more than a littleapprehensive. During my talk with him, he took me down to the university's shell collection in the basement of the Peabody Museum. Casually he picked uptwo shells and asked me if I knew them. He fully expected me to draw a blank, in which case he planned to tell me as gently as possible that biology wasnot for me after all.
Fortunately, however, the shells were familiar to me. All of the misgivings of the director instantly evaporated. Thanks to his enthusiastic endorsement,I was able to enter Yale with a full graduate fellowship that left me free to travel and to carry out an ambitious research project culminating in thePh.D. dissertation. After Yale, I joined the Department of Zoology at the University of Maryland at College Park in 1971, first as an instructor. Movingup through the academic ranks, I was appointed professor in 1980. Along the way, I married Edith Zipser, a fellow biologist whom I had met at Yale, andwe had a daughter Hermine, who is now six. Very recently I accepted a new appointment to become Professor of Geology at the University of California, Davis.What do I actually do in my job that seemed so improbable to the skeptics? Again the answer is simple. I do what my sighted colleagues do: research, teaching,and service.
My research centers on how animals and plants have evolved to cope with their biological enemies—predators, competitors, and parasites—over the course ofthe last six hundred million years of earth history. When I was still a graduate student, working at the University of Guam Marine Laboratory, I noticedthat many of the shells I was finding on the island's reef-flats were broken despite their considerable thickness and strength. It soon became clear thatshell-breaking predators, especially crabs and fishes, were responsible for this damage. I began to suspect that many of the elegant features of tropicalshells—their knobby and spiny surfaces, their tight coiling, and the narrow shell opening often partially occluded by knob-like thickenings—were interpretableas adaptations which enabled the snails that built the shells to withstand the onslaughts of their predators.
Most interestingly, the shells I had collected in the West Indies and the Atlantic coasts of South America and Africa seemed to be less well endowed withthis kind of armor than were the shells from comparable sites in the tropical Western Pacific. Armed with these observations and hypotheses, I appliedfor funding from the National Science Foundation to continue my work upon my arrival at Maryland.
When the program director called me to say that I would be funded, he also informed me that the Foundation would not sponsor my proposed field work in theIndian Ocean because he could not conceive of a blind person's doing field work. I reminded him that I had already worked in field situations throughoutthe tropics, and that the proposed research critically depended on the work in the Indian Ocean. After a few minutes of conversation he relented and awardedme the full amount.
How do I do my research? It is a combination of field, laboratory, museum, and library work that has taken me all over the world to coral reefs, mangroveswamps, mud-flats, rock-bound open coasts, deserts, rain forests, research vessels, marine biological stations, secret military installations, great libraries,and big-city museums.
I make large collections of specimens in the field, work with living animals in laboratory aquaria, measure shells in museums and in my own very large researchcollection, and read voraciously. Wherever I go I am in the company of a sighted assistant or colleague.
Often this is my wife, but there are many others as well. There is nothing unusual about this; every scientist I know has assistants. I keep detailed fieldand laboratory notebooks in Braille, usually written with slate and stylus. Once a week I go to the U.S. National Museum of Natural History, part of theSmithsonian Institution in Washington in order to work with the outstanding collection of mollusks and to peruse carefully all the scientific periodicalsthat came into the library the previous week. While my reader reads to me, I transcribe extensive notes on the Perkins Brailler. Sometimes I will makejust a few notations of the main point of a scientific paper, but at other times I transcribe all the data contained in a paper. My Braille scientificlibrary now comprises more than eight thousand publications compiled in more than one hundred forty thick Braille volumes.
Like many of my colleagues, I spend a great deal of time writing. First, I prepare drafts on the Perkins Brailler, using the seemingly inexhaustible supplyof memos and announcements that flood my mailbox daily. Once I am satisfied with the text, I type the manuscript on an ink typewriter. An assistant proofreadsand corrects the manuscript, which is then submitted to an appropriate scientific periodical or book publisher for a thorough evaluation.
In all my work I find Braille to be vastly more efficient than any other form of communication. I also prefer live readers to tape recorders. How can youask a machine to spell words, to ferret out a detail in a graph or table, and most importantly to skip whole sections or to scan the text for a particularpoint?
Teaching has always been inextricably intertwined with research for me. I can point to several papers that would not have been written were it not for thefact that I was forced to think about problems in connection with a lecture on a topic quite far removed from my immediate research interests.
Over the years I have taught a great variety of courses—animal diversity, evolutionary biology, ecology, marine ecology, malacology, the mathematics andphysics of organic form, and a seminar on extinction—ranging from the introductory to the advanced graduate level.
In the large introductory courses, teaching assistants take charge of the laboratory sections and help in grading papers. Again, there is nothing unusualin this. Professors in science departments at most universities depend heavily on teaching assistants. Like other research-oriented professors, I traingraduate students. Thus far, seven students have received their Ph.D. degrees under my direction.
The service part of the job is highly varied as well. There are the inevitable committee meetings and the many tasks that help make the department or theuniversity run smoothly. I head search committees to find new faculty members, I conduct reviews of faculty performance, and I write as few memos as Ican. An important service to the profession is the review of dozens of manuscripts and grant proposals. If one writes them, one ought to be willing toreview them as well.
Of course, science isn't all fun and games. Science is competitive; it is hard work, full of tedious calculations, revising manuscripts for the tenth time,of coping with the disappointment of having a cherished paper or grant proposal summarily rejected, and of quibbling about grades with a frustratinglyinept student. Nobody in science is exempt from pressures and feelings such as these, but in the end the work is immensely rewarding and intellectuallyfulfilling.
In short, there is nothing about my job that makes it unsuitable for a blind person. Of course, there are inherent risks in the field work; I have beenstung by rays, bitten by crabs, and detained by police who mistook my partner and me for operatives trying to overthrow the government of their Africancountry, and I have slipped on rocks, scraped my hand on sharp oysters and pinnacles of coral, and suffered from stomach cramps. There isn't a field scientistalive or dead who hasn't had similar experiences. Life without risk is life without challenge; one cannot hope to understand nature without experiencingit firsthand. The blind, no more than the sighted, must act sensibly and with appropriate caution. Along with independence comes the responsibility ofassuming risks.
What would I say to a blind person who is contemplating a career in science? Very simple. I would tell that person exactly what I would tell a sighted one:Love your subject, be prepared to work hard, don't be discouraged by doubters and by the occasional failure, be willing to take risks, get as much basicscience and mathematics as you can take, and perhaps above all display a reasoned self-confidence without carrying a chip on your shoulder. You will needstamina, good grades, the support of influential scientists, and a willingness and ability to discover new facts and new ideas. It is not enough to dowell in courses; one must make new observations, design and carry out tests of hypotheses that have been carefully thought out, and interpret and presentthe results in such a way that the work is both believable and interesting to others. Science is not for everyone, but I can think of no field that ismore satisfying.
What would I say to the educational establishment? I would tell them that the prevailing attitudes about science and the blind must be reformed. For toolong the scientifically inclined blind have been steered only toward the social sciences and other "safe" disciplines, and away from fields in which laboratoryand outdoor studies are important.
I believe that the chief factor holding the blind back from science is ignorance, not only by virtue of woefully inadequate reading materials in the schoolsand libraries, but also because of the pervasive fear and discouragement by the establishment to let the blind observe nature firsthand. I once met a blindwoman who professed an interest in biology, yet she had never been encouraged to touch the spiny leaves of the holly.
Observation is the first, and in many ways the most important, step in a scientific inquiry. Without the freedom and encouragement to observe, a blind person(or anyone else, for that matter) is subtly but decisively turned away from science.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
improving the lives of partially sighted children
Tips to improve daily living skills
Empathy, common sense and creative thinking can vastly improve the lives of people who are blind or vision impaired. Many people experience feelings of
isolation, anxiety and frustration with vision loss.
Allow time to listen and to acknowledge.
Never presume how a person will respond to vision loss.
Lighting and glare
Lighting needs differ and can be significant. Some people see better with stronger light, while others do not. The most common concern is glare.
For overhead lighting, use florescent lights for even coverage.
The light source should come from behind or beside the person.
Use venetian blinds or curtains, or tint the windows to control glare.
Use general and direct lighting from a lamp. A lamp with a shade and extendable arm is best. Check the electrical cord position for safety.
Encourage the person to experiment with lighting.
Avoid major changes in lighting (e.g. a bright room leading to a dim corridor and vice versa).
Maintain even lighting throughout buildings.
Reading and writing
Most people with vision loss have difficulty reading and writing. However, the following may help:
Magnifiers can be useful
Use a black text marker on white paper. Check print size and thickness.
A sighted person can assist in reading materials.
Use upper and lowercase letters for better visibility as this gives more shape to words. Do not use capital letters only.
Do not underline words.
For typed print use the strongest contrast possible (e.g. black type on white paper). Univers or Arial font style above 12pt is recommended.
Colour contrast
High contrast colours, such as black on white, make objects easier to see. Tips:
Use dark liquid in light cups and vice versa.
Crockery and cutlery should contrast with tablecloths or tabletops.
Use plain colours rather than patterns.
Use contrast to assist with home and office environments (e.g. contrasting black stair railing on a white wall).
Meal times
Dining and eating can be stressful, embarrassing and frustrating if people cannot see the food. Tips:
When setting the table use contrasting colours (e.g. contrasting napkins and tablecloths) and appropriate lighting.
Inform the person about what is on the table and where it is located (e.g. Your drink is on your right and the salt is straight in front." )
Explain the location of the food on the dinner plate (e.g. "The meat is nearest to you at six o'clock, the potatoes are on the right at three o'clock, and
the carrots are on the left at nine o'clock"). Meat should be placed near the person to assist with cutting.
When filling glasses or cups, leave approximately one centimetre to help prevent spills.
Recreation tips
Make information accessible by putting newsletters or brochures into accessible formats (e.g. Braille, large print, audio cassette or electronic).
Use the 'bigger, bolder, brighter' and 'using other senses' principles when designing activities.
Mark containers, appliance settings and equipment with coloured elastic bands, liquid paper, tape, coloured stickers or Velcro to help identify them.
Facilitate non-sight activities such as music, reminiscence, quizzes or discussions. Massage and aromatherapy are activities which can stimulate touch and
smell. Handicrafts such as pottery, wool craft and gardening are also recommended.
Modifying activities involves, trial and error, time and encouragement.
Keep conflicting or background noise to a minimum during activities, as it can interfere with the use of hearing as a substitute for vision.
Have a place for activity equipment and always return it there. This will help the person know where to locate it. If you move things, tell them.
Keep a few chairs near windows for reading or doing handcraft in natural light.
Readers can access Braille, large print or talking books from the Vision Australia Library. Audio described videos, newspapers and magazines, and information
in other languages is also available. Materials are posted free to borrowers.
Tactile and large print board games are available from Vision Australia.
Mark on/off buttons on appliances using contrasting colours markers, stickers or textures (e.g. Velcro or Polymark paint) for easy identification. This
is useful for cassette players and remote controls.
Braille, large print or talking watches and clocks can assist with daily routines.
Using the telephone can be made easier by using tactile markers, large print number stickers or large button phones.
When watching TV, the closer the person is to the TV, the better the picture.
Through radio station RPH for the Print Handicapped, information can be obtained from newspapers and magazines. Call Vision Australia RPH radio for more
information.
Helpful products
Magnifiers
Torch magnifiers
Hand-held magnifiers
Stand magnifiers
Telescopic aids
Closed Circuit Television*
Large print
Diary and teledex
Pill dispensers
Clocks and Watches
Talking
Clocks and watches
Bathroom and kitchen scales
Computers
Empathy, common sense and creative thinking can vastly improve the lives of people who are blind or vision impaired. Many people experience feelings of
isolation, anxiety and frustration with vision loss.
Allow time to listen and to acknowledge.
Never presume how a person will respond to vision loss.
Lighting and glare
Lighting needs differ and can be significant. Some people see better with stronger light, while others do not. The most common concern is glare.
For overhead lighting, use florescent lights for even coverage.
The light source should come from behind or beside the person.
Use venetian blinds or curtains, or tint the windows to control glare.
Use general and direct lighting from a lamp. A lamp with a shade and extendable arm is best. Check the electrical cord position for safety.
Encourage the person to experiment with lighting.
Avoid major changes in lighting (e.g. a bright room leading to a dim corridor and vice versa).
Maintain even lighting throughout buildings.
Reading and writing
Most people with vision loss have difficulty reading and writing. However, the following may help:
Magnifiers can be useful
Use a black text marker on white paper. Check print size and thickness.
A sighted person can assist in reading materials.
Use upper and lowercase letters for better visibility as this gives more shape to words. Do not use capital letters only.
Do not underline words.
For typed print use the strongest contrast possible (e.g. black type on white paper). Univers or Arial font style above 12pt is recommended.
Colour contrast
High contrast colours, such as black on white, make objects easier to see. Tips:
Use dark liquid in light cups and vice versa.
Crockery and cutlery should contrast with tablecloths or tabletops.
Use plain colours rather than patterns.
Use contrast to assist with home and office environments (e.g. contrasting black stair railing on a white wall).
Meal times
Dining and eating can be stressful, embarrassing and frustrating if people cannot see the food. Tips:
When setting the table use contrasting colours (e.g. contrasting napkins and tablecloths) and appropriate lighting.
Inform the person about what is on the table and where it is located (e.g. Your drink is on your right and the salt is straight in front." )
Explain the location of the food on the dinner plate (e.g. "The meat is nearest to you at six o'clock, the potatoes are on the right at three o'clock, and
the carrots are on the left at nine o'clock"). Meat should be placed near the person to assist with cutting.
When filling glasses or cups, leave approximately one centimetre to help prevent spills.
Recreation tips
Make information accessible by putting newsletters or brochures into accessible formats (e.g. Braille, large print, audio cassette or electronic).
Use the 'bigger, bolder, brighter' and 'using other senses' principles when designing activities.
Mark containers, appliance settings and equipment with coloured elastic bands, liquid paper, tape, coloured stickers or Velcro to help identify them.
Facilitate non-sight activities such as music, reminiscence, quizzes or discussions. Massage and aromatherapy are activities which can stimulate touch and
smell. Handicrafts such as pottery, wool craft and gardening are also recommended.
Modifying activities involves, trial and error, time and encouragement.
Keep conflicting or background noise to a minimum during activities, as it can interfere with the use of hearing as a substitute for vision.
Have a place for activity equipment and always return it there. This will help the person know where to locate it. If you move things, tell them.
Keep a few chairs near windows for reading or doing handcraft in natural light.
Readers can access Braille, large print or talking books from the Vision Australia Library. Audio described videos, newspapers and magazines, and information
in other languages is also available. Materials are posted free to borrowers.
Tactile and large print board games are available from Vision Australia.
Mark on/off buttons on appliances using contrasting colours markers, stickers or textures (e.g. Velcro or Polymark paint) for easy identification. This
is useful for cassette players and remote controls.
Braille, large print or talking watches and clocks can assist with daily routines.
Using the telephone can be made easier by using tactile markers, large print number stickers or large button phones.
When watching TV, the closer the person is to the TV, the better the picture.
Through radio station RPH for the Print Handicapped, information can be obtained from newspapers and magazines. Call Vision Australia RPH radio for more
information.
Helpful products
Magnifiers
Torch magnifiers
Hand-held magnifiers
Stand magnifiers
Telescopic aids
Closed Circuit Television*
Large print
Diary and teledex
Pill dispensers
Clocks and Watches
Talking
Clocks and watches
Bathroom and kitchen scales
Computers
Saturday, December 13, 2008
GLOBAL BLINDNESS
GLOBAL BLINDNESS - A Preventable Tragedy
Over the next decade the need for effective blindness prevention and treatment programs will become an increasingly urgent problem on a global level.
The number of people in need is growing far more rapidly than the eye care services to help them. It is commonly estimated that without proper interventions,the number of blind people in the world will increase from 37 million today to 75 million by 2020. At present, another 135 million have debilitating lowvision.
• Every 5 seconds a person in the world goes blind and a child goes blind every minute.• Ninety percent of the world’s blind people live in developing countries.• Two out of three blind people in the world are women, yet they are the least likely to obtain sight restoring services.
Over the next decade the need for effective blindness prevention and treatment programs will become an increasingly urgent problem on a global level.
The number of people in need is growing far more rapidly than the eye care services to help them. It is commonly estimated that without proper interventions,the number of blind people in the world will increase from 37 million today to 75 million by 2020. At present, another 135 million have debilitating lowvision.
• Every 5 seconds a person in the world goes blind and a child goes blind every minute.• Ninety percent of the world’s blind people live in developing countries.• Two out of three blind people in the world are women, yet they are the least likely to obtain sight restoring services.
