[Nfbofnc] Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium Tactile Fish Exhibit

[Gary H. Ray]

There is a new tactile exhibit at the state aquarium in Pine Knoll Shores.
The folks who designed it need for blind folks to give feedback.
 
Gary Ray
 
*****FORWARDED INFO********
 
My husband, Bill Watkins, and I (Rebecca) have spent the last 4 years
working on a research grant we received from NIDRR (National Institute of
Disability Research and Rehabilitation) to study ways to make museum or
aquarium exhibits accessible to the blind and low vision population.  The
culmination of our work was to install an exhibit of touch activated tactile
talking fish at Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium which opened this July.
 
So far the response to the talking tactile fish exhibit has been very
enthusiastic.  Bill and I are about to begin the final audience evaluation
testing in preparation for writing up the final summation of our 4 year
grant!  Exciting times - but we have lots left to do.
 
If at all possible we need to complete our audience testing by November
30th.  I am going to Pine Knoll Shores on November 12th to familiarize the
volunteers who will manage the testing with the questionnaire.  We would
like to begin testing folks as soon as possible.  It is going to be rather
tricky for me to schedule this from Winston-Salem, but I will do the best I
can.
 
Ideally we would like to test 4 folks in each of the following
categories:
 
          4 adults who have been blind since birth
          4 adults who lost their sight after the age of 3 or 4 - so they
have some visual memory
          4 adults who have had low vision since birth
          4 adults who have become low vision after the age of 3 or 4 - so
they have some visual memory
 
          4 young people (18 or under) who have been blind since birth
          4 young people who lost their sight after the age of 3 or 4 so
they have some visual memory
          4 young people who have had low vision since birth
          4 young people who have become low vision after the age of 3 or 4
- so they have some visual memory
 
This is a total of 32 folks - and I realize this is a very tall order to
fulfill in a short time.  Can you give me an idea of how many people you
know who fit into these categories and might be willing to participate?
Please email (rfuller at rafmodels.com )or give me a call on my cell phone
(336)
782-5433 so we can talk this over.