[Nfbaz-talk] Chris Heckel

[Chris Heckel]

Hello,



My name is Chris Heckel.  I’m a student of Dr. Paul Gabias, a leader in the
National Federation of the Blind who lives in Canada, and works as a
professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia in Kelowna
BC.  I have taken two of his courses, the Psychology of Touch I and the
Psychology of Touch II. I’m now taking his course on the Evolution of
Aggression.

In the Psychology of Touch II course, I Learned about the research to date
on how blind and sighted people take  lines and patterns of lines to
represent objects, layouts of objects and events.

During one class, I had the opportunity to meet Dr. John Kennedy, the
pioneer in the field of haptic pictures of and for the blind.  My respect
for Dr. Kennedy and Dr. Gabias, among other things, led me to pursue this
line of investigation.  I am fascinated by the similarities and possible
differences with respect to how blind and sighted people deal with
representational systems for depicting objects, scenes and events.  I’m
interested in drawings, because that’s what I have studied so far.

At the NFB Convention, last July, Dr. Gabias and I met with Dr. Al Maneki
and his team at E.A.S.Y. LLC.  They have the beginnings of an entire line
of products that allow for the creation, editing, digital transmission and
reproduction of raised line drawings.  In  a draft article that Dr. Maneki
has sent to Dr. Gabias, entitled:

*The Dawn of the Age of Tactile Fluency:*

*Let the Revolution Begin!*

Dr. Maneki wrote: “Up to now, parents of every blind child have inevitably
run up against this vexing problem: “My blind child will be taking Geometry
next year. Now, what do we do with all of those drawings?””

Indeed, what do we do with “all of those drawings”?  And further, what
meanings can lines and patterns of lines take on, in “all of those
drawings”?

That’s the question that I am exploring in my studies with Dr. Gabias.

So, Dr. Gabias suggested that I become familiar with the National
Federation of the Blind, and the Canadian Federation of the Blind, their
 people, their  philosophy of blindness and their  structures. As I
mentioned, I attended the NFB Convention in Orlando, last July, and the
convention was a thrilling experience, and I wish to continue my studies
with as many more participants who wish to extend their help to me.

I’m writing this article, simply to introduce myself to you, and to ask for
your help.

Because my explorations are very preliminary, I’m wanting to have
conversations with people about all kinds of things, but particularly
depiction.  In the course of our conversations, I hope to be able to show
you a few drawings and ask you for your impressions about them.

If you have any time available to meet with me, please reply to this email
so we could hopefully coordinate a time to meet together.

If I receive positive feedback from you, in terms of your availability, I
can spend the Thanksgiving weekend in either Victoria or Vancouver.  For my
first fall research session, with blind participants, I will be available
from Friday October 11th in the evening, up until Monday October  14th, in
the afternoon.  The city I choose will depend on the degree of response
that I get from each City.

For my second fall research session, with blind participants, I will be
available from Friday November 8th, in the evening, up until Monday
November 11th, in the afternoon.  Again, the city I choose will depend on
the degree of response that I get from each city.

My first winter research session, with blind participants, will take place
in Phoenix AZ. In Phoenix, I will be available from Friday December 21st,
up until Sunday January 5th, in the afternoon.

To reply to this message without involving the nfbaz-talk list, my email
is: chris.richard.heckel at gmail.com



I’m looking forward to hearing back from you, and to meeting you all soon.



Best Regards,

Chris Heckel