Friday, December 12, 2008
amazing tool for blind children
When computer science professor
Gary Bishop
looks at a Dance Dance Revolution video game, he doesn't see just the latest gadget, he sees a tool he can adapt for kids with disabilities.
For instance, Bishop, a 2008 Kauffman Fellow, and a team of students from his 2004 software engineering class hijacked a Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) pad
to create a "Braille twister" game for children ages 2 to 8 who are visually impaired or blind.
The team used a $15 adapter to plug the DDR pad into an ordinary computer, then programmed software that allows kids to spell Braille symbols using the
DDR pad. (The six outer squares on the pad correspond to the six dots in a Braille cell.)
Braille twister is part of a suite of games that Bishop and students developed when they found out that when students in N.C. schools go to computer class
each week, there was nothing for the blind students to do.
There just aren't enough cool tools out there for kids with disabilities, Bishop says, especially affordable ones. But by making small modifications to
the hardware that's already available, he works to fill that void and make a big difference in children's' lives.
Kauffman Faculty Fellowships have been offered the past three years by the Institute for the Arts and Humanities in the College of Arts and Sciences as
part of the Carolina Entrepreneurial Initiative (CEI).
Simple adaptations yield huge returns
Since they don't see, blind babies often delay exploring and crawling, which means they don't develop upper body strength.
Braille twister helps the children not only learn Braille but also improve their upper body strength. The children know which square they've pressed because
each square plays a different animal sound, like a cow or horse, but they've got to press pretty hard to hear the sound. So, they get a little workout.
Bishop's passion for accessibility software began back in 2001 when he met Jason Morris, who was a classics graduate student at the time and is blind. The
two worked together to improve software that Bishop and students had designed that uses sound to allow blind people to use maps.
Since then Bishop and generations of students in his computer science classes have developed games that enable blind children and, more recently, students
with other disabilities, to learn and have fun at the same time.
Like the other applications Bishop has developed, the "Braille twister" software is available to anyone for free. And it doesn't cost much for users to
get the equipment needed. A DDR pad can be purchased on Amazon.com for $6.79. A computer adapter costs about $15.
Bishop plans to keep pursuing this model of making simple adaptations to games and tools that are already widely available and don't cost much.
"The intersection between disabled people and rich people is very small," Bishop said.
Sustainability would expand access to more children in need
With support from the department of computer science in UNC's College of Arts and Sciences, Bishop pursues such projects to the exclusion of the research
he once conducted in such areas as 3D computer graphics. But he wants to ensure the software stays free of charge, and he wants to reach more children.
So this semester, with the help of a Kaufmann Fellowship, Bishop is exploring ways to make his social enterprise sustainable.
"I'm looking at ways to get a sufficiently continuous revenue stream to support students, and maybe a staff person to provide some continuity. Students
come and go," he said.
He's also exploring ways he might charge small fees for some aspects of the software while still making it available to kids who need it.
"Schools actually have some money to pay for accessibility tools that their students need, but very often there's not enough of that money," he said. "And
I really hate the idea of a kid not having access for want of a few dollars."
One possible model is to continue to provide the software to all students for free, but charge schools reasonable fees for an enhanced version that enables
teachers to measure and track progress.
Bishop also pursues additional partnerships such as those he's formed with orientation and mobility teachers in the public schools.
In conjunction with the UNC Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, Bishop and students are beginning to develop software to enable communication for
children with cerebral palsy and other conditions.
He's also exploring a partnership with UNC's School of Education.
Bishop and his students take every chance they get to test their software in schools. Once a year the computer science department hosts Maze Day. Visually
impaired and blind students in grades K-12 and their parents and teachers visit the computer science department to test the latest games from Bishop and
students. This year, about 75 children from around North Carolina and a few other states will attend.
That means the undergraduates who program the software often get to meet children who use the games they've created.
"One of my students said, 'This is the first thing I've done in school that's mattered,'" Bishop said.
"You learn a ton getting kids to use this stuff," he said. "You thought your software was perfect, and they break it."
Gary Bishop
looks at a Dance Dance Revolution video game, he doesn't see just the latest gadget, he sees a tool he can adapt for kids with disabilities.
For instance, Bishop, a 2008 Kauffman Fellow, and a team of students from his 2004 software engineering class hijacked a Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) pad
to create a "Braille twister" game for children ages 2 to 8 who are visually impaired or blind.
The team used a $15 adapter to plug the DDR pad into an ordinary computer, then programmed software that allows kids to spell Braille symbols using the
DDR pad. (The six outer squares on the pad correspond to the six dots in a Braille cell.)
Braille twister is part of a suite of games that Bishop and students developed when they found out that when students in N.C. schools go to computer class
each week, there was nothing for the blind students to do.
There just aren't enough cool tools out there for kids with disabilities, Bishop says, especially affordable ones. But by making small modifications to
the hardware that's already available, he works to fill that void and make a big difference in children's' lives.
Kauffman Faculty Fellowships have been offered the past three years by the Institute for the Arts and Humanities in the College of Arts and Sciences as
part of the Carolina Entrepreneurial Initiative (CEI).
Simple adaptations yield huge returns
Since they don't see, blind babies often delay exploring and crawling, which means they don't develop upper body strength.
Braille twister helps the children not only learn Braille but also improve their upper body strength. The children know which square they've pressed because
each square plays a different animal sound, like a cow or horse, but they've got to press pretty hard to hear the sound. So, they get a little workout.
Bishop's passion for accessibility software began back in 2001 when he met Jason Morris, who was a classics graduate student at the time and is blind. The
two worked together to improve software that Bishop and students had designed that uses sound to allow blind people to use maps.
Since then Bishop and generations of students in his computer science classes have developed games that enable blind children and, more recently, students
with other disabilities, to learn and have fun at the same time.
Like the other applications Bishop has developed, the "Braille twister" software is available to anyone for free. And it doesn't cost much for users to
get the equipment needed. A DDR pad can be purchased on Amazon.com for $6.79. A computer adapter costs about $15.
Bishop plans to keep pursuing this model of making simple adaptations to games and tools that are already widely available and don't cost much.
"The intersection between disabled people and rich people is very small," Bishop said.
Sustainability would expand access to more children in need
With support from the department of computer science in UNC's College of Arts and Sciences, Bishop pursues such projects to the exclusion of the research
he once conducted in such areas as 3D computer graphics. But he wants to ensure the software stays free of charge, and he wants to reach more children.
So this semester, with the help of a Kaufmann Fellowship, Bishop is exploring ways to make his social enterprise sustainable.
"I'm looking at ways to get a sufficiently continuous revenue stream to support students, and maybe a staff person to provide some continuity. Students
come and go," he said.
He's also exploring ways he might charge small fees for some aspects of the software while still making it available to kids who need it.
"Schools actually have some money to pay for accessibility tools that their students need, but very often there's not enough of that money," he said. "And
I really hate the idea of a kid not having access for want of a few dollars."
One possible model is to continue to provide the software to all students for free, but charge schools reasonable fees for an enhanced version that enables
teachers to measure and track progress.
Bishop also pursues additional partnerships such as those he's formed with orientation and mobility teachers in the public schools.
In conjunction with the UNC Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, Bishop and students are beginning to develop software to enable communication for
children with cerebral palsy and other conditions.
He's also exploring a partnership with UNC's School of Education.
Bishop and his students take every chance they get to test their software in schools. Once a year the computer science department hosts Maze Day. Visually
impaired and blind students in grades K-12 and their parents and teachers visit the computer science department to test the latest games from Bishop and
students. This year, about 75 children from around North Carolina and a few other states will attend.
That means the undergraduates who program the software often get to meet children who use the games they've created.
"One of my students said, 'This is the first thing I've done in school that's mattered,'" Bishop said.
"You learn a ton getting kids to use this stuff," he said. "You thought your software was perfect, and they break it."
Monday, December 8, 2008
Blind pilot’s adventure
Miles has achieved more than many others would even dare consider.
Despite being blind for over 25 years, Miles has still lived his dreams, encouraging us to realise that "The only limits in our lives are those we acceptourselves."
His remarkable adventures in recent years, setting numerous world records in the process, include:
list of 11 items• Attempting to be the first blind person to reach the South Pole, in the process man-hauling a sledge over 250 miles across Antarctica • Completing "The Toughest Foot-race on earth" - 150 miles across the Sahara Desert in the Marathon des Sables • Climbing to 17,500 feet in the Himalayas • Climbing Mt Kilimanjaro and Mt. Blanc- Africa's/Europe's highest mountains • Running the 11-day Ultra-Marathon race across China from Gobi Desert to Great Wall • Completing the "Coldest Marathon on Earth"- the Siberian Ice Marathon • Crossing entire Qatar Desert non-stop day/night in 78 hours without sleep • Circumnavigating 38,000 miles around world using 80 forms of transport • Setting Malaysian Grand Prix lap record for blind driver in 200kph Lotus • Setting new British high-altitude record for a tandem microlight • Completing more than 40 skydiving jumps to date list end
He is currently preparing to undertake a 35-day, 12,500 microlight flight more than half way around the world, from London to Sydney, Australia, with StormSmith, relying on speech-output (developed by Software Express) on his instruments for navigation.
Despite being blind for over 25 years, Miles has still lived his dreams, encouraging us to realise that "The only limits in our lives are those we acceptourselves."
His remarkable adventures in recent years, setting numerous world records in the process, include:
list of 11 items• Attempting to be the first blind person to reach the South Pole, in the process man-hauling a sledge over 250 miles across Antarctica • Completing "The Toughest Foot-race on earth" - 150 miles across the Sahara Desert in the Marathon des Sables • Climbing to 17,500 feet in the Himalayas • Climbing Mt Kilimanjaro and Mt. Blanc- Africa's/Europe's highest mountains • Running the 11-day Ultra-Marathon race across China from Gobi Desert to Great Wall • Completing the "Coldest Marathon on Earth"- the Siberian Ice Marathon • Crossing entire Qatar Desert non-stop day/night in 78 hours without sleep • Circumnavigating 38,000 miles around world using 80 forms of transport • Setting Malaysian Grand Prix lap record for blind driver in 200kph Lotus • Setting new British high-altitude record for a tandem microlight • Completing more than 40 skydiving jumps to date list end
He is currently preparing to undertake a 35-day, 12,500 microlight flight more than half way around the world, from London to Sydney, Australia, with StormSmith, relying on speech-output (developed by Software Express) on his instruments for navigation.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
some useful web addresses
www.hj.com
visit the website of jaws and read about other powerful softwares
www.webvisum.com
uniques website.
www.idarieu.org
visit Ida Rieu welfare organization online.
www.dawn.com
read dawn news paper online.
www.jang-group.com
read the news online.
visit the website of jaws and read about other powerful softwares
www.webvisum.com
uniques website.
www.idarieu.org
visit Ida Rieu welfare organization online.
www.dawn.com
read dawn news paper online.
www.jang-group.com
read the news online.
Friday, December 5, 2008
role of parents of special children
Role of parents
Role of parents
As soon as the baby is born, the mother and father become attached to their child through touch – through holding, carrying, and playing with their baby.
The world of movement begins, and it is the parents who are the first educators of their child.
This holds true for visually impaired children too.
Guiding
Parents have a much longer, sustained, and intimate relationship with their child than anybody else. When children are young they are learning to identify
and label the world. Blind children are no different. They need to become familiar with the world, too. Familiarisation develops orientation. For the sighted
child, vision puts them in the action.
Vision
Vision is the sense that allows us to integrate all of the things we learn about the world. Without normal vision, the child must learn to "see" and understand the world in new ways. As the child's parents, one needs the opportunity to understand how loss of vision affects their child's early development; learn how they, as parents, can most effectively teach their child to see the world.
Vision continued
One must realise that every child, whether visually impaired or not, is
a learner. Besides this, what every child learns in the first three years of life is learned visually, primarily through imitation, says a research.
Research
Visually impaired children learn by touching, listening, smelling, tasting, moving, and using whatever vision they have. A parent teaches his/her child by talking, touching, and playing during natural interaction times. One also teaches by providing toys and ordinary household objects that vary in texture, weight, smell, sound, and colour.
Research
The more sensory experiences provide, both one at a time and simultaneously, during everyday routines and special family occasions, the better. The fact is that just about all your interactions–playing, talking, putting on clothes, feeding are natural teaching experiences for you and learning opportunities for your child. However, children have different learning styles and, therefore, effective teaching approaches should be geared to individual needs.
What the parents are!
Parents are the natural teacher because they know their child better than anyone else does and have a better idea of what he/she is ready to learn.
They spend more time with the child .
What the parents are!
Therefore they're able to take advantage of the many ordinary events – things that happen throughout the day in the normal
course of family life – that are teaching opportunities. As a parent you give your child toys and common, everyday objects to help him / her learn in natural
situations that can be applied to other situations outside the home.
Or!
Also, as a parent you must keep on providing opportunities to your child to practice what he has learned and a chance to experience the world under your guidance.
Or!
You act as a role model. By starting early, you teach your child good habits that will last a lifetime. And, above all involve your child in
family life so friends and relatives learn how to interact with your visually impaired child and he / she learns how to act with others.
Or!
Also, as a parent you must keep on providing opportunities to your child to practice what he has learned and a chance to experience the world under your guidance. You act as a role model. By starting early, you teach your child good habits that will last a lifetime. And, above all involve your child in family life so friends and relatives learn how to interact with your visually impaired child and he / she learns how to act with others.
No guidance to parents is complete, keep discovering……… remain involved with your special child, give him as much time and attention as you do to others.
Thankyou
Role of parents
As soon as the baby is born, the mother and father become attached to their child through touch – through holding, carrying, and playing with their baby.
The world of movement begins, and it is the parents who are the first educators of their child.
This holds true for visually impaired children too.
Guiding
Parents have a much longer, sustained, and intimate relationship with their child than anybody else. When children are young they are learning to identify
and label the world. Blind children are no different. They need to become familiar with the world, too. Familiarisation develops orientation. For the sighted
child, vision puts them in the action.
Vision
Vision is the sense that allows us to integrate all of the things we learn about the world. Without normal vision, the child must learn to "see" and understand the world in new ways. As the child's parents, one needs the opportunity to understand how loss of vision affects their child's early development; learn how they, as parents, can most effectively teach their child to see the world.
Vision continued
One must realise that every child, whether visually impaired or not, is
a learner. Besides this, what every child learns in the first three years of life is learned visually, primarily through imitation, says a research.
Research
Visually impaired children learn by touching, listening, smelling, tasting, moving, and using whatever vision they have. A parent teaches his/her child by talking, touching, and playing during natural interaction times. One also teaches by providing toys and ordinary household objects that vary in texture, weight, smell, sound, and colour.
Research
The more sensory experiences provide, both one at a time and simultaneously, during everyday routines and special family occasions, the better. The fact is that just about all your interactions–playing, talking, putting on clothes, feeding are natural teaching experiences for you and learning opportunities for your child. However, children have different learning styles and, therefore, effective teaching approaches should be geared to individual needs.
What the parents are!
Parents are the natural teacher because they know their child better than anyone else does and have a better idea of what he/she is ready to learn.
They spend more time with the child .
What the parents are!
Therefore they're able to take advantage of the many ordinary events – things that happen throughout the day in the normal
course of family life – that are teaching opportunities. As a parent you give your child toys and common, everyday objects to help him / her learn in natural
situations that can be applied to other situations outside the home.
Or!
Also, as a parent you must keep on providing opportunities to your child to practice what he has learned and a chance to experience the world under your guidance.
Or!
You act as a role model. By starting early, you teach your child good habits that will last a lifetime. And, above all involve your child in
family life so friends and relatives learn how to interact with your visually impaired child and he / she learns how to act with others.
Or!
Also, as a parent you must keep on providing opportunities to your child to practice what he has learned and a chance to experience the world under your guidance. You act as a role model. By starting early, you teach your child good habits that will last a lifetime. And, above all involve your child in family life so friends and relatives learn how to interact with your visually impaired child and he / she learns how to act with others.
No guidance to parents is complete, keep discovering……… remain involved with your special child, give him as much time and attention as you do to others.
Thankyou
teaching tips and use of technology
Some Blind Achievers
Depending on the social support,
visually impaired persons have made headway in almost every sphere of life.
Help them integrate in the mainstream society
Born : 27 June 1880
Died : 1 June, 1968
In Helen's own words: "The public must learn that the blind man is neither genius nor a freak nor an idiot. He has a mind that can be educated, a hand which can be trained, ambitions which it is right for him to strive to realise, and it is the duty of the public to help him make the best of himself so that he can win light through work."
Ted Henter: Mr. Henter, a member of the Freedom Scientific board of directors, is an engineer by training, and he first learned computer programming after losing his sight as a result of an automobile accident. In 1987, nine years after having lost his sight, he founded Henter-Joyce and began developing software designed to convert computer text to speech so that visually-impaired people could use a computer. Mr. Henter’s goal in the development of JAWS was to enable people who are blind or who have low vision to be able to achieve the same or higher productivity in computer-based jobs as sighted people. Henter-Joyce also developed MAGic screen magnification software and other assistive technology software that the visually-challenged have used to significantly improve their lives.
