[NABS-L] A technology recommendation for all of you

Sun Jul 29 00:11:43 UTC 2018

Hi Cricket thanks for your message. I agree that Aira is a useful tool for the blind. I have not personally used Aira, but I have heard lots of great things about it.

On Jul 28, 2018 6:56 PM, "Cricket X. Bidleman via NABS-L" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> Hi Connor,
>
> First of all, I welcome your perspective. I would, however, encourage
> you to not make assumptions as to what I am and am not willing to do.
> I mainly said what I did to illustrate the point that this technology
> is helpful in many different areas of life. I never said that I am not
> willing to self-advocate and I am, very much so, and I do. I would
> also encourage others to self-advocate, but in situations where
> self-advocacy didn't happen AIRA can be very helpful. That situation
> had aspects to it that I did not feel the need to detail on email. No
> one should feel the need to give every detail of everything on a
> public listserv. The point is that it's useful during travel, and I
> think that point is muddled a bit by this discussion. I would
> appreciate if we could drop this discussion here, in order to preserve
> the integrity of what I was trying to say. Thanks.
>
> I also want to point out that there's an amazing amount of
> misinformation you can get by asking random people for directions.
> Many people don’t know their left from their right, including RA's.
> Some people will tell you that something is “that way” or “over
> there”, and you can end up more confused than when you started.
>
> As blind people, our time is just as valuable as anyone else’s, and if
> someone trained in the information blind people need so they can
> navigate efficiently is available any time it’s required, why not use
> a service that will improve our efficiency. Also, if on the first day
> of campus there are a lot of confused people around asking questions,
> being blind and having access to trained assistance actually gives us
> a competitive advantage. Keep that in mind.
>
> Again, I appreciate the meat of what you're trying to say and I think
> that's important to consider as we continue into higher education. I
> don't think, however, that what you're trying to say applies to my
> situation and since I was the one in my situation, so I do have the
> right to say that. Also, please be aware that the way you presented
> your point was one that I could take very personally and though I'm
> choosing not to, I would also encourage you to be cognizant f that so
> as to offend as few people as possible. Thanks.
>
> Best,
> Cricket X. Bidleman (she/her/hers)
> Stanford University | Class of 2021
>
> On 7/28/18, Roger Newell via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> > I don't see the distinction between asking an RA for assistance or
> > using Aira. Visual assistance was required, so why not use a perfectly
> > good service?
> >
> > On 7/29/18, Connor Mullin via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> >> Hi Cricket,
> >>
> >> Thank you for sharing your thoughts on AIRA. As a recipient of a NFB
> >> scholarship, I will also enjoy nine months of minutes. However, I would
> >> like
> >> to reflect on your story at Stanford.
> >> I am anticipating using AIRA for tasks that are best solved by
> >> self-directing visual aids, such as reading mail, reading library books
> >> for
> >> research projects, and identifying the colors of clothing to then label
> >> them
> >> tactilely. Yet, while I don't think relying on AIRA for travel assistance
> >> is
> >> some kind of unforgivable sin, I would caution people from generally
> >> recommending using AIRA in the way that you did at your first day at
> >> Stanford. That is, you were hesitant to approach an RA for directions,
> >> even
> >> though you knew they would be the most oriented, because you felt guilty
> >> about bothering them. And I think that is an important hurdle for
> >> everyone
> >> to reflect on, recognizing that fears of approaching people for
> >> directions
> >> and highlighting your blindness is something that should not be passed
> >> over
> >> when talking about being an independent blind person.
> >> Now, I'm not saying you never have, before or after that day, overcome
> >> such
> >> hesitations, nor am I saying that I have never psyched myself out of
> >> asking
> >> authority figures for directions. Rather, I'm simply saying that we
> >> should
> >> be careful not to inadvertently sell the benefits of AIRA as an
> >> alternative
> >> to building peoples' advocacy and nonvisual skills.
> >> Thank you once again for your thoughts.
> >>
> >> Connor
> >>
> >>
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: NABS-L <nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Gary Wunder via
> >> NABS-L
> >> Sent: Thursday, July 26, 2018 10:28 AM
> >> To: 'National Association of Blind Students mailing list'
> >> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> >> Cc: Gary Wunder <garywunder at me.com>
> >> Subject: Re: [NABS-L] A technology recommendation for all of you
> >>
> >> What an interesting story. Thanks.
> >>
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: NABS-L [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Cricket X.
> >> Bidleman via NABS-L
> >> Sent: Monday, July 23, 2018 12:07 AM
> >> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
> >> Cc: Cricket X. Bidleman
> >> Subject: [NABS-L] A technology recommendation for all of you
> >>
> >> Hi all,
> >>
> >> This is long. Please read it anyway. As of last July, I received the AIRA
> >> Back-to-School award. Basically, this gave me free minutes on AIRA for
> >> nine
> >> months, the last of which recently ended. (Endless thanks to Kathryn
> >> Webster
