[Artbeyondsightmuseums] photography, nano-wrinkles

[fnugg at online.no]

The photo deemed too controversial for an art festival
A VISION-IMPAIRED artist feels his "wings have been clipped" after his 
photographic entry of a naked, mature-aged woman was withdrawn from the 
Bundaberg Arts Festival for being too controversial.
http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/too-prude-for-nude/2037634/


Smartphones help the visually impaired navigate their daily lives 
<http://www.slashgear.com/smartphones-help-the-visually-impaired-navigate-their-daily-lives-30299574/>
It may seem difficult or impossible for someone who can't see to use the 
touchscreen of an iPhone or Android smartphone to use the devices, but 
it's easier than you might expect. The iPhone for example has an 
assistant mode for taking pictures that tells the visually impaired 
person how many heads are in a photograph and where those heads are the 
frame allowing a perfectly aligned photograph. Android devices have a 
feature called TalkBack that adds spoken, audible, and vibration 
feedback to the smartphone.
http://www.slashgear.com/smartphones-help-the-visually-impaired-navigate-their-daily-lives-30299574/

Visually impaired challenge lab site

Math can be tough for many college students.

For the visually impaired, the software MyMathLab from Pearson can be 
tough to navigate to do the work needed to pass math. It's particularly 
tough when their screen-reading software isn't compatible.

"I was able to do a couple of the assignments, but I still had a few 
issues," said visually impaired NE student Joseph King. "Then I got to a 
certain point, and it just got to be too much. I had to drop the class 
until they come up with accessible software or a different solution."

http://collegian.tccd.edu/?p=14167

Fingers Can Sense Nano-Wrinkles on Seemingly Smooth Surface
How sensitive are our fingers? Apparently they can detect even 
nano-wrinkles on a seemingly smooth surface. The findings have important 
implications for the development of technologies for the visually impaired.

Before now, scientists have been unsure exactly how sensitive our sense 
of touch really is. In order to find that out, they tested the smallest 
pattern that a finger could distinguish. When a finger is drawn over a 
surface, vibrations occur in the finger. People feel these vibrations 
differently on different substances and the fiction properties of the 
surface control how hard we press on the surface as we explore it. A 
high friction surface requires us to press less to achieve the optimum 
friction force.

"This is the breakthrough that allows us to design how things feel and 
are perceived," said Mark Rutland, one of the researchers, in a news 
release. "It allows, for example, for a certain portion of a touch 
screen on a smartphone to be designed to feel differently by vibration."
http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/9507/20130917/fingers-sense-nano-wrinkles-seemingly-smooth-surface.htm