The first hole-in-one recorded by a blind or visually impaired golfer in a National Open was scored on September 15, 2004 by Jan Dinsdale. In March 2005, American blind golfer Joel Ludvicek, 78, scored a hole-in-one in the 168-yard No. 11 hole at the Twin Pines golf course in Iowa, USA.
• Blind golfer hits hole-in-oneA 92-year-old blind golfer has hit a hole-in-one in Florida. Leo Fiyalko was playing a 110-yard, par-3 hole in Clearwater.“It was my first hole-in-one, and I never saw it,” he said. “I was just trying to put the ball on the green.” Mr Fiyalko once played to a seven handicap but he began suffering macular degeneration 10 years ago. He is now legally blind and needs help lining up his shots and finding his golf balls.Mr Fiyalko was playing with a group-of-friends when he hit his hole-in-one but they were all looking for a lost ball as he prepared to tee off. His friends in the Twilighters Club golf group presented him with a plaque to commemorate the feat. Ananova
Miles Hilton-Barber (Blind) flew from London to Sydney, via Karachi, to support Standard and Chartered Bank’s
SEEING IS BELIEVING PROGRAMME
Honorable David A. Paterson, legally blind, was sworn-in by Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye as the 55th Governor of New York on Monday afternoon. Here with wife Michelle, daughter Ashley.
Henry, Sarah and Chris celebrating their first London Marathon!
Teaching tips
Use of Technology for teaching blind persons.
Before I start my presentation, let us remind ourselves that………..
LOOSING SIGHT DOES NOT MEAN LOOSING VISION
Know the extent, intensity of blindness
Begin by understanding the visual condition of the blind student. Assess how much residual vision a person is left with. This fact-finding is an indispensable exercise in the case of a low vision or partially blind student, as the vision they are left can still be made optimum use of. And accordingly ways of learning could be devised, for example, the use of large font print books.
Know the history
Next, get to know about how and when the person became blind. This information would be useful because if a person became blind at the age of nine or later, he or she has certain visual memory. They would perceive ideas and concepts differently from someone who became blind at birth.
Know the history
Persons who lost their sight at the age of about 9 or 10 have concepts of FONTS, TABLES, SHAPES, COLOURS etc.
Establish a rapport
Any child, whether blind or not is just a child first. The aim of teaching any child is to make them independent, to teach them to adapt themselves to situations, environment. However, learning to adapt comes more naturally when one is given a chance to interact and communicate. And for this, establishing rapport becomes vital. So, talk to the blind child, give them confidence and ask whether there is any special requirement.
Get Reader’s help: check with peers
There is no real substitute to actual reading. A blind person has to depend on somebody who reads to them.
Use of JAWS however eliminates such dependence and provides freedom to the Blind person to “hear” the reading material of his choice at a time convenient to him.
Computer aided learning
In the past few years huge strides have been made in the area of adaptive technology in the realm of computers. The use of this enables people with vision impairment to be at par with others when it comes to participation and contribution both within the classroom and in extra curricular activities.
Computer aided learning
Not knowing Braille is the least of problem for a teacher today and even a student, provided they have been trained in using computers with speech software such as JAWS (Job Access With Speech). Other software programmes such as Kurzweil enable users to scan in books, articles, bills, and advertisements - almost anything that fits on a scanner so they can quickly have the information read aloud. Similarly computers would be of great help when examining progress of a blind student, as they pose minimal interference, aid independence and confidence in the student. So, use the technology to its best advantage.
Attention to detail while teaching
A blind student cannot read from the blackboard, cannot read and follow line-to-line decipherers from a book. Thus, a teacher should pay attention to detail while teaching. For example, teaching the format of a letter say out, 'On the left hand corner of your page you write the address. The address of this college is Nizami Road, near Purani Numaish.
Attention to detail while teaching
Remember the blind student cannot see the board but he or she can hear well. When plans or diagrams are used, you can emboss them for your students by sticking string to cardboard. When explaining texture, use real objects like a metal button, a plastic button or a wooden button. So, where ever possible try to give first hand experience, use real life objects and try to be innovative.
Conclusion
A visually impaired student loses only his sight but not his vision to see the world. Their other senses are intact, so focus on developing and utilizing these remaining senses. Learning is very much tied up with culture, exposure and experiences. Blind students may not be able to acquire exposure and experiences the same way as sighted students. So teachers of the blind may have to go an extra edge than other teachers. Bring experiences and exposure to the blind students.
I will be happy to answer if you have any questions on this subject.
Depending on the social support,
visually impaired persons have made headway in almost every sphere of life.
Help them integrate in the mainstream society
Born : 27 June 1880
Died : 1 June, 1968
In Helen's own words: "The public must learn that the blind man is neither genius nor a freak nor an idiot. He has a mind that can be educated, a hand which can be trained, ambitions which it is right for him to strive to realise, and it is the duty of the public to help him make the best of himself so that he can win light through work."
Ted Henter: Mr. Henter, a member of the Freedom Scientific board of directors, is an engineer by training, and he first learned computer programming after losing his sight as a result of an automobile accident. In 1987, nine years after having lost his sight, he founded Henter-Joyce and began developing software designed to convert computer text to speech so that visually-impaired people could use a computer. Mr. Henter’s goal in the development of JAWS was to enable people who are blind or who have low vision to be able to achieve the same or higher productivity in computer-based jobs as sighted people. Henter-Joyce also developed MAGic screen magnification software and other assistive technology software that the visually-challenged have used to significantly improve their lives.
The first hole-in-one recorded by a blind or visually impaired golfer in a National Open was scored on September 15, 2004 by Jan Dinsdale. In March 2005, American blind golfer Joel Ludvicek, 78, scored a hole-in-one in the 168-yard No. 11 hole at the Twin Pines golf course in Iowa, USA.
• Blind golfer hits hole-in-oneA 92-year-old blind golfer has hit a hole-in-one in Florida. Leo Fiyalko was playing a 110-yard, par-3 hole in Clearwater.“It was my first hole-in-one, and I never saw it,” he said. “I was just trying to put the ball on the green.” Mr Fiyalko once played to a seven handicap but he began suffering macular degeneration 10 years ago. He is now legally blind and needs help lining up his shots and finding his golf balls.Mr Fiyalko was playing with a group-of-friends when he hit his hole-in-one but they were all looking for a lost ball as he prepared to tee off. His friends in the Twilighters Club golf group presented him with a plaque to commemorate the feat. Ananova
Miles Hilton-Barber (Blind) flew from London to Sydney, via Karachi, to support Standard and Chartered Bank’s
SEEING IS BELIEVING PROGRAMME
Honorable David A. Paterson, legally blind, was sworn-in by Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye as the 55th Governor of New York on Monday afternoon. Here with wife Michelle, daughter Ashley.
Henry, Sarah and Chris celebrating their first London Marathon!
Teaching tips
Use of Technology for teaching blind persons.
Before I start my presentation, let us remind ourselves that………..
LOOSING SIGHT DOES NOT MEAN LOOSING VISION
Know the extent, intensity of blindness
Begin by understanding the visual condition of the blind student. Assess how much residual vision a person is left with. This fact-finding is an indispensable exercise in the case of a low vision or partially blind student, as the vision they are left can still be made optimum use of. And accordingly ways of learning could be devised, for example, the use of large font print books.
Know the history
Next, get to know about how and when the person became blind. This information would be useful because if a person became blind at the age of nine or later, he or she has certain visual memory. They would perceive ideas and concepts differently from someone who became blind at birth.
Know the history
Persons who lost their sight at the age of about 9 or 10 have concepts of FONTS, TABLES, SHAPES, COLOURS etc.
Establish a rapport
Any child, whether blind or not is just a child first. The aim of teaching any child is to make them independent, to teach them to adapt themselves to situations, environment. However, learning to adapt comes more naturally when one is given a chance to interact and communicate. And for this, establishing rapport becomes vital. So, talk to the blind child, give them confidence and ask whether there is any special requirement.
Get Reader’s help: check with peers
There is no real substitute to actual reading. A blind person has to depend on somebody who reads to them.
Use of JAWS however eliminates such dependence and provides freedom to the Blind person to “hear” the reading material of his choice at a time convenient to him.
Computer aided learning
In the past few years huge strides have been made in the area of adaptive technology in the realm of computers. The use of this enables people with vision impairment to be at par with others when it comes to participation and contribution both within the classroom and in extra curricular activities.
Computer aided learning
Not knowing Braille is the least of problem for a teacher today and even a student, provided they have been trained in using computers with speech software such as JAWS (Job Access With Speech). Other software programmes such as Kurzweil enable users to scan in books, articles, bills, and advertisements - almost anything that fits on a scanner so they can quickly have the information read aloud. Similarly computers would be of great help when examining progress of a blind student, as they pose minimal interference, aid independence and confidence in the student. So, use the technology to its best advantage.
Attention to detail while teaching
A blind student cannot read from the blackboard, cannot read and follow line-to-line decipherers from a book. Thus, a teacher should pay attention to detail while teaching. For example, teaching the format of a letter say out, 'On the left hand corner of your page you write the address. The address of this college is Nizami Road, near Purani Numaish.
Attention to detail while teaching
Remember the blind student cannot see the board but he or she can hear well. When plans or diagrams are used, you can emboss them for your students by sticking string to cardboard. When explaining texture, use real objects like a metal button, a plastic button or a wooden button. So, where ever possible try to give first hand experience, use real life objects and try to be innovative.
Conclusion
A visually impaired student loses only his sight but not his vision to see the world. Their other senses are intact, so focus on developing and utilizing these remaining senses. Learning is very much tied up with culture, exposure and experiences. Blind students may not be able to acquire exposure and experiences the same way as sighted students. So teachers of the blind may have to go an extra edge than other teachers. Bring experiences and exposure to the blind students.
I will be happy to answer if you have any questions on this subject.
Web visum
Web visum is unique browser add on which greatly enhances web accessibility and empowers the blind and visually impaired community by putting the control
In your hands! Its aim is to allow you to better enjoy surfing the net and be significantly less dependent upon outside help. Now available in English,
German, Russian, Italian, Slovak, Bulgarian, Dutch, Croatian, Romanian, Portugese, Turkish and Spanish! If you want to help, login into your account and
Visit the Community page!
Just a few exciting features that they already offer:
List of 5 items
• Community driven tagging and page enhancements.
• Automated and instant CAPTCHA image solving, sign up to web sites and make forum posts and blog comments without asking for help!
• Built in helper functions for easier page navigation and less confusion.
• Numerous under the hood page tweaks designed to help screen reader users.
• Visually Impaired users benefit from features such as high contrast page viewing, link and focus highlighting, and more.
It is only available for the Firefox browser. If you have not used Firefox, or used an old version, they highly recommend that you
Download Firefox version 3.0
Which is probably the most accessible, fast and overall best web browser on the Internet? You won't regret it!
Start using the service straight away by first creating an account with them through the
Register
Page and then installing the add on in your Firefox. For more information on how to use the service, please read the
http://www.webvisum.com/wiki/Tutorial
wiki/Tutorialthrough. Once you are running Firefox with Web Visum installed, you can press CTRL+F1 at any time for the quick help screen.
They have an extensive list of exciting features and enhancements and are planning to continue developing this product further to its fullest potential.
In order to accomplish these goals they need to reach the entire blind and visually impaired Internet users community and need your help in spreading the
Word.
The web has just become much more accessible!
For blind persons!
In your hands! Its aim is to allow you to better enjoy surfing the net and be significantly less dependent upon outside help. Now available in English,
German, Russian, Italian, Slovak, Bulgarian, Dutch, Croatian, Romanian, Portugese, Turkish and Spanish! If you want to help, login into your account and
Visit the Community page!
Just a few exciting features that they already offer:
List of 5 items
• Community driven tagging and page enhancements.
• Automated and instant CAPTCHA image solving, sign up to web sites and make forum posts and blog comments without asking for help!
• Built in helper functions for easier page navigation and less confusion.
• Numerous under the hood page tweaks designed to help screen reader users.
• Visually Impaired users benefit from features such as high contrast page viewing, link and focus highlighting, and more.
It is only available for the Firefox browser. If you have not used Firefox, or used an old version, they highly recommend that you
Download Firefox version 3.0
Which is probably the most accessible, fast and overall best web browser on the Internet? You won't regret it!
Start using the service straight away by first creating an account with them through the
Register
Page and then installing the add on in your Firefox. For more information on how to use the service, please read the
http://www.webvisum.com/wiki/Tutorial
wiki/Tutorialthrough. Once you are running Firefox with Web Visum installed, you can press CTRL+F1 at any time for the quick help screen.
They have an extensive list of exciting features and enhancements and are planning to continue developing this product further to its fullest potential.
In order to accomplish these goals they need to reach the entire blind and visually impaired Internet users community and need your help in spreading the
Word.
The web has just become much more accessible!
For blind persons!
Monday, October 27, 2008
inventions and inventors
BAIRD, JOHN LOGIEJohn Logie Baird (1888-1946) was a Scottish inventor and engineer who was a pioneer in the development of mechanical television. In 1924, Baird televised objects in outline. In 1925, he televised human faces. In 1926, Baird was the first person to televise pictures of objects in motion. In 1930, Baird made the first public broadcast of a TV show, from his studio to the London Coliseum Cinema; the screen consisted of a 6-ft by 3-ft array of 2,100 tiny flashlamp bulbs. Baird developed a color television in 1928, and a stereo television in 1946. Baird's mechanical television was usurped by electronic television, which he also worked on.
BAEKELAND, L.H.Leo Hendrik Baekeland (November 14, 1863 - February 23, 1944) was a Belgian-born American chemist who invented Velox photographic paper (1893) and Bakelite (1907), an inexpensive, nonflammable, versatile, and very popular plastic.
BAKELITEBakelite (also called catalin) is a plastic, a dense synthetic polymer (a phenolic resin) that was used to make jewelry, game pieces, engine parts, radio boxes, switches, and many, many other objects. Bakelite was the first industrial thermoset plastic (a material that does not change its shape after being mixed and heated). Bakelite plastic is made from carbolic acid (phenol) and formaldehyde, which are mixed, heated, and then either molded or extruded into the desired shape.
Bakelite was patented in 1907 by the Belgian-born American chemist Leo Hendrik Baekeland (November 14, 1863 - February 23, 1944). The Nobel Prize winning German chemist Adolf von Baeyer had experimented with this material in 1872, but did not complete its development or see its potential.
Baekeland operated the General Bakelite Company from 1911 to 1939 (in Perth Amboy, N.J., USA), and produced up to about 200,000 tons of Bakelite annually. Bakelite replaced the very flammable celluloid plastic that had been so popular. The bracelet above is made of "butterscotch" bakelite.
BALLPOINT PENThe first non-leaking ballpoint pen was invented in 1935 by the Hungarian brothers Lazlo and Georg Biro. Lazlo was a chemist and Georg was a newspaper editor.
A ballpoint marker had been invented much earlier (in 1888 by John Loud, an American leather tanner, who used the device for marking leather) but Loud's marker leaked, making it impractical for everyday use. A new type of ink had to be developed; this is what the Biro brothers did. The brothers patented their invention and then opened the first ballpoint manufacturing plant in Argentina, South America.
BAND-AID®Bandages for wounds had been around since ancient times, but an easy-to-use dressing with an adhesive was invented by Earle Dickson (a cotton buyer at the Johnson & Johnson company). Dickson perfected the BAND-AID® in 1920, making a small, sterile adhesive bandage for home use. Dickson invented the BAND-AID® for his wife, who had many kitchen accidents and needed an easy-to-use wound dressing. Dickson was rewarded by the Johnson & Johnson company by being made a vice-president of the company.
BAR CODEBar codes (also called Universal Product Codes or UPC's) are small, coded labels that contain information about the item they are attached to; the information is contained in a numerical code, usually containing 12 digits. UPC's are easily scanned by laser beams. UPC's are used on many things, including most items for sale in stores, library books, inventory items, many packages and pieces of luggage being shipped, railroad cars, etc. The UPC may contain coded information about the item, its manufacturer, place of origin, destination, the owner, or other data. The first "bullseye code" was invented by Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver, from work which they began in 1948. On October 20, 1949, they patented their bullseye code (a series of concentric circles that were scannable from all directions, using regular light). Woodland and Silver patented a new UPC in October 1952; the UPC was also improved and adapted by David J. Collins in the late 1950's (to track railroad cars). UPC's were first used in grocery stores in the early 1970's.
