technology

Filed under: Themes, Deaf Jam

Quoting the always-always-always entertaining Karen Putz, writing on her website deafmomworld.com:

I came across a post this morning, The Shame of Wearing Hearing Aids, and it brought back memories. I was one of those kids who hid a hearing aid under long hair. It wasn’t until I was in college that I finally wore my hair up and my hearing aid perched for all to see. Kinda sad, eh? All those years spent trying to hide something that was basically a part of me—except I didn’t want any part of it.

I decided to raise my kids with a different attitude about their hearing aids. From the start, we went with brightly-colored earmolds with swirls and glitter. I even joined my daughter in getting matching glitter earmolds. I’m pretty sure I saw my audiologist hold back a gulp when I asked for the blue with glitter when she squeezed the earmold goop into my ear.

So far, no one has had the guts to tell me that I look foolish sporting glitter at my age.

Despite my years of preaching about being proud of those two pieces of technology on their ears, my kids had minds of their own … Continue reading this great essay

.

Karen Putz is an insightful, talented and entertaining freelance writer. She provides early intervention services to families with deaf and hard of hearing children. She serves as a board member for Hands & Voices (www.handsandvoices.org) and runs Illinois Hands & Voices in her state. She’s also a deaf mom to three deaf and hard of hearing children, and her husband is deaf, too. Learn more at karenputz.com.

.

.

Read Irked posts tagged “deaf”
Read Irked posts tagged “family”

.

Permalink / Comments

Filed under: Themes, Deaf Jam

Dr. Tom McDavitt, like most deaf veterinarians, has learned to auscultate with his hands.

The nervous Corgi dug its nails into the metal examination table as Dr. Thomas McDavitt held the tan-and-white dog in place. The patient began to relax as the veterinarian listened for a heartbeat. But instead of using a stethoscope, he felt the dog’s side with his cheek. It was a bit untraditional, but then again, so is Dr. McDavitt.

After contracting spinal meningitis at the age of 5, Dr. McDavitt experienced swelling from the infection that damaged his auditory nerve and left him permanently deaf. Since that tender age, he resolved to be undeterred by his disability, and later, to pursue his dream of becoming a veterinarian. In fact, whenever anyone told him he couldn’t do something because of his deafness, Dr. McDavitt always had a reply ready—”Watch me!”

The rigors of veterinary education and practice can be difficult enough, but an additional set of challenges arise for people with profound hearing loss. They face issues such as how they will communicate with their peers and clients in various settings and whether they can properly appreciate animal heart, lung, and bowel sounds.

A number of deaf veterinarians have met those challenges in their own way … Continue reading this article on avma.org

.

The numbers:

• Estimates of the total number of deaf veterinarians in the U.S. range from 40 to more than 100.
• Approximately 15 American veterinary schools and colleges have graduated deaf students.
• The Association of Medical Professionals with Hearing Losses (AMPHL.org) was founded in 2001 by three deaf veterinarians—Drs. Kimberly Dodge, Candice A. Corriher, and Danielle Rastetter—and three deaf medical students.
• The association has expanded to include other professions such as physical therapy and psychology.

.

Read Irked posts tagged “deaf”

.

Permalink / Comments

Filed under: Themes, Blind Visionaries, Campaign Watch

Virtual Helping Hands (VHH) is a coalition of four groups, united in their mission “to bring people who have disabilities into Second Life so everyone can enjoy what Second Life offers—entertainment, education, and employment. Everyone can explore and enjoy the same virtual worlds of the Immersive Internet”….with just a teensy weensy li’l bit of code tweaking.

Click to continue »

Filed under: Uncategorized

According to an article written by Heather Claybrook:

• People with disabilities are a “huge untapped workforce.”

• Only 50% of disabled Americans who want to work have a job.

• Many people with disabilities are actively looking for work—and have the skills employers are looking for.

• One of the greatest barriers is the perception that people with disabilities can’t do the job, when actually, in some fields, they are more than qualified and often bring a unique perspective to the job.

• People with disabilities often use a lot of technology in their everyday life. They’re actually very well-suited for working in the technology fields.

.

Read Irked posts tagged “disability”

.

Permalink / Comments

Filed under: Themes, Auties & Aspies, Interviews, Books & Book Reviews

Tim Page, author of “Parallel Play: Growing Up with Undiagnosed Asperger’s” and a Pulitzer Prize winning music critic, was online at washingtonpost.com Tuesday, October 27 to take readers’ questions and to discuss the effects of Asperger’s syndrome on his life and coping mechanisms he uses to treat it.

The entire conversation was fascinating (and well worth the read), but in case you’re in a hurry…here are some excerpts from Tim’s responses that leapt off the page:

Click to continue »

Filed under: Themes, Deaf Jam, Campaign Watch

SolarAid:
A solar-powered hearing aid that costs less than $100.

By comparison:
The least expensive retail model sells for about $500.

