Bionic Ear Blog

wikiHow on how to understand deaf people. Many of the points hit the target.

1. We can’t help that we have a “deaf accent.” We have little or no ability to understand inflection.

2. Some people think those with a southern or “redneck” accent are less intelligent. Well, same reasoning applies to deaf people because of their deaf accents. We can’t help our accents. I have a college degree, a successful career, three kids, a spouse, and board positions with PTA and other nonprofits.

3. I’ve been driving since two days after I turned 16. It took two days to get my license because of Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday and then the Department of Motor Vehicles lines were long the day after.

4. Yes — please don’t talk louder unless you’re barely whispering. The key is to form your words clearly with your lips. We struggle to understand those who mumble.

5. Even if we can lipread — we catch only one-third of what’s said on average. Read every third word and see how much sense this makes to you. Plus, with our population living longer and people losing hearing with age — they are likely not to know how to lipread.

6. I don’t use or know sign language. Just the finger alphabet and words I’ve picked up from others — just like I’ve picked up foreign language words here and there.

7. I’ll never be able to hear on the phone, so I use instant messenger to connect to the relay service.

8. When my husband was in an elevator with a coworker, the coworker asked if I could read braille. Yeah, I just rub my ear on the buttons.

9. I have a cochlear implant and I still can’t hear on the phone. In fact, the cochlear implant didn’t give me much more hearing than my hearing aids did.

10. Hearing aids make things louder, not clearer. Those who lost their hearing from aging benefit from hearing aids since they already knew how to hear and need help with volume.

11. True. I’ve got an average of 95 dB loss in both ears. Without my hearing devices, I hear nothing. But put my ear against a speaker and turn it up, I’ll hear it.

Bonuses

1. Just because we’re deaf doesn’t mean we can’t write well. I’ve known deaf people who write beautifully and others who don’t write well. I can say the same for hearing people.

2. Conversations move quickly. Thus, deaf people who watch captions tend to be good and fast readers. When we played captions for elementary school kids — they could hardly keep up.

3. Many of us enjoy music and we do so in different ways. I have to learn a song by heart and I’ll be able to follow it when I listen to it (pending the words come through the music — I can barely hear the vocals come through some songs.

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I went to look up a show on ABC’s web site and ran into the player. In big letters, it said ABC.COM has a full episode player. A few lines down, “Closed Captioning.” I tried to install the player in FireFox and followed all the directions including the “Allow” stuff, but it wouldn’t work after five tries.

My other computer’s FireFox loads the video player… but it runs on and on without ever playing the episode.

So I opened Internet Explorer and it worked. It required having the browser window completely opened or else you miss the player at the bottom along with the cc button. I selected Life on Mars as I was curious how the character went from 2008 to the ’70s.

After sitting through a commercial, the show started and so did the captions. They were harder to follow than on a TV screen as they work differently. The latest dialogue appears at the bottom while older dialogue scrolls up. Maybe it would be better to have newer dialogue at the top closer to the picture.

It makes sense to display the latest three lines of dialogue, but it can be hard to pinpoint the most current with conversations happening quickly.

Nonetheless, it was exciting and I hope the other networks will follow ABC even if it means I have to watch the videos in Internet Explorer.

Posted by at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Based on press release (pdf file) with edits.

On election night, deaf and hard-of-hearing people can experience live radio coverage for the first time, when NPR, Harris Corporation and Towson University simulcast the first ever live, captioned radio broadcast.

NPR, Harris Corporation and Towson University is coordinating the broadcast as part of an initiative to make radio more accessible to the millions of consumers with sensory disabilities around the world.

Nearly seven million people in the United States are either deaf or hard of hearing, and more than 28 million Americans report having trouble with their hearing, according to Gallaudet University.

Stations hosting these broadcasts:

• WTMD in Baltimore
• WGBH in Boston
• KCFR in Denver.

The election broadcast is the latest event coordinated by the International Center for Accessible Radio Technology (ICART), which is headquartered at Towson University in Towson, Maryland.