BARNARD, CHRISTIAAN N.Christiaan Neethling Barnard (1923- ) is a South African heart surgeon who developed surgical procedures for organ transplants, invented new heart valves, and performed the first human heart transplant (on Dec. 3, 1967, in a five-hour operation with a team of 20 surgeons). The 55-year-old Louis Washkansky received the heart transplant; Washkansky lived for only 18 days after the operation, dying from pneumonia (his immune system had been weakened by drugs designed to suppress the rejection of the new heart). The donor of the heart was a woman who had been fatally injured in a car crash. Barnard performed more successful transplants later in his career; some of his later transplant recipients survived for years. Barnard was the head of the cardiac unit at Groote Schuur Hospital until he retired in 1983.
BAROMETERA barometer is a device that measures air (barometric) pressure. It measures the weight of the column of air that extends from the instrument to the top of the atmosphere. There are two types of barometers commonly used today, mercury and aneroid (meaning "fluidless"). Earlier water barometers (also known as "storm glasses") date from the 17th century. The mercury barometer was invented by the Italian physicist Evangelista Torricelli(1608 - 1647), a pupil of Galileo, in 1643. Torricelli inverted a glass tube filled with mercury into another container of mercury; the mercury in the tube "weighs" the air in the atmosphere above the tube. The aneroid barometer (using a spring balance instead of a liquid) was invented by the French scientist Lucien Vidie in 1843.
BASKETBALLThe game of basketball was invented by James Naismith(1861-1939). Naismith was a Canadian physical education instructor who invented the game in 1891 so that his students could participate in sports during the winter. In his original game, which he developed while at the Springfield, Massachusetts YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association), Naismith used a soccer ball which was thrown into peach baskets (with the basket bottoms intact). The first public basketball game was in Springfield, MA, USA, on March 11, 1892. Basketball was first played at the Olympics in Berlin Germany in 1936 (America won the gold medal, and Naismith was there).
BATHYSPHEREA bathysphere is a pressurized metal sphere that allows people to go deep in the ocean, to depths at which diving unaided is impossible. This hollow cast iron sphere with very thick walls is lowered and raised from a ship using a steel cable. The bathysphere was invented by William Beebe and Otis Barton (around 1930). William Beebe (1877 - 1962), an American naturalist and undersea explorer, tested the bathysphere in 1930, going down to 1426 feet in a 4'9" (1.45 m) diameter bathysphere. Beebe and Otis Barton descended about 3,000 ft (914 m) feet in a larger bathysphere in 1934. They descended off the coast of Nonsuch Island, Bermuda in the Atlantic Ocean. During the dive, they communicated with the surface via telephone.
BATTERYA battery is a device that converts chemical energy into electrical energy. Each battery has two electrodes, an anode (the positive end) and a cathode (the negative end). An electrical circuit runs between these two electrodes, going through a chemical called an electrolyte (which can be either liquid or solid). This unit consisting of two electrodes is called a cell (often called a voltaic cell or pile). Batteries are used to power many devices and make the spark that starts a gasoline engine.
Alessandro Volta was an Italian physicist invented the first chemical battery in 1800.
Storage batteries are lead-based batteries that can be recharged. In 1859, the French physicist Gaston Plante (1834-1889) invented a battery made from two lead plates joined by a wire and immersed in a sulfuric acid electrolyte; this was the first storage battery.
The dry cell is a an improved voltaic cell with a cylindrical zinc shell (the zinc acts as both the cathode and the container) that is lined with an ammonium chloride (the electrolyte) saturated material (and not a liquid). The dry cell battery was developed in the 1870s-1870s by Georges Leclanche of France, who used an electrolyte in the form of a paste.
Edison batteries (also called alkaline batteries) are an improved type of storage battery developed by Thomas Edison. These batteries have an alkaline electrolyte, and not an acid.
BEHAIM, MARTINMartin Behaim (1459-1537) was a German mapmaker, navigator, and merchant. Behaim made the earliest globe, called the "Nürnberg Terrestrial Globe". It was made during the years 1490-1492; the painter Georg Glockendon helped in the project. Behaim had previously sailed to Portugal as a merchant (in 1480). He had advised King John II on matters concerning navigation. He accompanied the Portuguese explorer Diogo Cam (Cão) on a 1485-1486 voyage to the coast of West Africa; during this trip, the mouth of the Congo River was discovered. After returning to Nürnberg in 1490, Behaim began construction of his globe (which was very inaccurate as compared to other maps from that time, even in the areas in which Behaim had sailed). It was once thought that Behaim's maps might have influenced Columbus and Magellan; this is now discounted. Behaim may have also developed an astrolabe. Behaim's globe is now in the German National Museum in Nürnberg.
BELL, ALEXANDER GRAHAMAlexander Graham Bell (March 3, 1847, Edinburgh, Scotland - August 2, 1922, Baddek, Nova Scotia) invented the telephone (with Thomas Watson) in 1876. Bell also improved Thomas Edison's phonograph. Bell invented the multiple telegraph (1875), the hydroairplane, the photo-sensitive selenium cell (the photophone, a wireless phone, developed with Sumner Tainter), and new techniques for teaching the deaf to speak. In 1882, Bell and his father-in-law, Gardiner Hubbard, bought and re-organized the journal "Science." Bell, Hubbard and others founded the National Geographic Society in 1888; Bell was the President of the National Geographic Society from 1898 to 1903.
BELL, HENRYHenry Bell (1767-1830) was a Scottish engineer and inventor who built a steam-powered boat in 1812. His 12-foot (3.5-meter) steamboat, called the Comet, was the first commercially successful steamship in Europe. This boat regularly sailed between Greenock and Glasgow (Scotland) along the River Clyde. The Comet was the beginning of a revolution in navigation.
BERNERS-LEE, TIMTim Berners-Lee (1955, London, England - ) invented the World Wide Web. His first version of the Web was a program named "Enquire," short for "Enquire Within Upon Everything". At the time, Berners-Lee was working at CERN, the European Particle Physics Laboratory located in Geneva, Switzerland. He invented the system as a way of sharing scientific data (and other information) around the world, using the Internet, a world-wide network of computers, and hypertext documents. He wrote the language HTML (HyperText Mark-up Language), the basic language for the Web, and devised URL's (universal resource locators) to designate the location of each web page. HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) was his set of rules for linking to pages on the Web. After he wrote the first browser in 1990, the World Wide Web was up and going. Its growth was (and still is) phenomenal, and has changed the world, making information more accessible than ever before in history. Berners-Lee is now a Principal Research Scientist at the Laboratory for Computer Science at the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in Cambridge, Massachusett, USA) and the Director of the W3 Consortium.
BERSON, SOLOMON A.Dr. Solomon A. Berson (1919-1972) and Dr. Rosalyn Sussman Yalow (1921- ) co-invented the radioimmunoassay (RIA) in 1959. The radioimmunoassay is a method of chemically analyzing human blood and tissue that is used diagnose illness (like diabetes). RIA revolutionized diagnoses because it used only a tiny sample of blood or tissue and is a relatively inexpensive and simple test to perform. Blood banks use RIA to screen blood; RIA is used to detect drug use, high blood pressure, infertility, and many other conditions and diseases. For inventing RIA, Yalow won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1977 (Yalow accepted for Berson, who died in 1972). Yalow and Berson did not patent the RIA; instead they allowed the common use of RIA to benefit human health.
BICYCLEThe earliest bicycle was a wooden scooter-like contraption called a celerifere; it was invented about 1790 by Comte Mede de Sivrac of France. In 1816, Baron Karl von Drais de Sauerbrun, of Germany, invented a model with a steering bar attached to the front wheel, which he called a Draisienne. It has two wheels (of the same size), and the rider sat between the two wheels, but there were no pedals; to move, you had to propel the bicycle forward using your feet (a bit like a scooter). He exhibited his bicycle in Paris on April 6, 1818.
BIFOCAL GLASSESBenjamin Franklin invented bifocal glasses in the 1700s. He was nearsighted and had also become farsighted in his middle age. Tired of switching between two pairs of glasses, Franklin cut the lenses of each pair of glasses horizontally, making a single pair of glasses that focused at both near regions (the bottom half of the lenses) and far regions (the top half of the lenses). This new type of glasses let people read and see far away; they are still in use today.
BLODGETT, KATHERINEKathering J. Blodgett (1898-1979) was an American physicist and inventor who invented a micro-thin barium stearate film that makes glass completely nonreflective and "invisible" (patent #2,220,660, March 16, 1938). Blodgett's invention has been used in eyeglasses, camera lenses, telescopes, microscopes, periscopes, and projector lenses. Blodgett also invented a gauge that measured the thickness of this type of coating (which can be only a few molecules thick), called a "color gauge."
BLOOD BANKThe idea of a blood bank was pioneered by Dr. Charles Richard Drew(1904-1950). Dr. Drew was an American medical doctor and surgeon who started the idea of a blood bank and a system for the long term preservation of blood plasma (he found that plasma kept longer than whole blood). His ideas revolutionized the medical profession and saved many, many lives. Dr. Drew set up and operated the blood plasma bank at the Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, NY. Drew's project was the model for the Red Cross' system of blood banks, of which he became the first director.
BLUE JEANSLevi Strauss (1829-1902) was an entrepreneur who invented and marketed blue jeans. Trained as a tailor in Buttenheim, Bavaria, Germany, Strauss went to San Francisco, USA from New York in 1853. Strauss sold dry goods, including tents and linens to the 49ers (the people who came to the California gold rush, which began in 1849). In 1873, Strauss and Jacob Davis, a Nevada tailor, patented the idea (devised by Davis) of using copper rivets at the stress points of sturdy work pants. Early levis, called "waist overalls," came in a brown canvas duck fabric and a heavy blue denim fabric. The duck fabric pants were not very successful, so were dropped early on. His business became extremely successful (and still is), revolutionizing the apparel industry.
BRADENBERGER, JACQUESCellophane is a thin, transparent, waterproof, protective film that is used in many types of packaging. It was invented in 1908 by Jacques Edwin Brandenberger, a Swiss chemist. He had originally intended cellophane to be bonded onto fabric to make a waterproof textile, but the new cloth was brittle and not useful. Cellophane proved very useful all alone as a packaging material. Chemists at the Dupont company (who later bought the rights to cellophane) made cellophane waterproof in 1927.
BRAILLEBraille is a coded system of raised dots that are used by the blind to read. Louis Braille (1809-1852) invented this system in 1829. Braille published "The Method of Writing Words, Music, and Plain Song by Means of Dots, for Use by the Blind and Arranged by Them," and his method is still in use around the world today.
BRAILLE, LOUISLouis Braille (1809-1852) invented a coded system of raised dots that are used by the blind to read. He was blinded as a child, and invented his extraordinary system in his early teens. In 1829, Braille published "The Method of Writing Words, Music, and Plain Song by Means of Dots, for Use by the Blind and Arranged by Them." His method, called Braille, is still in use around the world today. Louis Braille is buried in the Pantheon in Paris, as a French national hero.
BRAILLE TYPEWRITERThe Hall Braille typewriter (also called a Braillewriter or Brailler) was invented in 1892 by Frank Haven Hall. Hall was the Superintendent of the Illinois Institution for the Blind. The Hall Braille typewriter was manufactured by the Harrison & Seifried company in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Hall introduced his invention on May 27, 1892, at Jacksonville, Illinois.
BREAD SLICERThe automatic commercial bread slicer was invented in 1927 by Otto Frederick Rohwedder from Iowa, USA (Rohwedder had worked on his machine since 1912). His machine both sliced and wrapped a loaf of bread. In 1928, the bread slicer was improved by Gustav Papendick, a baker from St. Louis, Missouri.
BUBBLE GUMBubblegum was invented by Frank Henry Fleer in 1906, but was not successful; the formulation of Fleer's "Blibber-Blubber," was too sticky. In 1928, Walter E. Diemer invented a superior formulation for bubble gum, which he called " Double Bubble."
BUDDING, EDWIN B.The first lawn mower was invented in 1830 by Edwin Beard Budding. Budding (1795-1846) was an engineer from Stroud, Gloucestershire, England. His reel mower was a set of blades set in a cylinder on two wheels. When you push the lawn mower, the cylinder rotates, and the blades cut the grass. Budding patented his lawn mower on August 31, 1830. Before his invention, a scythe was used (or sheep or other grazing animals were allowed to graze on the grass). The first reel lawn mower patent in the US (January 12, 1868) was granted to Amariah M. Hills, who formed the Archimedean Lawn Mower Co.
BUNSEN BURNERThe laboratory Bunsen burner was invented by Robert Wilhelm Bunsen in 1855. Bunsen (1811-1899) was a German chemist and teacher. He invented the Bunsen burner for his research in isolating chemical substances - it has a high-intensity, non-luminous flame that does not interfere with the colored flame emitted by chemicals being tested.
BURBANK, LUTHERLuther Burbank (1849-1926) was an American plant breeder who developed over 800 new strains of plants, including many popular varieties of potato, plums, prunes, berries, trees, and flowers. One of his greatest inventions was the Russet Burbank potato (also called the Idaho potato), which he developed in 1871. This blight-resistant potato helped Ireland recover from its devastating potato famine of 1840-60. Burbank also developed the Flaming Gold nectarine, the Santa Rosa plum, and the Shasta daisy. Burbank was raised on a farm and only went to elementary school; he was self-educated. Burbank applied the works of Charles Darwin to plants. Of Darwin's The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication, Burbank said, "It opened up a new world to me."
BUTTS, ALFREDThe word game Scrabble® was developed by Alfred Mosher Butts in 1948. James Brunot did some rearranging of the squares and simplified the rules. A copyright was granted on December 1, 1948. Alfred Butts had been an architect, but lost his job in 1931 (during the depression). He then began developing games, including Lexico, Criss-Crosswords, and them Scrabble®. After about 4 years of paltry sales, Scrabble® became a hit.
BAEKELAND, L.H.Leo Hendrik Baekeland (November 14, 1863 - February 23, 1944) was a Belgian-born American chemist who invented Velox photographic paper (1893) and Bakelite (1907), an inexpensive, nonflammable, versatile, and very popular plastic.
BAKELITEBakelite (also called catalin) is a plastic, a dense synthetic polymer (a phenolic resin) that was used to make jewelry, game pieces, engine parts, radio boxes, switches, and many, many other objects. Bakelite was the first industrial thermoset plastic (a material that does not change its shape after being mixed and heated). Bakelite plastic is made from carbolic acid (phenol) and formaldehyde, which are mixed, heated, and then either molded or extruded into the desired shape.
Bakelite was patented in 1907 by the Belgian-born American chemist Leo Hendrik Baekeland (November 14, 1863 - February 23, 1944). The Nobel Prize winning German chemist Adolf von Baeyer had experimented with this material in 1872, but did not complete its development or see its potential.
Baekeland operated the General Bakelite Company from 1911 to 1939 (in Perth Amboy, N.J., USA), and produced up to about 200,000 tons of Bakelite annually. Bakelite replaced the very flammable celluloid plastic that had been so popular. The bracelet above is made of "butterscotch" bakelite.
BALLPOINT PENThe first non-leaking ballpoint pen was invented in 1935 by the Hungarian brothers Lazlo and Georg Biro. Lazlo was a chemist and Georg was a newspaper editor.
A ballpoint marker had been invented much earlier (in 1888 by John Loud, an American leather tanner, who used the device for marking leather) but Loud's marker leaked, making it impractical for everyday use. A new type of ink had to be developed; this is what the Biro brothers did. The brothers patented their invention and then opened the first ballpoint manufacturing plant in Argentina, South America.
BAND-AID®Bandages for wounds had been around since ancient times, but an easy-to-use dressing with an adhesive was invented by Earle Dickson (a cotton buyer at the Johnson & Johnson company). Dickson perfected the BAND-AID® in 1920, making a small, sterile adhesive bandage for home use. Dickson invented the BAND-AID® for his wife, who had many kitchen accidents and needed an easy-to-use wound dressing. Dickson was rewarded by the Johnson & Johnson company by being made a vice-president of the company.
BAR CODEBar codes (also called Universal Product Codes or UPC's) are small, coded labels that contain information about the item they are attached to; the information is contained in a numerical code, usually containing 12 digits. UPC's are easily scanned by laser beams. UPC's are used on many things, including most items for sale in stores, library books, inventory items, many packages and pieces of luggage being shipped, railroad cars, etc. The UPC may contain coded information about the item, its manufacturer, place of origin, destination, the owner, or other data. The first "bullseye code" was invented by Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver, from work which they began in 1948. On October 20, 1949, they patented their bullseye code (a series of concentric circles that were scannable from all directions, using regular light). Woodland and Silver patented a new UPC in October 1952; the UPC was also improved and adapted by David J. Collins in the late 1950's (to track railroad cars). UPC's were first used in grocery stores in the early 1970's.
