Hello Colleagues:
I thought you would find the following of interest.
The first item is a link to the Perkins Scout that has lots of resources for
teachers.
The second item is a brief description of a device called the Blind Stylus
that has been developed in the Touch Lab at MIT.
The third item describes a kiosk in New York's Penn Station.
Happy New Year,
Robert
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lisa Yayla" <fnugg@online.no>
To: <accessibleimage@freelists.org>; "Access to Art Museums"
<artbeyondsightmuseums@nfbnet.org>; "Art Beyond Sight Advocacy"
<art_beyond_sight_advocacy@nfbnet.org>; "Art Beyond Sight Educators List"
<art_beyond_sight_educators@nfbnet.org>;
<art_beyond_sight_learning_tools@nfbnet.org>; "Art Beyond Sight Theory and
Research" <art_beyond_sight_theory_and_research@nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, December 29, 2009 4:52 AM
Subject: [accessibleimage] maps, wayfinding, British museum
> links about maps at Perkins
> http://www.perkins.org/resources/scout/geography/tactile-maps.html
>
> BlindAid stylus
> MIT’s Touch Lab has developed a device called the BlindAid system to
> enable the visually impaired to feel their way around a virtual model of a
> room or building. Mandayam Srinivasan, Director of the MIT Touch Lab and
> affiliated with the Research Laboratory of Electronics and the Department
> of Mechanical Engineering is working on this project with the Carroll
> Center for the Blind in Newton Massachusetts.....
> In the long term, he believes the device could be used to help blind
> people not only preview public spaces but to also use the device to travel
> by public transportation by using virtual route maps and then be able to
> interact with the virtual map through touch.
>
> http://telemedicinenews.blogspot.com/2009/12/help-for-visually-impaired.html
> article
> Sparrows in the Station
> Q. Every time I wait in the Long Island Rail Road
> <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/l/long_island_rail_road/index.html?inline=nyt-org>
> section of Pennsylvania Station, I hear chirping, tweeting birds. The
> sound is louder near overhead speakers, so I’m assuming it’s a recording.
> Is it supposed to make passengers calmer, like Muzak?
> A. You are hearing a “talking kiosk,” designed to help visually impaired
> passengers and others navigate the confusion of the station. The kiosk is
> in the Long Island Rail Road’s main concourse, between the entrances to
> Tracks 14 and 15.
> “To help visually impaired customers locate the kiosk, it emits the song
> of the lark sparrow (Chondestes grammacus), a bird species native to the
> American West, that is found by audiologists to have a unique set of
> phonetic properties considered effective for directional way-finding,”
> said Susan McGowan, a spokeswoman for the railroad.
> The current model was installed in December 2008, replacing an older one
> that also chirped. This one features a touch-activated tactile map of the
> station, visual displays for the partially sighted, and a voice designed
> for phonetic clarity, Ms. McGowan said in an e-mail message. As a customer
> touches different parts of the map, the kiosk describes the location and
> gives directions. It also offers general information about Penn Station
> and the Long Island Rail Road.
> http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/13/nyregion/13fyi.html?_r=1
> link to book excerpt
> link to excerpt of book on Google Books
> Access to mass transit for blind and visually impaired travelers
> By Mark M. Uslan, American Foundation for the Blind, Alec F. Peck, William
> R. Wiener
>
> http://books.google.com/books?id=ISZ7VnncEUQC&pg=PA56&lpg=PA56&dq=%22visually+impaired%22+map&source=bl&ots=Ej4urtX5hX&sig=KQY1Isdw9tu8Q-7ervCnECcz4-M&hl=en#v=onepage&q=%22visually%20impaired%22%20map&f=false
>
> excerpt of article
> British Museum Launches Multimedia Guides in 11 Languages
>
> *LONDON.-* A new set of handheld guides launches at the British Museum
> <http://www.britishmuseum.org>, designed to allow visitors to learn more
> about the British Museum’s collections. This includes:
>
> • A Multimedia Guide available in 11 different languages, including
> British Sign Language (BSL)
>
> • An Audio Description Guide (in English only)
>
> • A Children’s Multimedia Guide (in English only)
>
> With an international audience of six million visitors each year, the
> British Museum is always seeking to find new ways to engage visitors from
> around the world with the collection. The new Multimedia Guide, made
> possible by sponsorship from Korean Air, will be available in eleven
> languages (English, Korean, Arabic, French, German, Italian, Japanese,
> Mandarin, Russian, and Spanish, and a separate guide for British Sign
> Language) – the most comprehensive coverage of any museum multimedia
> guide. The guides will provide a state-of-the-art means for audiences to
> learn about the Museum’s unparalleled collection and make the most of
> their visit.
>
> Taking in over 220 objects from the Museum’s collection, the Multimedia
> Guides will feature in-depth audio-visual commentaries. It will also
> include three guided tours to allow audiences different ways to explore
> the Museum’s collection: The Parthenon sculptures, Highlights of Ancient
> Egypt and The Korean Gallery. The tours will include directions to help
> the user find their way from one object to the next. The guide will also
> feature an interactive map to help visitors orient themselves and easily
> find objects and galleries.
>
> The Children’s Guide (recommended for ages 5–11, in English only) will
> include seven guided micro-tours focusing on different parts of the world
> (ancient Egypt, ancient Greece and Rome, early Britain, Africa, Americas
> and Oceania, Asia, and Middle East), accompanied by activity suggestions
> and small interactive games around some of the objects.
>
> The Audio Description Guide has in-depth descriptive audio commentaries of
> each of the 220 objects for visually impaired people (English only), while
> the British Sign Language Guide will launch with signed videos of about
> 120 objects. Videos will be added so as to include the full 220 objects on
> the BSL Multimedia Guide by mid-January 2010.
>
> http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=34823
>
>
>
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