[nabs-l] struggling with Math

Sun Aug 28 15:59:51 UTC 2016

I am already in the Math class. It's my first college Math class and
my first one without Braille books and tactile aids. I only intend to
take any minimum required Math. Disability services said I'd get a
note taker, but they don't do readers for textbooks. So far, I've used
the scanner and WindowEyes at school to scan my work this week. School
started last Monday.

On 8/28/16, Steve Jacobson via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Kayla,
>
> I majored in math many years ago before we had much of the current
> technology, but my interest in math has continued so I try to remain
> current.  I say this partly to let you know that blind people can do math
> and also to make the point that one sometimes has to look at all options,
> technical and nontechnical.
>
> Are you interested in math in a way that will cause you to take a lot of
> classes, or is your goal going to be to just get through the minimum
> requirements?  That will affect how you go about addressing this.
>
> First, to answer your specific question, it isn't the scanner that needs to
> be able to deal with math, rather it is the OCR software.  There is a
> product for scanning math but it is quite expensive, and it doesn't just
> magically give you a perfectly accessible textbook.  From what I have
> heard,
> it is sometimes necessary to use that product together with other OCR
> products to get one accessible copy because other products recognize text
> better.  In addition, there are issues of how to display math so that it
> can
> be read by a screen reader and/or a Braille Note.  All of this can be done,
> and people who are heavily involved in math do this successfully.  There is
> a mathematical typesetting language called Latex, and many people learn to
> read that language directly and can get copies of math tests that way from
> publishers, and some of us have learned to write LATEX to create printouts.
> .  There is something called MATHML that can be made to be accessible.  I
> am
> purposely not going into more detail because I don't think that will help
> right now, but I want you to know why it matters how interested you are in
> math.  We even have a separate list called BlindMath on NFBNET where math
> professionals deal with a lot of these topics.
>
> Having said all of this, what does this mean for you right now?  Are you
> working with a disabled Students' office on your campus?  What has already
> been done to find out what is available for you?  How are your braille
> skills in general?  I would caution you against feeling you have to master
> the entire Nemeth Code to take a required math course, it would work better
> to learn the basics and then what you need as you go.  Although it probably
> isn't a preferred approach, it is possible to learn math by working with a
> reader or even a audio recording if it is done well.  Learning to interact
> with someone to read the text might be a better short term solution rather
> than trying to understand some of the processes I mentioned above.  With a
> little lead time, there are places that might be able to braille or scan
> your math books if you are almost ready to start a math course.  In that
> approach, knowing enough Nemeth Code so you can take some notes for
> reviewing later will help very much.  Getting math books in braille can be
> done with some lead time.  This is getting harder to have done, though, but
> your Disabled Students' Office or even your state agency may know whether
> there are any agencies that you can work with.  If you are going to start
> your first math class in a week but have no idea how to handle the
> textbooks, you might need to find a way to put off taking your math course
> so you can investigate some of this.
>
> It is very natural to be scared of facing something new, and I know what I
> have written here probably doesn't make you feel much better.  However, it
> can be done, and I and others can make better suggestions if we know more
> about what you've already done and how interested you are going to be in
> mathematics.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Steve Jacobson
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: NABS-L [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Kayla James
> via
> NABS-L
> Sent: Saturday, August 27, 2016 11:23 PM
> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Kayla James <christgirl813 at gmail.com>
> Subject: [nabs-l] struggling with Math
>
> Hello, everyone,
> I'm struggling in Math a little. Does any know of scanners that can
> scan textbooks and pick up the Math symbols?
> I have a BrailleNote Apex. I'm still trying to work out the Nemeth code.
> I also have a MacBook Air. If there are any scanners that can hook up
> to it that anyone knows of, please let me know.
> I could really use the help. I'm scared, because it's so early in the
> year, but I want to do well.
>
> Kayla
>
>
>
> On 8/27/16, Caitlin Best via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> Chicago manual of style 15 and 16 editions.
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>> On Aug 27, 2016, at 17:54, Justin Williams via NABS-L
>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> What format are you using?
>>> Justin
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: NABS-L [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Keight Best
>>> via
>>> NABS-L
>>> Sent: Saturday, August 27, 2016 6:54 PM
>>> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>> Cc: Keight Best <bestca21 at gmail.com>
>>> Subject: [nabs-l] Citation Sites
>>>
>>> Hello everyone,
>>> I hope you are doing well. I am curious to know which websites you use
>>> in
>>> order to cite materials and create bibliographies. A professor of mine
>>> recommended Zotero, but I am not entirely sure how accessible/usable it
>>> is
>>> with JAWS. Currently, I am using RefWorks, with seems to work fine.
>>> Thoughts
>>> appreciated.
>>> Cheers,
>>> Caitlin
>>>
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