BARNARD, CHRISTIAAN N.Christiaan Neethling Barnard (1923- ) is a South African heart surgeon who developed surgical procedures for organ transplants, invented new heart valves, and performed the first human heart transplant (on Dec. 3, 1967, in a five-hour operation with a team of 20 surgeons). The 55-year-old Louis Washkansky received the heart transplant; Washkansky lived for only 18 days after the operation, dying from pneumonia (his immune system had been weakened by drugs designed to suppress the rejection of the new heart). The donor of the heart was a woman who had been fatally injured in a car crash. Barnard performed more successful transplants later in his career; some of his later transplant recipients survived for years. Barnard was the head of the cardiac unit at Groote Schuur Hospital until he retired in 1983.
BAROMETERA barometer is a device that measures air (barometric) pressure. It measures the weight of the column of air that extends from the instrument to the top of the atmosphere. There are two types of barometers commonly used today, mercury and aneroid (meaning "fluidless"). Earlier water barometers (also known as "storm glasses") date from the 17th century. The mercury barometer was invented by the Italian physicist Evangelista Torricelli(1608 - 1647), a pupil of Galileo, in 1643. Torricelli inverted a glass tube filled with mercury into another container of mercury; the mercury in the tube "weighs" the air in the atmosphere above the tube. The aneroid barometer (using a spring balance instead of a liquid) was invented by the French scientist Lucien Vidie in 1843.
BASKETBALLThe game of basketball was invented by James Naismith(1861-1939). Naismith was a Canadian physical education instructor who invented the game in 1891 so that his students could participate in sports during the winter. In his original game, which he developed while at the Springfield, Massachusetts YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association), Naismith used a soccer ball which was thrown into peach baskets (with the basket bottoms intact). The first public basketball game was in Springfield, MA, USA, on March 11, 1892. Basketball was first played at the Olympics in Berlin Germany in 1936 (America won the gold medal, and Naismith was there).
BATHYSPHEREA bathysphere is a pressurized metal sphere that allows people to go deep in the ocean, to depths at which diving unaided is impossible. This hollow cast iron sphere with very thick walls is lowered and raised from a ship using a steel cable. The bathysphere was invented by William Beebe and Otis Barton (around 1930). William Beebe (1877 - 1962), an American naturalist and undersea explorer, tested the bathysphere in 1930, going down to 1426 feet in a 4'9" (1.45 m) diameter bathysphere. Beebe and Otis Barton descended about 3,000 ft (914 m) feet in a larger bathysphere in 1934. They descended off the coast of Nonsuch Island, Bermuda in the Atlantic Ocean. During the dive, they communicated with the surface via telephone.
BATTERYA battery is a device that converts chemical energy into electrical energy. Each battery has two electrodes, an anode (the positive end) and a cathode (the negative end). An electrical circuit runs between these two electrodes, going through a chemical called an electrolyte (which can be either liquid or solid). This unit consisting of two electrodes is called a cell (often called a voltaic cell or pile). Batteries are used to power many devices and make the spark that starts a gasoline engine.
Alessandro Volta was an Italian physicist invented the first chemical battery in 1800.
Storage batteries are lead-based batteries that can be recharged. In 1859, the French physicist Gaston Plante (1834-1889) invented a battery made from two lead plates joined by a wire and immersed in a sulfuric acid electrolyte; this was the first storage battery.
The dry cell is a an improved voltaic cell with a cylindrical zinc shell (the zinc acts as both the cathode and the container) that is lined with an ammonium chloride (the electrolyte) saturated material (and not a liquid). The dry cell battery was developed in the 1870s-1870s by Georges Leclanche of France, who used an electrolyte in the form of a paste.
Edison batteries (also called alkaline batteries) are an improved type of storage battery developed by Thomas Edison. These batteries have an alkaline electrolyte, and not an acid.
BEHAIM, MARTINMartin Behaim (1459-1537) was a German mapmaker, navigator, and merchant. Behaim made the earliest globe, called the "Nürnberg Terrestrial Globe". It was made during the years 1490-1492; the painter Georg Glockendon helped in the project. Behaim had previously sailed to Portugal as a merchant (in 1480). He had advised King John II on matters concerning navigation. He accompanied the Portuguese explorer Diogo Cam (Cão) on a 1485-1486 voyage to the coast of West Africa; during this trip, the mouth of the Congo River was discovered. After returning to Nürnberg in 1490, Behaim began construction of his globe (which was very inaccurate as compared to other maps from that time, even in the areas in which Behaim had sailed). It was once thought that Behaim's maps might have influenced Columbus and Magellan; this is now discounted. Behaim may have also developed an astrolabe. Behaim's globe is now in the German National Museum in Nürnberg.
BELL, ALEXANDER GRAHAMAlexander Graham Bell (March 3, 1847, Edinburgh, Scotland - August 2, 1922, Baddek, Nova Scotia) invented the telephone (with Thomas Watson) in 1876. Bell also improved Thomas Edison's phonograph. Bell invented the multiple telegraph (1875), the hydroairplane, the photo-sensitive selenium cell (the photophone, a wireless phone, developed with Sumner Tainter), and new techniques for teaching the deaf to speak. In 1882, Bell and his father-in-law, Gardiner Hubbard, bought and re-organized the journal "Science." Bell, Hubbard and others founded the National Geographic Society in 1888; Bell was the President of the National Geographic Society from 1898 to 1903.
BELL, HENRYHenry Bell (1767-1830) was a Scottish engineer and inventor who built a steam-powered boat in 1812. His 12-foot (3.5-meter) steamboat, called the Comet, was the first commercially successful steamship in Europe. This boat regularly sailed between Greenock and Glasgow (Scotland) along the River Clyde. The Comet was the beginning of a revolution in navigation.
BERNERS-LEE, TIMTim Berners-Lee (1955, London, England - ) invented the World Wide Web. His first version of the Web was a program named "Enquire," short for "Enquire Within Upon Everything". At the time, Berners-Lee was working at CERN, the European Particle Physics Laboratory located in Geneva, Switzerland. He invented the system as a way of sharing scientific data (and other information) around the world, using the Internet, a world-wide network of computers, and hypertext documents. He wrote the language HTML (HyperText Mark-up Language), the basic language for the Web, and devised URL's (universal resource locators) to designate the location of each web page. HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) was his set of rules for linking to pages on the Web. After he wrote the first browser in 1990, the World Wide Web was up and going. Its growth was (and still is) phenomenal, and has changed the world, making information more accessible than ever before in history. Berners-Lee is now a Principal Research Scientist at the Laboratory for Computer Science at the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in Cambridge, Massachusett, USA) and the Director of the W3 Consortium.
BERSON, SOLOMON A.Dr. Solomon A. Berson (1919-1972) and Dr. Rosalyn Sussman Yalow (1921- ) co-invented the radioimmunoassay (RIA) in 1959. The radioimmunoassay is a method of chemically analyzing human blood and tissue that is used diagnose illness (like diabetes). RIA revolutionized diagnoses because it used only a tiny sample of blood or tissue and is a relatively inexpensive and simple test to perform. Blood banks use RIA to screen blood; RIA is used to detect drug use, high blood pressure, infertility, and many other conditions and diseases. For inventing RIA, Yalow won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1977 (Yalow accepted for Berson, who died in 1972). Yalow and Berson did not patent the RIA; instead they allowed the common use of RIA to benefit human health.
BICYCLEThe earliest bicycle was a wooden scooter-like contraption called a celerifere; it was invented about 1790 by Comte Mede de Sivrac of France. In 1816, Baron Karl von Drais de Sauerbrun, of Germany, invented a model with a steering bar attached to the front wheel, which he called a Draisienne. It has two wheels (of the same size), and the rider sat between the two wheels, but there were no pedals; to move, you had to propel the bicycle forward using your feet (a bit like a scooter). He exhibited his bicycle in Paris on April 6, 1818.
BIFOCAL GLASSESBenjamin Franklin invented bifocal glasses in the 1700s. He was nearsighted and had also become farsighted in his middle age. Tired of switching between two pairs of glasses, Franklin cut the lenses of each pair of glasses horizontally, making a single pair of glasses that focused at both near regions (the bottom half of the lenses) and far regions (the top half of the lenses). This new type of glasses let people read and see far away; they are still in use today.
BLODGETT, KATHERINEKathering J. Blodgett (1898-1979) was an American physicist and inventor who invented a micro-thin barium stearate film that makes glass completely nonreflective and "invisible" (patent #2,220,660, March 16, 1938). Blodgett's invention has been used in eyeglasses, camera lenses, telescopes, microscopes, periscopes, and projector lenses. Blodgett also invented a gauge that measured the thickness of this type of coating (which can be only a few molecules thick), called a "color gauge."
BLOOD BANKThe idea of a blood bank was pioneered by Dr. Charles Richard Drew(1904-1950). Dr. Drew was an American medical doctor and surgeon who started the idea of a blood bank and a system for the long term preservation of blood plasma (he found that plasma kept longer than whole blood). His ideas revolutionized the medical profession and saved many, many lives. Dr. Drew set up and operated the blood plasma bank at the Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, NY. Drew's project was the model for the Red Cross' system of blood banks, of which he became the first director.
BLUE JEANSLevi Strauss (1829-1902) was an entrepreneur who invented and marketed blue jeans. Trained as a tailor in Buttenheim, Bavaria, Germany, Strauss went to San Francisco, USA from New York in 1853. Strauss sold dry goods, including tents and linens to the 49ers (the people who came to the California gold rush, which began in 1849). In 1873, Strauss and Jacob Davis, a Nevada tailor, patented the idea (devised by Davis) of using copper rivets at the stress points of sturdy work pants. Early levis, called "waist overalls," came in a brown canvas duck fabric and a heavy blue denim fabric. The duck fabric pants were not very successful, so were dropped early on. His business became extremely successful (and still is), revolutionizing the apparel industry.
BRADENBERGER, JACQUESCellophane is a thin, transparent, waterproof, protective film that is used in many types of packaging. It was invented in 1908 by Jacques Edwin Brandenberger, a Swiss chemist. He had originally intended cellophane to be bonded onto fabric to make a waterproof textile, but the new cloth was brittle and not useful. Cellophane proved very useful all alone as a packaging material. Chemists at the Dupont company (who later bought the rights to cellophane) made cellophane waterproof in 1927.
BRAILLEBraille is a coded system of raised dots that are used by the blind to read. Louis Braille (1809-1852) invented this system in 1829. Braille published "The Method of Writing Words, Music, and Plain Song by Means of Dots, for Use by the Blind and Arranged by Them," and his method is still in use around the world today.
BRAILLE, LOUISLouis Braille (1809-1852) invented a coded system of raised dots that are used by the blind to read. He was blinded as a child, and invented his extraordinary system in his early teens. In 1829, Braille published "The Method of Writing Words, Music, and Plain Song by Means of Dots, for Use by the Blind and Arranged by Them." His method, called Braille, is still in use around the world today. Louis Braille is buried in the Pantheon in Paris, as a French national hero.
BRAILLE TYPEWRITERThe Hall Braille typewriter (also called a Braillewriter or Brailler) was invented in 1892 by Frank Haven Hall. Hall was the Superintendent of the Illinois Institution for the Blind. The Hall Braille typewriter was manufactured by the Harrison & Seifried company in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Hall introduced his invention on May 27, 1892, at Jacksonville, Illinois.
BREAD SLICERThe automatic commercial bread slicer was invented in 1927 by Otto Frederick Rohwedder from Iowa, USA (Rohwedder had worked on his machine since 1912). His machine both sliced and wrapped a loaf of bread. In 1928, the bread slicer was improved by Gustav Papendick, a baker from St. Louis, Missouri.
BUBBLE GUMBubblegum was invented by Frank Henry Fleer in 1906, but was not successful; the formulation of Fleer's "Blibber-Blubber," was too sticky. In 1928, Walter E. Diemer invented a superior formulation for bubble gum, which he called " Double Bubble."
BUDDING, EDWIN B.The first lawn mower was invented in 1830 by Edwin Beard Budding. Budding (1795-1846) was an engineer from Stroud, Gloucestershire, England. His reel mower was a set of blades set in a cylinder on two wheels. When you push the lawn mower, the cylinder rotates, and the blades cut the grass. Budding patented his lawn mower on August 31, 1830. Before his invention, a scythe was used (or sheep or other grazing animals were allowed to graze on the grass). The first reel lawn mower patent in the US (January 12, 1868) was granted to Amariah M. Hills, who formed the Archimedean Lawn Mower Co.
BUNSEN BURNERThe laboratory Bunsen burner was invented by Robert Wilhelm Bunsen in 1855. Bunsen (1811-1899) was a German chemist and teacher. He invented the Bunsen burner for his research in isolating chemical substances - it has a high-intensity, non-luminous flame that does not interfere with the colored flame emitted by chemicals being tested.
BURBANK, LUTHERLuther Burbank (1849-1926) was an American plant breeder who developed over 800 new strains of plants, including many popular varieties of potato, plums, prunes, berries, trees, and flowers. One of his greatest inventions was the Russet Burbank potato (also called the Idaho potato), which he developed in 1871. This blight-resistant potato helped Ireland recover from its devastating potato famine of 1840-60. Burbank also developed the Flaming Gold nectarine, the Santa Rosa plum, and the Shasta daisy. Burbank was raised on a farm and only went to elementary school; he was self-educated. Burbank applied the works of Charles Darwin to plants. Of Darwin's The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication, Burbank said, "It opened up a new world to me."
BUTTS, ALFREDThe word game Scrabble® was developed by Alfred Mosher Butts in 1948. James Brunot did some rearranging of the squares and simplified the rules. A copyright was granted on December 1, 1948. Alfred Butts had been an architect, but lost his job in 1931 (during the depression). He then began developing games, including Lexico, Criss-Crosswords, and them Scrabble®. After about 4 years of paltry sales, Scrabble® became a hit.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
some useful tips
: Some useful tips! IMPORTANTTo:
Some important TIPS you may like to keep.............................
Almonds: To remove the skin of almonds easily, soak them in hot water for 15-20 minutes. Ants: Putting 3-4 cloves in the sugar container will keep the ants at bay. Biscuits: If you keep a piece of blotting paper at the bottom of the container, it will keep biscuits fresh for a longer time. Butter: Avoid the use of butter. If it is essential to use, use a butter containing low saturated fat or with plant stanols (which avoid absorption ofcholesterol by our body) or similar substitutes. Apples: Apply some lemon juice on the cut surface of the apple to avoid browning. They will look fresh for a longer time. Banana: Apply mashed banana over a burn on your body to have a cooling effect. Bee and Scorpion Sting Relief: Apply a mixture of 1 pinch of chewing tobacco and 1 drop of water. Mix and apply directly and immediately to the sting;cover with band aid to hold in place. Pain will go away in just a few short minutes Bitter Gourd (Karela): Slit Karelas at the middle and apply a mixture of salt, wheat flour and curd all round. Keep aside for 1/2 an hour and then cook.StuffedKarela
Celery: To keep celery fresh for long time, wrap it in aluminium foil and place in the refrigerator.
Burnt Food: Place some chopped onion in the vessel having burnt food, pour boiling water in it, keep for 5 minutes and then clean.
Chilli Powder: Keeping a small piece of hing (asafoetida) in the same container will store chilli powder for long time.
Chopping: Use a wooden board to chop. It will not blunt the knife. Don't use a plastic board, small plastic pieces may go with the vegetables.
Coriander/Mint: You can use dried coriander and mint leaves in coarse powder form in vegetable curry or chutney, if fresh ones are not available.To keepthem fresh for a longer time, wrap them in a muslin cloth and keep in a fridge.
Cockroaches: Put some boric powder in kitchen in corners and other places. Cockroaches will leave your house.
Coconut: Immerse coconut in water for 1/2 an hour to remove its hust.
Dry Fruits: To chop dry fruits, place them in fridge for half an hour before cutting. Take the fruits out and cut them with a hot knife (dip it in hotwater before cutting).
Dough/Rolling pin: If the dough sticks to the rolling pin, place it in freezer for a few minutes.
Egg peeling off: Make a small hole in the egg by piercing a pin before boiling it. You will be able to remove its skin very easily.
Egg fresh: Immerse the egg in a pan of cool salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh; if it rises to the surface, it is certainly quite old.
Garlic: Garlic skin comes off easily if the garlic cloves are slightly warmed before peeling.
Ghee: Avoid the use of ghee. If it is necessary, substitute it with canola oil. Even for making halwa, you can partly substitute it with oil.
Green Chillies: To keep the chillies fresh for a longer time, remove the stems before storing.
Green Peas: To preserve green peas, keep them in a polythene bag in the freezer.
Idlies: Place a betel (paan) leaf over the leftover idli and dosa batter to prevent them sour. Do not beat idli batter too much, the air which has beenincorporated during fermentation will escape.If you add half a tsp of fenugreek seeds to the lentil and rice mixture while soaking, dosas will be morecrisp.
