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How to Find a Holiday Captioned Movie

December 18, 2009 | by

Now that the thrust of the holiday movie season is upon us, let’s talk about something not so cheerful: Going to a film and not being able to hear it. Thousands of people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing miss out because they can’t follow dialogue on the big screen. Big chains like AMC Entertainment and Regal Entertainment, having been sued countless times for not having captioning systems, have agreed to settle lawsuits by installing some caption systems, in some cities. As a result, some U.S. movie theaters have this technology in place. The bigger nut to crack is finding a particular film, when you want it, where you want it. It’s almost fanciful, like trying to catch Santa in your chimney on Christmas Eve. Movie chains say they don’t want to disrupt their hearing audience, so they tend to run captions on just one or two new films — of ... keep reading »
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Congrats to the Twitter Book Giveaway Winners!

December 17, 2009 | by

Congrats to Stephen Yang (@syangman) and Luis Perez (@lfp72) for their speedy retweets, which won them a signed version of my new book, The Illustrated Guide to Assistive Technology. If you’re interested, Disaboom.com wrote a lovely review of the book — thanks, Disaboom (@disaboom)! Also, a big shout-out to all those that helped promote the book, including Michael Janger (@MichaelJanger), who has a new blog on hearing accessibility issues; the National Center on Technology Innovation (@NCTI); Web Axe (@webaxe), which has a podcast on accessibility; the Center for Implementing Technology in Education (@TechnologyInEd), among others. In February 2010, we’re (me and the book publishers) are planning a book signing and press event at the New York City Public Library. Specifically, it is set to be held at the Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library, and will be made available in alternative formats, including braille and audio, by ReadHowYouWant.com (@readhowyouwant). Hope ... keep reading »
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Assistive Technology Book Giveaway!

December 16, 2009 | by

Today marks the formal release of my first title, The Illustrated Guide to Assistive Technology & Devices (Demos Medical Publishing, December 2009, 232 pages). To celebrate, I’ll do a Twitter giveaway for an autographed copy of the book to two readers who help promote my book via Twitter. Here’s what you have to do to enter: 1. Follow me on Twitter @suzrobitaille 2. Retweet this message: Win a signed copy of @suzrobitaille new assistive tech book! http://bit.ly/7bTARP (For those unfamiliar with re-tweeting: Cut and paste this message: RT @suzrobitaille: Win a signed copy of @suzrobitaille new assistive tech book! http://bit.ly/7bTARP into the “what are you doing” box on the homepage of your twitter account. Winners will be notified by 12 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 17, 2009. If you don’t have a Twitter account, sign up here. My book is an illustrated guide to assistive technologies and devices used by individuals with disabilities to perform functions that ... keep reading »
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Study Says Pistorius Has “Unfair” Edge on Blades

November 20, 2009 | by

A new study published today in The Journal of Applied Physiology concludes that prosthetic legs worn by double amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius give him an unfair advantage over able-bodied runners. In the study, “The fastest runner on artificial legs: different limbs, similar function?,” researchers said Pistorius’s blades allow him to turn over his strides more quickly and with more power than a runner with biological legs. “We conclude that running on modern, lower-limb sprinting prostheses appears to be physiologically similar but mechanically different from running with intact limbs,” the report says. Researchers conducted three tests that compared his prosthetic limbs and those of competitive male runners with intact limbs. They determined that Pistorius expended less energy when he ran, particularly when comparing him against runners in the 400-meter speciality. Also, the study says Pistorius benefits from enhanced running mechanics on his blades, including longer foot-ground contact time and less time in the ... keep reading »
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Paralympics to Host Students in Vancouver

November 20, 2009 | by

The U.S. Paralympics will be hosting 12 student-athletes (ages 14-19) with physical disabilities and six adults, made up of coaches, teachers and program leaders at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, Canada, March 12-21. In the Paralympic Experience program, participants will have the opportunity to meet U.S. Paralympic Team members, attend Opening Ceremonies and athletic competitions and build camaraderie with other potential Paralympians. The Paralympic Experience program introduces individuals with physical disabilities to Paralympic sport on the local and international levels. Paralympic Sport Clubs, located in more than 100 communities across the U.S., annually host a one-day Paralympic Experience event that exposes local participants to a variety of Paralympic sport opportunities available in the community. To find a Paralympic Experience in your community, visit the Paralympic Activity Network. Every two years, one Paralympic Experience is held internationally in conjunction with the Paralympic Games. Student-athletes and coaches are selected based on leadership, community ... keep reading »
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Google Adds Automatic Captions to YouTube