> >> for being instrumental in that process.) I'll admit I was a little
> >> skeptical
> >> because first of all, I didn't think I'd use it. I also knew they had
> >> basically repurposed Google Glass, and Google Glass in its original form
> >> was
> >> kind of a floppy failure... And then some.
> >>
> >> So Cricket, where's that "recommendation" you promised us? Well, here it
> >> is.
> >> I can say, through my own abundant use of the software in my first year
> >> of
> >> college, that I sincerely feel that AIRA is revolutionizing instant
> >> access
> >> to all areas of life. Accessibility is a huge issue for us as blind
> >> students
> >> and though it's slowly being worked on in general, sometimes it's
> >> necessary
> >> to have instant access to things. I'd call it "accessibility on demand"
> >> or
> >> something like that. One particular instance comes to mind.
> >>
> >> I was incredibly overwhelmed. It was my first day at Stanford, September
> >> 19
> >> of last year. My parents had just left me in a dorm full of people I
> >> didn't
> >> know, in a place I'd never been to. I was walking around, trying not to
> >> bump
> >> into things, when I mentally slapped myself for forgetting that I had an
> >> a
> >> capella audition, and then another one, and then a choir audition, and
> >> then
> >> a meeting with my pre-major advisor. I really didn't want to be the
> >> problem
> >> child constantly asking for help from the RA's who, quite frankly, had
> >> more
> >> than enough disoriented freshmen to deal with. So, because I'm so
> >> brilliant,
> >> I walked out of my dorm with my cane, wearing a black dress and high
> >> heels,
> >> into 90 degree weather. I made it all the way down the hill by my dorm
> >> and
> >> then I had to mentally slap myself again because I realized something...
> >> I
> >> didn't know the campus at all. I walked around a bit, and then got turned
> >> around, and then got lost, and then got even more lost. There were
> >> freshmen
> >> everywhere, but they were all lost too, and a bunch of them gave me
> >> atrociously  wrong directions. I called AIRA and in five minutes, they
> >> had
> >> me straightened out and going in the right direction. Turned out I was on
> >> the opposite side of campus from where I was supposed to be. Thanks, all
> >> you
> >> disoriented freshmen...
> >>
> >> Let me tell you something about Stanford campus. you know how like every
> >> sane person designing a college campus makes them arranged like city
> >> blocks?
> >> There are clear streets, buildings are arranged in grid patterns, they're
> >> in
> >> numerical order... Stanford's designer must have been crazy, because this
> >> campus is not like that at all. There are twists and turns everywhere and
> >> though there are a couple of main streets here and there, most of the
> >> campus
> >> isn't even nearly accessible by car, much less by some lost blind
> >> student.
> >> Google Maps doesn't really help, so my AIRA agent (Emma) was
> >> cross-referencing three different maps while trying to keep an eye on me
> >> so
> >> I wouldn't step in a fountain. Yes, that is a possibility here. People
> >> actually jump in fountains for fun. Emma is phenomenal, and managed to
> >> get
> >> me to my audition on time. Part of that was because, by some happy
> >> coincidence, I'd left three hours early, but even so I was rushing at the
> >> end. At least I made it, sore feet and all.
> >>
> >> Anyway since then, I've had many experiences with AIRA, and all of them
> >> have
> >> ended up positive. One time I was chasing down a Uber because it wanted
> >> to
> >> ditch me... One time I was cramming for a test with a textbook that I
> >> hadn't
> >> gotten in Braille on time since it was my first quarter here. One time an
> >> agent was reading Plato's Republic to me when I may or may not have taken
> >> a
> >> nap, and they may or may not have had to wake me up. They were really
> >> nice
> >> about it though. You know these people are awesome when they can even
> >> pronounce pars opercularis properly. I can't even do that. (That's an
> >> essential part of the brain involved in language processing by the way.)
> >> And
> >> once they were able to describe, in extreme detail, a brain diagram I was
> >> studying for psychology. I later got the Braille diagram, and it was
> >> nowhere
> >> near as detailed as the AIRA agent's description.
> >>
> >> So my point is, please do yourself a huge favor and get AIRA. You can get
> >> funding for it from the Department of Rehab. Or scholarship money can go
> >> toward it, or you can apply for their scholarships. I promise you it will
> >> be
> >> integral as you go through education and life in general. If my word
> >> isn't
> >> enough, and even if it is, I fully encourage you to check out this blog
> >> post
> >> by Jonathan Mosen. He's a technology consultant who has way more
> >> experience
> >> than me. He's worked with Humanware and Freedom Scientific, and for many
> >> years has run his own consulting company. He designs websites, travels a
> >> lot, runs several podcasts and a radio station, writes books, and is
> >> pretty
> >> much the kind of person many of us aspire to emulate in terms of success.
> >> He
> >> uses AIRA and in this post, talks about how powerfully this innovative
> >> solution has impacted his life. Please give it a read--I promise it will
> >> change your outlook. https://mosen.org/aira/
> >>
> >> Best,
> >> Cricket X. Bidleman (she/her/hers)
> >> Stanford University | Class of 2021
> >>
> >> P.S. If you have Emma as your AIRA agent, tell her I said hello. :)
> >>
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> >>
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> >>
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