Fruits: To ripen fruits, wrap them in newspaper and put in a warm place for 2-3 days. The ethylene gas they emit will make them ripe.
Frying: Avoid deep frying. Substitute deep frying with stir frying or oven bake. Don't pour the oil, but make a habit of spraying the oil in the utensilfor cooking. Heat the utensil first, then add oil. This way oil spreads well. You will use less oil this way.
Left Over: Don't throw away the foods left over. Store them in Fridge. Use them in making tasty dishes.
Lemon/Lime: If the lemon or lime is hard, put it in warm water for 5-10 minutes to make it easier to squeeze.
Lizards: Hang a peacock feather, lizards will leave your house.
Milk: Moisten the base of the vessel with water to reduce the chances of milk to stick at the bottom.Keep a spoon in the vessel while boiling milk atmedium heat. It will avoid sticking the milk at the bottom of the vessel.Adding half a tsp of sodium bicarbonate in the milk while boiling will not spoilthe milk even if you don't put it in the fridge.
Mixer/Grinder: Grind some common salt in your mixer/grinder fro some time every month. This will keep your mixer blades sharp.
Mosquitoes: Put a few camphor tablets in a cup of water and keep it in the bed room near your bed, or in any place with mosquitoes.
Noodles: When the noodles are boiled, drain all the hot water and add cold water. This way all the noodles will get separated.
Onions: To avoid crying, cut the onions into two parts and place them in water for 15 minutes before chopping them.Wrap the onions individually in anewspaper and store in a cool and dark place to keep them fresh for long time.
Oven: Watch from the oven window to conserve energy because the oven temperature drops by 25 degrees every time its door is opened,To clean the oven,apply a paste of sodium bicarbonate and water on the walls and floor of the oven and keep the oven on low heat for about half an hour. Dried food can easilybe removed.
Paneer: To keep paneer fresh for several days, wrap it in a blotting paper while storing in the refrigerator.Do not fry paneer, immerse it in boilingwater to make it soft and spongy.
Papad: Bake in microwave oven.Wrap the papads in polythene sheet and place with dal or rice will prevent them from drying and breaking.
Pickles: To prevent the growth of fungus in pickles, burn a small grain of asafoetida over a burning coal and invert the empty pickle jar for some timebefore putting pickles in the jar.
Popcorn: Keep the maize/corn seeds in the freezer and pop while still frozen to get better pops.
Potato: To bake potatoes quickly, place them in salt water for 15 minutes before baking.Use the skin of boiled potatoes to wipe mirrors to sparklingclean.Don't store potatoes and onions together. Potatoes will rot quickly if stored with onions.
Refrigerator: To prevent formation of ice, rub table salt to the insides of your freeze.
Rice: Add a few drops of lemon juice in the water before boiling the rice to make rice whiter.Add a tsp of canola oil in the water before boiling therice to separate each grain after cooking.Don't throw away the rice water after cooking. Use it to make soup or add it in making dal (lentils).Add 5g ofdried powdered mint leaves to 1kg of rice. It will keep insects at bay.Put a small paper packet of boric powder in the container of rice to keep insectsat bay. Put a few leaves of mint in the container of rice to keep insects at bay.
Samosa: Bake them instead of deep frying to make them fat free. Don't fry the filling potato masala. Preserve the samosas in freezer. For eating, takeout of the freezer two hours in advance and bake them over low temp.
Sugar: Put 2-3 cloves in the sugar to keep ants at bay.
Tadka: Use sprouted mustard seeds (rayee) and fenugreek (methi) seeds for your tadkas. Both of them when sprouted have more nutritional values. Alsothis add flavour to the dish and can be more beneficial, besides giving decorative look to the dish. Submitted by MS Itisha Madhav
Tomato: To remove the skin of tomatoes, place them in warm water for 5-10 minutes. The skin can then be easily peeled off.When tomatoes are not availableor too costly, substitute with tomato puree or tomato ketchup/sauce.Place overripe tomatoes in cold water and add some salt. Overnight they will becomefirm and fresh.
Tamarind: Tamarind is an excellent polish for brass and copper items. Rub a slab of wet tamarind with some salt sprinkled on it on the object to be polished.Gargleswith tamarind water is recommended for a sore throat.
Utensils: Use nonsticking utensils. Use thick bottom utensils, they get uniformly heated. For electric stoves, use flat bottom utensils.Add a littlebit of common salt to the washing powder for better cleaning of utensils.
Vegetables: Don't discard the water in which the vegetables are soaked or cooked. Use it in making soup or gravy. To keep the vegetables fresh for alonger time, wrap them in newspaper before putting them in freeze.Chop the vegetables only when you are ready to use them. Don't cut them in too advance.It would spoil their food value.
Sink (Blocked): To clear the blocked drain pipe of your kitchen sink, mix 1/2 cup sodium bicarbonate in 1 cup vinegar and pour it into the sink, andpour about 1 cup water. In an hour the drain pipe will open.
Soup Salty: Place a raw peeled potato in the bowl, it will absorb the extra salt.
Yoghurt (Home Made): To set yogurt in winter, place the container in a warm place like oven or over the voltage stabliser.
Yogurt: If the yogurt has become sour, put it in a muslin cloth and drain all the water. Then add milk to make it as good as fresh in taste. Use thedrained water in making tasty gravy for vegetables or for basen curry.To keep the yogurt fresh for many days, fill the vessel containing yogurt with waterto the brim and refrigerate. Change the water daily..
Some important TIPS you may like to keep.............................
Almonds: To remove the skin of almonds easily, soak them in hot water for 15-20 minutes. Ants: Putting 3-4 cloves in the sugar container will keep the ants at bay. Biscuits: If you keep a piece of blotting paper at the bottom of the container, it will keep biscuits fresh for a longer time. Butter: Avoid the use of butter. If it is essential to use, use a butter containing low saturated fat or with plant stanols (which avoid absorption ofcholesterol by our body) or similar substitutes. Apples: Apply some lemon juice on the cut surface of the apple to avoid browning. They will look fresh for a longer time. Banana: Apply mashed banana over a burn on your body to have a cooling effect. Bee and Scorpion Sting Relief: Apply a mixture of 1 pinch of chewing tobacco and 1 drop of water. Mix and apply directly and immediately to the sting;cover with band aid to hold in place. Pain will go away in just a few short minutes Bitter Gourd (Karela): Slit Karelas at the middle and apply a mixture of salt, wheat flour and curd all round. Keep aside for 1/2 an hour and then cook.StuffedKarela
Celery: To keep celery fresh for long time, wrap it in aluminium foil and place in the refrigerator.
Burnt Food: Place some chopped onion in the vessel having burnt food, pour boiling water in it, keep for 5 minutes and then clean.
Chilli Powder: Keeping a small piece of hing (asafoetida) in the same container will store chilli powder for long time.
Chopping: Use a wooden board to chop. It will not blunt the knife. Don't use a plastic board, small plastic pieces may go with the vegetables.
Coriander/Mint: You can use dried coriander and mint leaves in coarse powder form in vegetable curry or chutney, if fresh ones are not available.To keepthem fresh for a longer time, wrap them in a muslin cloth and keep in a fridge.
Cockroaches: Put some boric powder in kitchen in corners and other places. Cockroaches will leave your house.
Coconut: Immerse coconut in water for 1/2 an hour to remove its hust.
Dry Fruits: To chop dry fruits, place them in fridge for half an hour before cutting. Take the fruits out and cut them with a hot knife (dip it in hotwater before cutting).
Dough/Rolling pin: If the dough sticks to the rolling pin, place it in freezer for a few minutes.
Egg peeling off: Make a small hole in the egg by piercing a pin before boiling it. You will be able to remove its skin very easily.
Egg fresh: Immerse the egg in a pan of cool salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh; if it rises to the surface, it is certainly quite old.
Garlic: Garlic skin comes off easily if the garlic cloves are slightly warmed before peeling.
Ghee: Avoid the use of ghee. If it is necessary, substitute it with canola oil. Even for making halwa, you can partly substitute it with oil.
Green Chillies: To keep the chillies fresh for a longer time, remove the stems before storing.
Green Peas: To preserve green peas, keep them in a polythene bag in the freezer.
Idlies: Place a betel (paan) leaf over the leftover idli and dosa batter to prevent them sour. Do not beat idli batter too much, the air which has beenincorporated during fermentation will escape.If you add half a tsp of fenugreek seeds to the lentil and rice mixture while soaking, dosas will be morecrisp.
Fruits: To ripen fruits, wrap them in newspaper and put in a warm place for 2-3 days. The ethylene gas they emit will make them ripe.
Frying: Avoid deep frying. Substitute deep frying with stir frying or oven bake. Don't pour the oil, but make a habit of spraying the oil in the utensilfor cooking. Heat the utensil first, then add oil. This way oil spreads well. You will use less oil this way.
Left Over: Don't throw away the foods left over. Store them in Fridge. Use them in making tasty dishes.
Lemon/Lime: If the lemon or lime is hard, put it in warm water for 5-10 minutes to make it easier to squeeze.
Lizards: Hang a peacock feather, lizards will leave your house.
Milk: Moisten the base of the vessel with water to reduce the chances of milk to stick at the bottom.Keep a spoon in the vessel while boiling milk atmedium heat. It will avoid sticking the milk at the bottom of the vessel.Adding half a tsp of sodium bicarbonate in the milk while boiling will not spoilthe milk even if you don't put it in the fridge.
Mixer/Grinder: Grind some common salt in your mixer/grinder fro some time every month. This will keep your mixer blades sharp.
Mosquitoes: Put a few camphor tablets in a cup of water and keep it in the bed room near your bed, or in any place with mosquitoes.
Noodles: When the noodles are boiled, drain all the hot water and add cold water. This way all the noodles will get separated.
Onions: To avoid crying, cut the onions into two parts and place them in water for 15 minutes before chopping them.Wrap the onions individually in anewspaper and store in a cool and dark place to keep them fresh for long time.
Oven: Watch from the oven window to conserve energy because the oven temperature drops by 25 degrees every time its door is opened,To clean the oven,apply a paste of sodium bicarbonate and water on the walls and floor of the oven and keep the oven on low heat for about half an hour. Dried food can easilybe removed.
Paneer: To keep paneer fresh for several days, wrap it in a blotting paper while storing in the refrigerator.Do not fry paneer, immerse it in boilingwater to make it soft and spongy.
Papad: Bake in microwave oven.Wrap the papads in polythene sheet and place with dal or rice will prevent them from drying and breaking.
Pickles: To prevent the growth of fungus in pickles, burn a small grain of asafoetida over a burning coal and invert the empty pickle jar for some timebefore putting pickles in the jar.
Popcorn: Keep the maize/corn seeds in the freezer and pop while still frozen to get better pops.
Potato: To bake potatoes quickly, place them in salt water for 15 minutes before baking.Use the skin of boiled potatoes to wipe mirrors to sparklingclean.Don't store potatoes and onions together. Potatoes will rot quickly if stored with onions.
Refrigerator: To prevent formation of ice, rub table salt to the insides of your freeze.
Rice: Add a few drops of lemon juice in the water before boiling the rice to make rice whiter.Add a tsp of canola oil in the water before boiling therice to separate each grain after cooking.Don't throw away the rice water after cooking. Use it to make soup or add it in making dal (lentils).Add 5g ofdried powdered mint leaves to 1kg of rice. It will keep insects at bay.Put a small paper packet of boric powder in the container of rice to keep insectsat bay. Put a few leaves of mint in the container of rice to keep insects at bay.
Samosa: Bake them instead of deep frying to make them fat free. Don't fry the filling potato masala. Preserve the samosas in freezer. For eating, takeout of the freezer two hours in advance and bake them over low temp.
Sugar: Put 2-3 cloves in the sugar to keep ants at bay.
Tadka: Use sprouted mustard seeds (rayee) and fenugreek (methi) seeds for your tadkas. Both of them when sprouted have more nutritional values. Alsothis add flavour to the dish and can be more beneficial, besides giving decorative look to the dish. Submitted by MS Itisha Madhav
Tomato: To remove the skin of tomatoes, place them in warm water for 5-10 minutes. The skin can then be easily peeled off.When tomatoes are not availableor too costly, substitute with tomato puree or tomato ketchup/sauce.Place overripe tomatoes in cold water and add some salt. Overnight they will becomefirm and fresh.
Tamarind: Tamarind is an excellent polish for brass and copper items. Rub a slab of wet tamarind with some salt sprinkled on it on the object to be polished.Gargleswith tamarind water is recommended for a sore throat.
Utensils: Use nonsticking utensils. Use thick bottom utensils, they get uniformly heated. For electric stoves, use flat bottom utensils.Add a littlebit of common salt to the washing powder for better cleaning of utensils.
Vegetables: Don't discard the water in which the vegetables are soaked or cooked. Use it in making soup or gravy. To keep the vegetables fresh for alonger time, wrap them in newspaper before putting them in freeze.Chop the vegetables only when you are ready to use them. Don't cut them in too advance.It would spoil their food value.
Sink (Blocked): To clear the blocked drain pipe of your kitchen sink, mix 1/2 cup sodium bicarbonate in 1 cup vinegar and pour it into the sink, andpour about 1 cup water. In an hour the drain pipe will open.
Soup Salty: Place a raw peeled potato in the bowl, it will absorb the extra salt.
Yoghurt (Home Made): To set yogurt in winter, place the container in a warm place like oven or over the voltage stabliser.
Yogurt: If the yogurt has become sour, put it in a muslin cloth and drain all the water. Then add milk to make it as good as fresh in taste. Use thedrained water in making tasty gravy for vegetables or for basen curry.To keep the yogurt fresh for many days, fill the vessel containing yogurt with waterto the brim and refrigerate. Change the water daily..
Friday, October 17, 2008
some logical thoughts
Whenever I find the key to success, someone changes the lock. _____
To Err is human; to forgive is not a COMPANY policy. _____ The road to success? Is always under construction. _____ In order to get a Loan, you first need to prove that you don't need it. _____ All the desirable things in life are illegal, expensive, or fattening.
_____ Since Light travels faster than Sound, people appear brighter before you hear them speak.
_____ Everyone has a scheme of getting rich? This never works. _____ If at first you don't succeed? Destroy all evidence that you ever tried. _____ You can never determine which side of the bread to butter. If it falls down, it will always land on the buttered side. _____ Anything dropped on the floor will roll over to the most inaccessible corner. _____
***** 42.7% of all statistics is made on the spot. ***** _____ As soon as you mention something? If it is good, it is taken. If it is bad, it happens. _____ He, who has the gold, makes the rules ---- Murphy's golden rule. _____ If you come early, the bus is late. If you come late? The bus is still late. _____
Once you have bought something, you will find the same item being sold somewhere else at a cheaper rate. _____ When in a queue, the other line always moves faster and the person in front of you will always have the most complex of transactions. _____ If you have paper, you don't have a pen. If you have a pen, you don't have paper. If you have both, no one calls. _____
Especially for Engineering Students----If you have bunked the class, the professor has taken attendance. _____
You will pick up maximum wrong numbers when on roaming. _____ The doorbell or your mobile will always ring when you are in the bathroom. _____ After a long wait for bus no.20, two 20 number buses will always pull in together and the bus which you get in will be crowded than the other. _____ If your exam is tomorrow, there will be a power cut tonight. _____ Irrespective of the direction of the wind, the smoke from the cigarette will always tend to go to the non-smoker.
__._,_.___
To Err is human; to forgive is not a COMPANY policy. _____ The road to success? Is always under construction. _____ In order to get a Loan, you first need to prove that you don't need it. _____ All the desirable things in life are illegal, expensive, or fattening.
_____ Since Light travels faster than Sound, people appear brighter before you hear them speak.
_____ Everyone has a scheme of getting rich? This never works. _____ If at first you don't succeed? Destroy all evidence that you ever tried. _____ You can never determine which side of the bread to butter. If it falls down, it will always land on the buttered side. _____ Anything dropped on the floor will roll over to the most inaccessible corner. _____
***** 42.7% of all statistics is made on the spot. ***** _____ As soon as you mention something? If it is good, it is taken. If it is bad, it happens. _____ He, who has the gold, makes the rules ---- Murphy's golden rule. _____ If you come early, the bus is late. If you come late? The bus is still late. _____
Once you have bought something, you will find the same item being sold somewhere else at a cheaper rate. _____ When in a queue, the other line always moves faster and the person in front of you will always have the most complex of transactions. _____ If you have paper, you don't have a pen. If you have a pen, you don't have paper. If you have both, no one calls. _____
Especially for Engineering Students----If you have bunked the class, the professor has taken attendance. _____
You will pick up maximum wrong numbers when on roaming. _____ The doorbell or your mobile will always ring when you are in the bathroom. _____ After a long wait for bus no.20, two 20 number buses will always pull in together and the bus which you get in will be crowded than the other. _____ If your exam is tomorrow, there will be a power cut tonight. _____ Irrespective of the direction of the wind, the smoke from the cigarette will always tend to go to the non-smoker.