Click to continue »

Filed under: Themes, Blind Visionaries

According to Orbit Research promo materials:

Orbit Research recently announced the introduction of the iBill, billed as “the world’s first affordable Talking Banknote Identifier for the blind and the visually impaired.” Priced at $99, the 1.5 ounce iBill is pager-sized. It enables the blind and the visually impaired community to achieve independence in the everyday necessity of using paper currency, which sighted people take for granted.

Measuring just 3 inches by 1.6 inches by 0.7 inches, the ultra-slim and compact design allows it to be carried unobtrusively in a pocket, purse, clipped to the belt or attached to a keychain or lanyard. Among the features that set it apart from other such devices are the extremely high accuracy (better than 99.9%) and the near-instantaneous speed (less than one second in most cases) with which it identifies banknotes.

The iBill is designed with the sole purpose of providing the simplest, fastest and most accurate means to identify U.S. banknotes. Its unique ergonomic design permits easy and intuitive use without the need for any training or practice. Upon insertion of a banknote into the device, its denomination is identified at the press of a button. Based on the user’s preference, the denomination is announced by a clear and natural voice, or by tone or vibration for privacy. The unit identifies all U.S. banknotes in circulation and recognizes them in any orientation. Banknotes in poor physical condition are indicated as unidentifiable and are not misread. The unit is also upgradeable to recognize new banknote designs.

The iBill achieves all of this while operating on a single, commonly available AAA battery which lasts for over a year with typical use. Its durable construction and sealed design ensure trouble-free use. The unit is backed by a one-year warranty from Orbit Research, and toll-free customer support.

Samples of the iBill are available for evaluation now and Orbit Research is accepting orders.

.

For further information visit orbitresearch.com

Or call: 1-888-606-7248

Then…

Read other “Total Access” Product Promotions

.

Permalink / Comments

Filed under: Themes, Bum Deal, Campaign Watch, Irked Videos

Cyberbeg.com offers hope, by providing a way for homeless people to connect with potential donators. Think of it as a website dedicated to tangibly helping people. Before the emergence of “digital panhandling,” homeless people had no way of broadcasting their need for help to a large audience. After two years of posting cyber begs, the site has raised almost $23,000 for its members.

.

Here’s a corresponding news segment from David Abel’s outstanding feature for Boston.com:

.

Visit CyberBeg.com >>

Then…

Read Irked posts tagged “poverty”
Read Irked posts tagged “technology”
Read Irked posts tagged “creativity”
Read Irked posts tagged “campaign watch”

.

Permalink / Comments

Filed under: Regular Contributors, Donna Williams, Themes, Auties & Aspies, Interviews, Irked Videos

Remember Craig Evans, the wonderful man behind autismhangout.com who interviewed Donna Williams via Skype earlier this year? Well, Craig recently interviewed Donna and Dr. Stephen Shore for his new “Thriving with Autism” webinar.

Here’s the absolutely remarkable, riveting interview:

.

Learn more at:
autismhangout.com >>
autismasperger.net >>
& donnawilliams.net >>

.

Then…
Read Irked posts tagged “autism”
Read Irked posts tagged “interview”

.

Permalink / Comments

Filed under: Themes, The Skinny on Fat

Quoting Erin Matson’s truly beautiful editorial for minnesota.publicradio.org:

.

“I remember flipping through fashion magazines disinterestedly as a girl, never realizing the extent to which Photoshop could be used as a weapon of mass destruction.

We have all come to expect that photos of models are airbrushed in advertisements and fashion magazines. It’s a fact—one that’s all too easy to swallow and throw back up.

Recently, Ralph Lauren fired size-four model Filippa Hamilton, allegedly for being too large. This story is an outrage in itself. She is, by the standards of the World Health Organization, underweight.

What made me want to burst into tears was far worse: A dramatically Photoshopped Ralph Lauren ad that surfaced in Japan after she had been fired.

I know all too well that the modeling and fashion industries love to portray women who struggle with eating disorders or have been digitally altered to dangerously unrealistic standards, and they do it with dramatic glamour.

While I was dying of anorexia during my late teens, I was recruited by modeling agencies three times. One of the times I was hospitalized, a fellow patient climbed on stage at the Mall of America to win a modeling contest while on a day pass, her hospital bracelet flopping off her wrist as she waved to an applauding crowd.

Recently, Self magazine ran a “total body confidence” issue and digitally slenderized singer Kelly Clarkson before putting her on the cover, even though she has said that she’s comfortable with herself just the way she is.

Women and girls are watching, and the results aren’t pretty. Eighty-one percent of 10-year-old girls are afraid of being fat, and an estimated 10 million … CONTINUE READING THIS WONDERFUL ESSAY

.

Join the National Organization for Women’s “Love Your Body” campaign

Then…

Read Irked posts tagged “body image”

.

Permalink / Comments