[Art_beyond_sight_educators] {Disarmed} Dinasaurs, photography, Mexico, Ford, Bugerking, Shakespeare

[Lisa Yayla]

Capturing Dinosaurs and Whales, Without Seeing Them

At the American Museum of Natural History on Tuesday, Hashim Kirkland 
lowered his camera a bit to see the ancient brown spine of a dinosaur 
through the murky glass catwalk below him. He clicked and then raised 
the camera again to capture the massive hip of an Apatosaurus, a 
long-necked plant eater.

"I've been fascinated by dinosaurs since I was a kid," Mr. Kirkland 
said. "They're so amazing and so big."

But unlike most of the people in the hall clicking their shutters and 
gawking at the prehistoric beasts, Mr. Kirkland could not see the 
hulking skeletons clearly because he's legally blind.

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/08/capturing-dinosaurs-and-whales-without-seeing-them/

Photo workshop for Blind & Visually Impaired.
Mexico City Soundscapes - Chico Sanchez - Blind and Visually Impaired Photo
audio slide-show production: a story photographed and recorded by four 
blind and visually impaired photographers showcasing the sounds of 
Mexico City's streets related to trades that are slowly but surely 
disappearing. The project was proposed by Gerardo Ramirez, who worked 
with his fellow students from the Sight of Emotion organization, Edgar 
Angeles, Jose Sebastian Munoz and Miguel Fabian. I edited the audio and 
photos and produced the audio-slide show.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fARrch9OnFw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZiA5g_n9jE


Riding Blind - Blind and Visually Impaired Photo Workshop Projects
http://chicosanchezphotos.blogspot.no/2012/01/riding-blind-blind-and-visually.html



*Creative communication*
A South-African fast food chain reaches out to the visually impaired by 
creating "braille burgers. <http://bit.ly/xfdIHt>" The chefs 
painstakingly placed individual sesame seeds on burger buns to spell out 
"100% Pure Beef Burgers Made For You." [/The Daily What/]
http://theweek.com/article/index/223340/good-day-bad-day-january-13-2012


More Shakespeare performances accessible to deaf
In 2011, OSF access coordinator Jim Amberg and audience services manager 
Radawna Wallace captioned 39 performances at the festival, and 
distributed about 10,000 assistive listening devices for patrons with 
moderate hearing loss. Additionally, the pair arranged for nine plays to 
be sign-interpreted, and audio-described about 100 performances for 
blind and visually impaired patrons.
http://www.kval.com/news/consumertips/More-Shakespeare-performances-accessible-to-deaf-136975903.html



*"Nova" Explores Hidden Elements, A Da Vinci Mystery, An Ancient U.S. 
Death Trap, and 3D Spies and Dambusters of WWII in New Winter 2012 
Programming Line-Up*
NOVA is closed-captioned for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers and 
described for people who are blind or visually impaired by the Media 
Access Group at WGBH. The descriptive narration is available on the SAP 
channel or stereo TV and VCRs. To order NOVA direct from WGBH Boston 
Video, visit shop.wgbh.org or call 800.949.8670. call 800.949.8670. 
http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2012/01/04/nova-explores-hidden-elements-a-da-vinci-mystery-an-ancient-us-death-trap-and-3d-spies-and-dambusters-of-wwii-in-new-winter-2012-programming-line-up-713210/20120104pbs02/



King in our minds' eyes

Jirawat Pornputtimethee, 11, has been visually impaired since birth and 
has never imagined being able to hold a camera, never mind take a 
picture. Yet today, his photo is being showcased along with those of 
other visually impaired youngsters in the very special exhibition "84 
Photos Taken by Heart for the King".
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/The-King-in-our-minds-eyes-30172591.html


Ford Taps Cambridge University Experts In Effort To Design Vehicles For 
Growing Number Of Visually Impaired

Ford <#> has joined forces with Cambridge University to gain a better 
understanding of visual impairment issues that come with an ageing 
society and to use digital tools to better design vehicles for those 
with vision problems.

The World Health Organisation reports that 285 million people worldwide 
suffer from some form of visual impairment. Of these, about 65 per cent 
are aged 50 and over. And with a rapidly ageing population, the number 
of visually impaired is expected to grow.

With age, the ability to see fine details deteriorates, as does the 
ability to see in the dark. This means many drivers can struggle to read 
the instrument cluster while driving, unless they have bifocal or 
varifocal glasses. Other eye conditions, such as glaucoma, cataracts and 
age-related macular degeneration (AMD), are also prevalent among those 
50 and older.

http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2011/12/23/019157-ford-taps-cambridge-university-experts-effort-to-design-vehicles-for.html