November 19, 2009 | by

I knew Google Voice would have multiple uses for people who are deaf and hearing impaired, but I didn’t expect this news to come so fast: Google is adding automatic captions to YouTube videos. Google announced the news today on its official Google blog, and while the feature is definitely a work-in-progress, it’s an exciting start to machine-generated video captions. Many people know that Google created a YouTube caption system about a year ago. It required users to upload captions themselves, a time-consuming process, which meant that most videos did not get captioned and were inaccessible to people with hearing impairments. With the new “auto-caps”, Google is combining its automatic speech recognition (ASR) technology with the YouTube caption system. Auto-caps use the same voice recognition algorithms in Google Voice to automatically generate captions for video. “The captions will not always be perfect, but even when they’re off, they can still be helpful,” ... keep reading »
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Live from NCTI 2009: Developing the Net Generation

November 16, 2009 | by

An eclectic group of social entrepreneurs and educators are creating new solutions for teaching a new generation, including those with disabilities. Moderator Alan Brightman, senior policy director of special communities for Yahoo!, spoke with panelists on how to engage students using technology. Brightman was joined by Sheryl Burgstahler, director of DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking and Technologies), University of Washington; Monica Martinez, president of the New Tech Network; and Jan Morrison, senior STEM consultant for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which provides funding for educational initiatives. Highlights: - The Open Prosthetics Project, an open source model that lets users, designers and funders create and make available prosthetics for use in the marketplace. - DO-IT’s Center for Design in Education is a good primer on how to use universal design principles in higher education spaces and in classes. Live from NCTI 2009: The Future of Marketing of Assistive Technology The assistive technology market is somewhat fragmented. Generally ... keep reading »
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Live from NCT1 2009: Social Media and Assistive Tech in the Classroom

November 16, 2009 | by

On a panel with social media innovators and educators, Andy Carvin (@acarvin) moderated a discussion on the different social media channels available to students and others. Carvin is a social media strategist for NPR and the author of EdWeb: Exploring Technology & School Reform. Other panelists included Steve Hargadon, founder of the Classroom 2.0 social network; Lee Rainie (@lrainie), director of the Pew Internet & American Life Project, a think tank that studies the social impact of the Internet; and Michael Levine, executive director, Joan Ganz Cooney Center, which supports research and investments in media technology for young children. The panel began with an excellent slideshow on how teens use technology today. Some examples: 14% of online kids blog; 54% read blogs; 55% use wikipedia; and 73% use social networks. You can view it here. (Thanks, @lrainie!) As brilliant as all these guys are, there was, unfortunately, not much discussion on assistive ... keep reading »
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FCC Holds Hearing on Broadband for People with Disabilities

November 13, 2009 | by

On November 6 the FCC held a Field Hearing on Broadband Access for People with Disabilities at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. The hearing is one of many that will discuss ways to bring access to broadband to the nation’s 54 Americans with disabilities. The meeting included panelists from A.G. Bell, the American Foundation for the Blind, and the Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology, a group that’s making a big push for a federal law that would require, among other innovations, closed-captions (for the deaf) and video descriptions (for the blind) for Internet TV and movies. Academy-Award winning actress Marlee Matlin also served as a panelist on behalf of the National Association of the Deaf. Federal Communications Commission Michael J. Copps spoke at the start of the meeting, and made it clear that the agency is working to make broadband access a reality for the disabled. Here are excerpts ... keep reading »
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U.K. Passes Landmark Autism Bill

November 13, 2009 | by

Today England will pass a the first ever disability-specific bill, The Autism Act. The bill will require health organizations to provide support for people with autism, which affects over half a million people in the U.K. The U.K.’s National Autistic Society (NAS) heralded the new law. The Act “will add serious weight to the forthcoming adult autism strategy so now we’ll be keeping the pressure up on Government to make sure they get it right and deliver lasting change for people with this serious, lifelong and disabling condition,” says Mark Lever, chief executive of the NAS. Under the Autism Act, the Government’s forthcoming adult autism strategy will be legally enforceable and must be published within the next six months. New responsibilities the NHS and local authorities will be expected to fulfil will include providing diagnostic services for adults with autism and better training for health and social care staff. The NAS is also ... keep reading »
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