__._,_.___
Gene therapy
Gene therapy could help blind people see again Washington (IANS): Researchers relied on gene therapy to restore vision to mice which suffered from degeneration of the light-sensing retinal rods andcones, a common cause of human blindness, because of lack of protein. "This is a proof of principle that someday we may be able to repair blindness in people with conditions like retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration,"said Richard Masland, director of Cellular Neurobiology Lab at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). "There are several limitations we need to overcome before we can begin clinical trials, but I'm optimistic that this work may someday make a big differencefor people who otherwise would have no vision at all." The study was designed to investigate the effect of light-sensitive protein melanopsin in retinal ganglion cells of the eye. These specialised neuronsreceive light signals from the rods and cones and convey them to the brain via the optic nerve. Melanopsin is usually produced in a set of cells involved with establishing circadian rhythms but not with vision. The MGH team used the standard viralvector to deliver the gene encoding melanopsin throughout the retinas of mice whose rod and cone receptors had degenerated from lack of a crucial protein.
Four weeks after delivery of the gene, melanopsin - normally produced in one percent of retinal ganglion cells - was found in about 10 percent of ganglioncells in the treated eyes but not in eyes that received a sham injection, according to a MGH press release. Examination of the melanopsin - expressing cells revealed that all responded to light, although the neuronal signal was delayed and persisted after thelight signal had stopped, which is typical for a melanopsin - mediated signal. Two behavioural tests verified that the treated mice - which otherwise would have been essentially blind - had enough vision to find a darkened refugein an otherwise brightly - lit area and to successfully learn that a light indicated a safe platform to which they could swim. "The same level of melanopsin expression in a human retina might allow someone who otherwise would be totally blind to read newspaper headlines, but theslowness of the response would be a problem," Masland said. These findings were published in Tuesday's edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Four weeks after delivery of the gene, melanopsin - normally produced in one percent of retinal ganglion cells - was found in about 10 percent of ganglioncells in the treated eyes but not in eyes that received a sham injection, according to a MGH press release. Examination of the melanopsin - expressing cells revealed that all responded to light, although the neuronal signal was delayed and persisted after thelight signal had stopped, which is typical for a melanopsin - mediated signal. Two behavioural tests verified that the treated mice - which otherwise would have been essentially blind - had enough vision to find a darkened refugein an otherwise brightly - lit area and to successfully learn that a light indicated a safe platform to which they could swim. "The same level of melanopsin expression in a human retina might allow someone who otherwise would be totally blind to read newspaper headlines, but theslowness of the response would be a problem," Masland said. These findings were published in Tuesday's edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
psychology of a blind child
A child sighted or blind is born into this world with all the building blocks for what they can become. This physical material is impacted by the child’senvironment over a life time while the “self” evolves. The self is the same in blind children as it is in the sighted, only the developmental process isdifferent. Both children have the same starting materials: mind, body, and spirit. With these parts the child develops a process of thinking, feeling,and behaving toward other people, objects and situations, and they recognize that others also think, feel and behave in their environment. It is with theirthoughts, emotions, and actions that children relate to their world using physical, emotional, cognitive, social, and moralistic attributes and throughthis interrelationship the self evolves. The self is everything that exists in a person’s unique world and it exists because of their self-concept andself-esteem. Aspects of self-concept are the elements of well-being that assists our survival in our environment. They consist of all the physical things,our personality, feelings toward life, our knowledge and problem solving techniques, how we successfully interface with others; and our social and spiritualvalues in life. If our self-concept contains the important things, and issues in life, and there is a high regard for them, then our self will evolve ina manner conducive to peace and harmony. If not, the opposite will occur. The blind child must build a self with a missing part. Granted self will evolvefor a blind child, but it must be augmented by all other senses of the body in order to enhance the mind and spirit. A blind child’s thoughts, feelings,and behaviors serve the same purpose as they do for a sighted child, but will evolve differently. The physical, emotional, cognitive, social, and moralconcepts are necessary, but are obtained without the benefit of the automatic process of seeing. The self evolves but the conduit for inputting their environment
what is blind?
INFORMATION ABOUT BLINDNESS
The term blind does not necessarily mean complete loss of sight, but could also describe varying degrees of functional vision. Over 90% of individuals whoare blind have some remaining vision which can be used for a variety of tasks such as reading or travel. With the use of adaptive techniques, other sensoryinformation or special equipment, most persons who are blind or visually impaired can remain independent.
The incidence of blindness is increasing primarily because people are living longer. Major causes of visual impairment are macular degeneration, diabeticretinopathy, glaucoma, and, to a lesser degree, cataracts.
Extend the same courtesies and respect to persons who are blind or visually impaired that you would to anyone you meet.
The term blind does not necessarily mean complete loss of sight, but could also describe varying degrees of functional vision. Over 90% of individuals whoare blind have some remaining vision which can be used for a variety of tasks such as reading or travel. With the use of adaptive techniques, other sensoryinformation or special equipment, most persons who are blind or visually impaired can remain independent.
The incidence of blindness is increasing primarily because people are living longer. Major causes of visual impairment are macular degeneration, diabeticretinopathy, glaucoma, and, to a lesser degree, cataracts.
Extend the same courtesies and respect to persons who are blind or visually impaired that you would to anyone you meet.
tips to meet a blind person
WHEN YOU MEET A PERSON WHO IS BLIND OR VISUALLY IMPAIRED
Photo of a young man standing in an office holding a white cane.
WHEN YOU MEET A PERSON WHO IS BLIND
Some people may feel uneasy when thinking about assisting a person who is blind or visually impaired. Listed below are some helpful suggestions.
Bullet Identify yourself.
Bullet Speak in a normal and comfortable tone. Do not shout. Most persons who are blind can hear well.
Bullet Look at and speak directly to the person, not to a third party.
Bullet Remember that nods, shrugs and gestures may not be noticed as clues to what you are conveying.
Bullet Do not avoid words like blind, look, or see. These words are part of everyday conversation.
Bullet Feel free to discuss and attend movies or sporting events with persons who are blind or visually impaired. They enjoy common activities as much as anyone.
Remember that persons who are blind choose the areas of their lives in which to remain independent and the areas in which they welcome assistance.
WHEN YOU GUIDE A PERSON WHO IS BLIND
The Sighted Guide Technique is popularly accepted as the safest, most efficient way for a person with a visual impairment to walk with a sighted person.
Photo of a woman serving as a sighted guide to a man with a white cane who holds her arm right above the elbow.
Bullet Identify yourself and ask if assistance is needed.
Bullet Let the person take your arm just above your elbow with the thumb on one side and fingers on the other pointing straight ahead. You can guide with eitherthe right or the left arm, which can either hang straight at your side or bend at the elbow.
Bullet The person follows a half step behind you at a pace which is comfortable for both of you.
Bullet To sit, bring the person into contact with the chair. Describe which way the chair faces.
Bullet Say right and left when giving directions based on the way the person is facing.
Photo of a woman serving as a sighted guide to a man with a white cane, walking up steps. He is holding onto her arm right above the elbow.
Bullet Identify steps, curbs, or other obstacles.
Bullet Inform the person if you need to leave. Put the person in contact with an object such as a wall or piece of furniture.
Bullet Do not pet, feed or distract a dog guide from doing its job.
Photo of a young man standing in an office holding a white cane.
WHEN YOU MEET A PERSON WHO IS BLIND
Some people may feel uneasy when thinking about assisting a person who is blind or visually impaired. Listed below are some helpful suggestions.
Bullet Identify yourself.
Bullet Speak in a normal and comfortable tone. Do not shout. Most persons who are blind can hear well.
Bullet Look at and speak directly to the person, not to a third party.
Bullet Remember that nods, shrugs and gestures may not be noticed as clues to what you are conveying.
Bullet Do not avoid words like blind, look, or see. These words are part of everyday conversation.
Bullet Feel free to discuss and attend movies or sporting events with persons who are blind or visually impaired. They enjoy common activities as much as anyone.
Remember that persons who are blind choose the areas of their lives in which to remain independent and the areas in which they welcome assistance.
WHEN YOU GUIDE A PERSON WHO IS BLIND
The Sighted Guide Technique is popularly accepted as the safest, most efficient way for a person with a visual impairment to walk with a sighted person.
Photo of a woman serving as a sighted guide to a man with a white cane who holds her arm right above the elbow.
Bullet Identify yourself and ask if assistance is needed.
Bullet Let the person take your arm just above your elbow with the thumb on one side and fingers on the other pointing straight ahead. You can guide with eitherthe right or the left arm, which can either hang straight at your side or bend at the elbow.
Bullet The person follows a half step behind you at a pace which is comfortable for both of you.
Bullet To sit, bring the person into contact with the chair. Describe which way the chair faces.
Bullet Say right and left when giving directions based on the way the person is facing.
Photo of a woman serving as a sighted guide to a man with a white cane, walking up steps. He is holding onto her arm right above the elbow.
Bullet Identify steps, curbs, or other obstacles.
Bullet Inform the person if you need to leave. Put the person in contact with an object such as a wall or piece of furniture.
Bullet Do not pet, feed or distract a dog guide from doing its job.
what is sighted person?
What To Do When You Meet A Sighted Person (Author Unknown)
People who use their eyes to receive information about the world are called sighted people or "people who are sighted." Legal "sight" means any visual acuitygreater then 20/200 in the better eye without correction or an angle of vision wider than 20 degrees. Sighted people enjoy rich full lives, working, playing,and raising families. They run businesses, hold public office, and teach your children!
How do Sighted People Get Around? People who are sighted may walk or ride public transportation, but most choose to travel long distances by operating theirown motor vehicles. They have gone through many hours of training to learn the "rules of the road" in order to further their independence. Once that roadto freedom has been mastered, sighted people earn a legal classification and a "Driver's License" which allows them to operate a private vehicle safelyand independently.
How Do You Assist A Sighted Person? Sighted people are accustomed to viewing the world in visual terms. This means that in many situations, they will notbe able to communicate orally and may resort to pointing or other gesturing. Subtle facial expressions may also be used to convey feelings in social situations.Calmly alert the sighted person to his surroundings by speaking slowly, in a normal tone of voice. Questions directed at the sighted person help focusattention back on the verbal rather than visual communication.
At times, sighted people may need help finding things, especially when operating a motor vehicle. Your advance knowledge of routes and landmarks, particularlybumps in the road, tums, and traffic lights, will assist the "driver" in finding the way quickly and easily. Your knowledge of building layouts can alsoassist the sighted person in navigating complex shopping malls, and offices. Sighted people tend to be very proud and will not ask directly for assistance.Be gentle yet firm.
How Do Sighted People Use Computers? The person who is sighted relies exclusively on visual information. His or her attention span fades quickly when readinglong texts. Computer information is presented in a "Graphical User Interface" or GUI. Coordination of hands and eyes is often a problem for sighted people,so the computer mouse, a handy device that slides along the desk top, saves confusing keystrokes. With one button, the sighted person can move around hisor her computer screen quickly and easily. People who are sighted are not accustomed to synthetic speech and may have great difficulty understanding eventhe clearest synthesizer. Be patient and prepared to explain many times how your computer equipment works.
How Do Sighted People Read? Sighted people read through a system called "Print" this is a series of images drawn in a two dimensional plain. People whoare sighted generally have a poorly developed sense of touch. Braille is completely foreign to the sighted person and he or she will take longer to learnthe code and be severely limited by his or her existing visual senses.
Sighted people cannot function well in low lighting conditions and are generally completely helpless in total darkness. Their homes are usually very brightlylit at great expense, as are businesses that cater to the sighted consumer.
How Can I Support A Sighted Person? People who are sighted do not want your charity. They want to live, work, and play along with you. The best thing youcan do to support sighted people in your community is to open yourself to their world. These are vital contributing members to society. Takea sighted person to lunch today!
People who use their eyes to receive information about the world are called sighted people or "people who are sighted." Legal "sight" means any visual acuitygreater then 20/200 in the better eye without correction or an angle of vision wider than 20 degrees. Sighted people enjoy rich full lives, working, playing,and raising families. They run businesses, hold public office, and teach your children!
How do Sighted People Get Around? People who are sighted may walk or ride public transportation, but most choose to travel long distances by operating theirown motor vehicles. They have gone through many hours of training to learn the "rules of the road" in order to further their independence. Once that roadto freedom has been mastered, sighted people earn a legal classification and a "Driver's License" which allows them to operate a private vehicle safelyand independently.
How Do You Assist A Sighted Person? Sighted people are accustomed to viewing the world in visual terms. This means that in many situations, they will notbe able to communicate orally and may resort to pointing or other gesturing. Subtle facial expressions may also be used to convey feelings in social situations.Calmly alert the sighted person to his surroundings by speaking slowly, in a normal tone of voice. Questions directed at the sighted person help focusattention back on the verbal rather than visual communication.
At times, sighted people may need help finding things, especially when operating a motor vehicle. Your advance knowledge of routes and landmarks, particularlybumps in the road, tums, and traffic lights, will assist the "driver" in finding the way quickly and easily. Your knowledge of building layouts can alsoassist the sighted person in navigating complex shopping malls, and offices. Sighted people tend to be very proud and will not ask directly for assistance.Be gentle yet firm.
How Do Sighted People Use Computers? The person who is sighted relies exclusively on visual information. His or her attention span fades quickly when readinglong texts. Computer information is presented in a "Graphical User Interface" or GUI. Coordination of hands and eyes is often a problem for sighted people,so the computer mouse, a handy device that slides along the desk top, saves confusing keystrokes. With one button, the sighted person can move around hisor her computer screen quickly and easily. People who are sighted are not accustomed to synthetic speech and may have great difficulty understanding eventhe clearest synthesizer. Be patient and prepared to explain many times how your computer equipment works.
How Do Sighted People Read? Sighted people read through a system called "Print" this is a series of images drawn in a two dimensional plain. People whoare sighted generally have a poorly developed sense of touch. Braille is completely foreign to the sighted person and he or she will take longer to learnthe code and be severely limited by his or her existing visual senses.
Sighted people cannot function well in low lighting conditions and are generally completely helpless in total darkness. Their homes are usually very brightlylit at great expense, as are businesses that cater to the sighted consumer.
How Can I Support A Sighted Person? People who are sighted do not want your charity. They want to live, work, and play along with you. The best thing youcan do to support sighted people in your community is to open yourself to their world. These are vital contributing members to society. Takea sighted person to lunch today!
tips to meet a blind person
* Practical Hints for Relating to a Blind Person
1. Before you decide that a blind person is confused, be sure it isn't due only to lack of orientation. Do not "over-assist". Check before providingunnecessary, and unwanted, help.
2. A blind person doesn't have to "save" their remaining vision. Eyes cannot be weakened or damaged by normal use.
3. Don't be overprotective. Encourage the blind person should do as much as possible by himself, and for himself.
4. Identify yourself upon entering and exiting a room or area. It is very embarrassing to discover that you are "talking to yourself", thinking someoneis in the room with you or to be frightened when discovering that you are not alone.
5. Eliminate the use of the words "over there" and "over here". Preface the directional words "left" and "right" with the word "your"...
6. Write notes with black felt-tip pen on white paper or use audio cassettes for messages.
7. Allow the blind person to make contact with the environment by placing their hand on a stable object when leaving them alone for a minute.
8. Don't be afraid to use the words "see", "watch", "look" or "I want to show you something". These are used in speech and their omission would be evident,making conversation unnatural and uncomfortable.
9. When you're in a blind person's room or home, leave items where they were placed. If you move them, it may be difficult to find them again.
10. When guiding a blind person, let him or her take your arm and follow you. DON'T push them ahead of you!!
11. Always talk directly to a blind person, not through the companion. He or she is quite able to talk for themselves.
1. Before you decide that a blind person is confused, be sure it isn't due only to lack of orientation. Do not "over-assist". Check before providingunnecessary, and unwanted, help.
2. A blind person doesn't have to "save" their remaining vision. Eyes cannot be weakened or damaged by normal use.
3. Don't be overprotective. Encourage the blind person should do as much as possible by himself, and for himself.
4. Identify yourself upon entering and exiting a room or area. It is very embarrassing to discover that you are "talking to yourself", thinking someoneis in the room with you or to be frightened when discovering that you are not alone.
5. Eliminate the use of the words "over there" and "over here". Preface the directional words "left" and "right" with the word "your"...
6. Write notes with black felt-tip pen on white paper or use audio cassettes for messages.
7. Allow the blind person to make contact with the environment by placing their hand on a stable object when leaving them alone for a minute.
8. Don't be afraid to use the words "see", "watch", "look" or "I want to show you something". These are used in speech and their omission would be evident,making conversation unnatural and uncomfortable.
