[nabs-l] curing blindness

Sun Sep 30 23:06:37 UTC 2012

  Wow great topic! I?ve been blind from birth due to Retinopathy of 
Prematurity, and am able to see light. Yes I don't deny sometimes I'd 
think OK what'what would it be like if I could see maybe in doing more 
things myself and not depending on others? Would I have studied a 
different career? As Ariel said yes maybe I'd have a different identity 
than what I have now. Also would this device be useful in cases like 
myself where I can see light? Great topic! Hope to learn amd maybe 
contribute more as the days go by and I see more comments from you guys.
Gerardo

El 30/09/2012 05:01 p.m., Arielle Silverman escribió:
> Hi all,
> I have studied this topic a bit because it was the subject of my
> honors thesis when I was an undergraduate student. I did a survey
> about six years ago (a few of you may have participated) to assess how
> blind people felt about the prospect of having their sight restored.
> One of the most interesting findings was that when asked whether or
> not one would take a magic pill that would restore full vision
> immediately with no risks or side effects, only 72% of the sample said
> they would do it. While most of the participants said they would do
> it, a substantial minority (about 20%) said no. Some of the people who
>   said no cited concerns about losing their identity as blind people,
> or having  to adjust to a new sense  and that possibly taking away
> from their quality of life.
> Another finding from the survey was that most people said in order for
>   a sight-restoring technology to be worthwhile, it would have to give
> them most or all functional vision. I personally don't have any
> objection to the technology like the Argus II being developed. I do
> think it could be a problem, though, if technologies that only give
> very rudimentary vision become popularized. They could perhaps lead
> people like the man in the article to forego using a proven travel aid
> like a cane in favor of using very rudimentary vision. As a result,
> people who have these procedures could actually end up struggling more
> than they were before. Based on the article, I am not convinced that
> Lloyd has actually gained any independence from the artificial vision,
> beyond what he would have gotten with a cane. Instead, it makes him
> better at passing as a sighted guy, but possibly worse at navigating
> his environment because he is no longer using a cane. I think the
> challenges and self-esteem issues associated with "passing" without
> actually having good skills are evident to many of us.
> I don't think I would undergo a procedure to improve my vision, for
> several reasons. I wouldn't even consider it until the technology was
> extensively tested and perfected, and then, only if it could actually
> give me full functionality (driving etc.) Even then, I'm not sure I
> would do it because I am terrified of surgery and only want to go
> through that if it is absolutely medically necessary, and I do not
> want to put the rest of my life on hold to learn how to see. I have
> more ambivalent feelings about how much I want to support research on
> curing blindness, and I'm curious to know others' thoughts about this.
> I have a genetic eye condition and have been told I should send my
> blood to a lab to have my gene identified because this will aid
> research on genetic treatments. I've debated whether or not to do it
> and at this point I am mostly indifferent. On one hand, I do think
> that treatments could legitimately help some people who don't have
> access to technology or who  live in communities where blindness is
> viewed very poorly. On the other hand, I am bothered by the negative
> press about blindness that is often propagated by cure-oriented groups
> like Prevent Blindness America or Foundation Fighting Blindness,
> making me not want to support these causes. Furthermore, I believe
> that no matter how good treatments get, some people will continue to
> be blind. So I would rather direct my limited energy toward finding
> ways to make life better for those who are blind rather than wiping
> out blindness.  What do you think?
> Arielle
>
> On 9/30/12, Ashley Bramlett<bookwormahb at earthlink.net>  wrote:
>> Hi all,
>>
>> I know NFB doesn’t focus on treatment of blindness or low vision; they focus
>> on living with it and adapting to the world with training and equipment.
>> But many organizations do focus on this such as Foundation Fighting
>> Blindness and the organization mentioned in this article.
>> The link is below to the article.  I think this guy in the article was sure
>> taking a gamble with his life to walk to work without a cane and only
>> relying on unclear vision. At least the quote from him indicates its hard to
>> focus and learn to see with this artificial vision; not as if he claims its
>> perfect. Still he is happy with the artificial vision he does have through
>> the camera.
>>
>> I’ve had very limited vision all my life and I was fortunate to be taught
>> braille after they taught me large print, but realized its shortcomings; so
>> I learned braille and I had a cane in mid elementary school. Training in O&M
>> was a lot to be desired, but I did learn how to use it as well as other
>> alternative techniques from my teacher of the vision impaired.
>> Therefore, I’m adapting and still learning with what I have. Techniques will
>> also change with technology; for instance, when I was young,  we had no
>> digital recorders, digital NLS players, no book share or any way to download
>> books in braille, no bar code readers, and scanners were around although not
>> to the efficient degree we have today. So, with all that said, I’m not sure
>> I’d want more vision. But this article paints a picture of getting some
>> vision back as a good thing. I certainly would not want to enter the sighted
>> world as I would not know how to function.
>>
>>
>> If you read the article, what do you think? Would you take artificial
>> vision? This is becoming a reality and they are going to improve the
>> technology. The chip sends signals to the camera which sends signals to the
>> eyes so the person can see some images.
>>
>> Here it is.
>> http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57522740/new-technology-may-bring-sight-back-to-blind/
>> _______________________________________________
>> nabs-l mailing list
>> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> nabs-l:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/arielle71%40gmail.com
>>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for nabs-l:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/gera1027%40gmail.com