9. When you're in a blind person's room or home, leave items where they were placed. If you move them, it may be difficult to find them again.
10. When guiding a blind person, let him or her take your arm and follow you. DON'T push them ahead of you!!
11. Always talk directly to a blind person, not through the companion. He or she is quite able to talk for themselves.
guideline to deal with a blind
How to Interact with Blind People by Stephanie Samuelson
This article highlights statistics, guide lines which may not appear to be in any logical order as they are all equally important and, further elaborationin that order. This article will address common issues and how to affectively communicate with blind people as well as give you insight about blind peopleas a whole.
Often, sighted people make it harder than it needs to be because when we are faced with the unfamiliar, it can appear like there is more difficulty tothe situation than there really is thus, leading to over estimation or under estimation of what is most efficient. Basically to effectively interact withblindpeople, simply apply effective communication and effective listening skills as well as the golden rule. Always aim to think of it from another perspective,the perspective that you are in that situation. It's most likely you, as a sighted individual, would want the same respect if you were a blind individual.This is logical because we as humans all want to be valued and respected.
UNEMPLOYMENT STATISTICS
Did you know?76% of blind people are unemployed?40% of employed people with disabilities report said that they have encountered job discrimination?33% of employed people with disabilities report that they have encountered "unfavorable attitudes" toward their disabilities on the job?22% of employers cite supervisor/co-worker attitudes and stereotypes as a major barrier to employment & advancement of employees with disabilities?15% of non-disabled people report they do not feel comfortable working for, or nearby, a person with a disability?
It is no wonder that most places of employment are not effective at hiring/retaining employees with disabilities.
Steps1. Always treat blind people as just another person as they simply do things differently.Blind does not mean can't nor does it mean stupid. It is only a physical challenge.2. Bear in mind that blind people treat their dogs and canes as extensions of their bodies. Never distract a work animal from their job or touch, moveor grab a cane without the owner's permission.Imagine if someone moved your keys once you've established a location in which you can readily and quickly retrieve them. That'd slow you down. Plus, it'spersonal property. The keys allow the sighted person to drive a car which is a mobility tool and the "cane" allows the blind individual to traveleffectively, independently and safely which also acts as a mobility tool.3. Identify yourself and others who may be with you when meeting someone who is blind.When conversing in a group, remember to identify the person to whom you are speaking.Never talk to a third party who might be with them such as their driver or reader or teacher or tutor, etc. Remember, you are ADDRESSING, them.4. If you offer assistance; wait until the offer is accepted. Then listen or ask for instructions.Many blind people will accept help, however, make sure that they are aware that you are going to help them, and offer your arm, not your whole body.5. Never touch or grab a blind person in efforts to assist. This is socially awkward.See step #4 for what to do.6. Never place an item in their pockets or grab an item of theirs in efforts to assist. This is socially awkward.Remember they are blind, not quadriplegic.7. Do not clap point, repeat, or sing when attempting to guide a blind person. This is socially awkward.See step #4 for what to do.8. Be consistent and specific when you are describing things and giving directions.The more accuracy, the more consistency, the more direct and the more description you use, the more effective your interaction will be. Blind people respondto intelligence.9. Do not do for them what they can do for themselves such as serving themselves, finding things, getting things, carrying things, etc.The last thing anyone needs is enablement for disablement.10. Do not shout just speak in a normal tone of voice as usual.Remember, they are blind, not deaf.11. Relax. Don't be embarrassed if you use common expressions such as "See you later" or "Did you hear about this?" that seems to relate to a person whois blind.Blind people use the same expressions.12. Avoid stigmatizing words such as handy-capped. Blind people do not use that word in reference to themselves and few sighted people use it. Many blindindividuals go as far to avoid the word disabled as it doesn't accurately describe them.They are simply blind; a physical challenge so blind is the word they prefer. It's nothing more, nothing less. They cope by adapting and/or using alternativemeans. There is nothing amazing about it.
TipsDon't Assume.Drop the negative/misleading attitudes/beliefs.Make efforts to understand blindness and blind individuals through interaction.Make efforts to understand blindness and blind individuals through research.Spread the word.
WarningsIf you do not comply with the above guide lines, you could face legal or social Repercussions possibly concerning but not limited to:AssaultDiscriminationPrivacyProperty
Things You'll NeedEffective Communication SkillsEffective Listening SkillsPatientsSocial SkillsUnbiased Attitude
"hard things are put in our way, not to stop us, but to call out our strength and courage."
This article highlights statistics, guide lines which may not appear to be in any logical order as they are all equally important and, further elaborationin that order. This article will address common issues and how to affectively communicate with blind people as well as give you insight about blind peopleas a whole.
Often, sighted people make it harder than it needs to be because when we are faced with the unfamiliar, it can appear like there is more difficulty tothe situation than there really is thus, leading to over estimation or under estimation of what is most efficient. Basically to effectively interact withblindpeople, simply apply effective communication and effective listening skills as well as the golden rule. Always aim to think of it from another perspective,the perspective that you are in that situation. It's most likely you, as a sighted individual, would want the same respect if you were a blind individual.This is logical because we as humans all want to be valued and respected.
UNEMPLOYMENT STATISTICS
Did you know?76% of blind people are unemployed?40% of employed people with disabilities report said that they have encountered job discrimination?33% of employed people with disabilities report that they have encountered "unfavorable attitudes" toward their disabilities on the job?22% of employers cite supervisor/co-worker attitudes and stereotypes as a major barrier to employment & advancement of employees with disabilities?15% of non-disabled people report they do not feel comfortable working for, or nearby, a person with a disability?
It is no wonder that most places of employment are not effective at hiring/retaining employees with disabilities.
Steps1. Always treat blind people as just another person as they simply do things differently.Blind does not mean can't nor does it mean stupid. It is only a physical challenge.2. Bear in mind that blind people treat their dogs and canes as extensions of their bodies. Never distract a work animal from their job or touch, moveor grab a cane without the owner's permission.Imagine if someone moved your keys once you've established a location in which you can readily and quickly retrieve them. That'd slow you down. Plus, it'spersonal property. The keys allow the sighted person to drive a car which is a mobility tool and the "cane" allows the blind individual to traveleffectively, independently and safely which also acts as a mobility tool.3. Identify yourself and others who may be with you when meeting someone who is blind.When conversing in a group, remember to identify the person to whom you are speaking.Never talk to a third party who might be with them such as their driver or reader or teacher or tutor, etc. Remember, you are ADDRESSING, them.4. If you offer assistance; wait until the offer is accepted. Then listen or ask for instructions.Many blind people will accept help, however, make sure that they are aware that you are going to help them, and offer your arm, not your whole body.5. Never touch or grab a blind person in efforts to assist. This is socially awkward.See step #4 for what to do.6. Never place an item in their pockets or grab an item of theirs in efforts to assist. This is socially awkward.Remember they are blind, not quadriplegic.7. Do not clap point, repeat, or sing when attempting to guide a blind person. This is socially awkward.See step #4 for what to do.8. Be consistent and specific when you are describing things and giving directions.The more accuracy, the more consistency, the more direct and the more description you use, the more effective your interaction will be. Blind people respondto intelligence.9. Do not do for them what they can do for themselves such as serving themselves, finding things, getting things, carrying things, etc.The last thing anyone needs is enablement for disablement.10. Do not shout just speak in a normal tone of voice as usual.Remember, they are blind, not deaf.11. Relax. Don't be embarrassed if you use common expressions such as "See you later" or "Did you hear about this?" that seems to relate to a person whois blind.Blind people use the same expressions.12. Avoid stigmatizing words such as handy-capped. Blind people do not use that word in reference to themselves and few sighted people use it. Many blindindividuals go as far to avoid the word disabled as it doesn't accurately describe them.They are simply blind; a physical challenge so blind is the word they prefer. It's nothing more, nothing less. They cope by adapting and/or using alternativemeans. There is nothing amazing about it.
TipsDon't Assume.Drop the negative/misleading attitudes/beliefs.Make efforts to understand blindness and blind individuals through interaction.Make efforts to understand blindness and blind individuals through research.Spread the word.
WarningsIf you do not comply with the above guide lines, you could face legal or social Repercussions possibly concerning but not limited to:AssaultDiscriminationPrivacyProperty
Things You'll NeedEffective Communication SkillsEffective Listening SkillsPatientsSocial SkillsUnbiased Attitude
"hard things are put in our way, not to stop us, but to call out our strength and courage."
bionic eye
Wednesday, 18 June , 2008, 12:39Hamburg:German scientists have invented a wireless bionic eyeball that canrestore visionto patients who have become blind due to retina damage or disease.The new prosthetic device caps 12 years of research to help thesepatients. Thiswork has resulted in a unique system - a fully implantable visualprosthesis. Thescientists from the Fraunhofer Institute for Microelectronic Circuitsand Systemsin Duisburg, Germany, say that the bionic eye can bypass the damaged retina.For more news, analysisFor more Science and Medicine newsThe system comprises an implant and an external transmitterintegrated in an eyeglasses-frame.The implant system converts the image patterns into interpretablestimulation signals,and data and energy are transferred to the implant by a telemetriclink. Nerve cellsinside the eye are then stimulated according to the captured images.The intact cellsare innervated by means of 3-D stimulation electrodes that restagainst the retinalike small studs.As long as there is no damage to the optic nerve, the vision signalscan be sentto the brain just like they are with healthy eyes. "For normallysighted people thatmay not seem much, but for the blind, it is a major step," commentsHoc Khiem Trieuof the Fraunhofer Institute. "After years of blindness, the patientswere able tosee spots of light or geometric patterns, depending on how the nervecells were stimulated."Trieu has been involved from the outset of this project, which wasfunded by theGermany's Education and Research Ministry. Together with two otherscientists, IngoKrisch and DMichael Goertz, he translated the specifications given bythe medicalexperts and material scientists into an implant and chip design. "Amilestone wasreached when the prosthetic system finally operated wirelessly andremotely controlled,"explains Dr. Krisch."A great deal of detailed work was necessary before the implant couldbe activatedwithout any external cable connections. "The designs became smallerand smaller,the materials more flexible, more robust and higher in performance,so that the implantnow fits comfortably in the eye," reports Goertz.The scientists are to receive the Joseph von Fraunhofer Prize 2008for their work.
A ray of hope! Gene tharapy provide sight to young persons!
Breaking News from the Foundation Fighting Blindness
04/28/2008
Now They SeeLandmark Gene Therapy Provides Vision to Nearly Blind Young Adults
Jean Bennett, M.D., Ph.D.,lead investigator of the study, with her husband, Albert Maguire, M.D.,the study's lead surgeon.
Three young adults with virtually no vision can now read several lineson an eye chart and see better in dimly lit settings thanks to aninnovative genetherapy aiming to reverse blindness in a severe form of retinitispigmentosa known as Leber congenital amaurosis or LCA. One person waseven able to betternavigate an obstacle course several weeks after receiving the therapy.
The three individuals are participating in a Phase I clinical trial atThe Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, which is funded in part bythe FoundationFighting Blindness.
"I am overwhelmed with delight. We are delivering vision to people whowere blind. This is the biggest advancement in the 37-year history ofthe FoundationFighting Blindness," says Gordon Gund, Co-Founder and Chairman of theFoundation Fighting Blindness. "We have achieved an incrediblemilestone in curingblindness, and this advancement will help pave the way for thedevelopment of gene therapies to treat and cure a variety of retinaldiseases including:retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt disease, Usher syndrome, and maculardegeneration. This is a great day for the Foundation and all peopleaffected by blindingretinal diseases."
The development of the approach began when a form of LCA was linked tothe RPE65 gene in 1997. Three years later, researchers began givingvision to dogsborn blind from LCA, including the world-famous Lancelot. More than 50dogs have been treated and all continue to see well. The FoundationFighting Blindnesshas been funding this research virtually every step of the way.
Though the Phase I studies are primarily focused on safety, the firstdose used in this study resulted in improved vision. An additional sixindividualswill be enrolled in a continuation of this study to evaluate safetyand efficacy of differing doses. The vision improvement in youngadults seen so farat the lowest dose gives researchers optimism that the treatment mayprovide near-normal vision to children in Phase II studies.
Results of the clinical trials, funded in part by the Foundation, werepublished on April 28, 2008 in the New England Journal of Medicine.The journal publishedthe results of gene therapy trials taking place at CHOP and MoorfieldsEye Hospital in London. A third trial of the gene therapy, sponsoredby the NEI,is also taking place at the University of Pennsylvania and theUniversity of Florida.
Jean Bennett, M.D., Ph.D., lead investigator of the CHOP trial,reports that the team studied three participants, who ranged in agefrom 19 to 26. All threehad one eye treated.
Bennett says that all three individuals reported improved vision indimly lit environments and in visual acuity in their injected eyesstarting two weeksafter treatment. Nystagmus- the roving eye movement associated withsevere vision loss from LCA- was also reduced in all threeindividuals.
The treatment developed by this team of investigators involvesdelivery of a normal RPE65 gene to the retina to augment function ofthe defective RPE65gene that leads to one form of LCA. Twelve different genes that leadto LCA have been identified.
The gene is delivered using a therapeutic virus known as anadeno-associated vector or AAV.
Researchers believe the vision improvement from a single injectionwill last for many years. In earlier laboratory studies, a singleAAV-based gene therapyin more than 50 dogs born blind from LCA has been effective for morethan seven years.
This study is being carried out by an international team led by TheUniversity of Pennsylvania, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia,the Second Universityof Naples and the Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (both inItaly), and several other American institutions.
http://www.blindness.org/research.asp?id=326
04/28/2008
Now They SeeLandmark Gene Therapy Provides Vision to Nearly Blind Young Adults
Jean Bennett, M.D., Ph.D.,lead investigator of the study, with her husband, Albert Maguire, M.D.,the study's lead surgeon.
Three young adults with virtually no vision can now read several lineson an eye chart and see better in dimly lit settings thanks to aninnovative genetherapy aiming to reverse blindness in a severe form of retinitispigmentosa known as Leber congenital amaurosis or LCA. One person waseven able to betternavigate an obstacle course several weeks after receiving the therapy.
The three individuals are participating in a Phase I clinical trial atThe Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, which is funded in part bythe FoundationFighting Blindness.
"I am overwhelmed with delight. We are delivering vision to people whowere blind. This is the biggest advancement in the 37-year history ofthe FoundationFighting Blindness," says Gordon Gund, Co-Founder and Chairman of theFoundation Fighting Blindness. "We have achieved an incrediblemilestone in curingblindness, and this advancement will help pave the way for thedevelopment of gene therapies to treat and cure a variety of retinaldiseases including:retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt disease, Usher syndrome, and maculardegeneration. This is a great day for the Foundation and all peopleaffected by blindingretinal diseases."
The development of the approach began when a form of LCA was linked tothe RPE65 gene in 1997. Three years later, researchers began givingvision to dogsborn blind from LCA, including the world-famous Lancelot. More than 50dogs have been treated and all continue to see well. The FoundationFighting Blindnesshas been funding this research virtually every step of the way.
Though the Phase I studies are primarily focused on safety, the firstdose used in this study resulted in improved vision. An additional sixindividualswill be enrolled in a continuation of this study to evaluate safetyand efficacy of differing doses. The vision improvement in youngadults seen so farat the lowest dose gives researchers optimism that the treatment mayprovide near-normal vision to children in Phase II studies.
Results of the clinical trials, funded in part by the Foundation, werepublished on April 28, 2008 in the New England Journal of Medicine.The journal publishedthe results of gene therapy trials taking place at CHOP and MoorfieldsEye Hospital in London. A third trial of the gene therapy, sponsoredby the NEI,is also taking place at the University of Pennsylvania and theUniversity of Florida.
Jean Bennett, M.D., Ph.D., lead investigator of the CHOP trial,reports that the team studied three participants, who ranged in agefrom 19 to 26. All threehad one eye treated.
Bennett says that all three individuals reported improved vision indimly lit environments and in visual acuity in their injected eyesstarting two weeksafter treatment. Nystagmus- the roving eye movement associated withsevere vision loss from LCA- was also reduced in all threeindividuals.
The treatment developed by this team of investigators involvesdelivery of a normal RPE65 gene to the retina to augment function ofthe defective RPE65gene that leads to one form of LCA. Twelve different genes that leadto LCA have been identified.
The gene is delivered using a therapeutic virus known as anadeno-associated vector or AAV.
Researchers believe the vision improvement from a single injectionwill last for many years. In earlier laboratory studies, a singleAAV-based gene therapyin more than 50 dogs born blind from LCA has been effective for morethan seven years.
This study is being carried out by an international team led by TheUniversity of Pennsylvania, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia,the Second Universityof Naples and the Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (both inItaly), and several other American institutions.
http://www.blindness.org/research.asp?id=326
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