WGBH in Boston will be acting as a technical resource for monitoring and caption production. WAMU (where I went to college!) in DC will serve as the transmitting station. The election broadcast also will be carried simultaneously on the Internet for anyone, anywhere, to view at NPR.org. A link to the broadcast also will be available at http://www.harris.com.

The broadcast uses cutting-edge digital HD Radio(TM) technology where viewers can view live radio content on specially equipped receivers.

HD Radio enables station operators to split their broadcasts up into multiple channels, providing several CD-quality channels for their audiences. Through this accessible radio initiative, a small amount of the total data capacity will be used to carry textual data that will be shown live on a screen on new versions of HD Radio receivers, essentially providing a closed-caption transcript of live broadcasts for people who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Another aspect of the project is designed to serve people who are blind or visually impaired. Specially equipped HD Radio receivers are in development with several features to provide the visually impaired audience with better access to broadcasts, such as audio prompts that notify which direction the tuner is going, what channel the radio is on, and larger, easier-to-read text on the radios.

Posted by at 8:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CNet reports on a study of MP3 usage performed by the EU’s Scientific Committee. The study says that one in ten iPod users could go deaf. It shouldn’t scare anyone away from buying an iPod or other MP3 player, but encourage users to use common sense in controlling the volume.

Please note the important distinction — it’s the VOLUME not the product. I’m seeing comments that some people are reluctant to buy a new iPod or MP3 player because of this. It’s akin to saying eating makes a person overweight. Eating and weight also depend on human behavior, not the act of eating.

My kid’s school had the “Experience the Awareness” program. The program involves the kids moving from station to station to learn about the different differences including asthma, ADHD, autism, blindness, deafness, etc. I, of course, worked at the hearing station.

The station activity doesn’t work well. Kids put cotton balls in their ears, don headphones, and listen to a recording. The cotton balls are supposed to muffle the sound. Well, last time we did this (two years ago), a lot of the kids could still hear. Plus, we had to keep listening to the headphones to make sure the volume was at the right level since you can’t see the volume.

So we changed it to bring a TV into the room with no volume and the captions turned on. The kids entered the room and my presentation partner would start talking to them without her voice. I’d tell the kids that she asked them a question and she was waiting for an answer.

Then I’d tell the kids that I went to speech therapy for 10 years and my voice isn’t perfect and it never will be. But because my speech is imperfect doesn’t mean I don’t have a working brain. I mention that I went to a school like theirs, graduated college, have a good career, three kids, volunteer with the PTA. That I am just like them except I don’t hear well.

My friend would talk about the different things that cause deafness — birth, an illness, or playing music too loud (which is why I bring this up). I hope the kids heard the last part. I’m sure they forgot it by the time they went home.

We received a few comments from parents who said the kids liked our presentation. The problem was that it requires a lot of talking and our voices were so tired by noon. You can’t do much with a TV and captions. And the kids switch stations every 5 to 10 minutes.

Anyway — let’s educate our friends and family to use common sense when playing with the volume. No pumping up the volume!

Posted by at 9:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

“More than 8 million Britons have impaired hearing, ranging from the 6 million older people who are mildly or moderately deaf, to the 700,000 whose deafness is more profound. In this special issue, we explore how it feels to be part of deaf culture today.” UK’s Guardian presents a Deaf issue. Features:

Heard the one about the deaf comedian? “What defines a deaf stand-up comic - and what makes their audience laugh? Brian Logan discovers that there’s more to deaf humour than first meets the eye.”

Good Vibrations: “Cathy Heffernan: SenCity in Finland brings deaf and hearing clubbers together, in this pioneering, multi-sensory experience.”

Mixed Messages: “Like any language, British Sign Language has its regional variations and idiosyncrasies. These can lead to mix-ups, signer Marcel Hirshman tells Stuart Jeffries”

The issue contains much more. Very cool and fascinating. I love reading about other cultures especially the UK — as that’s one of the first places I want to travel to when I get to the other side of the Earth.

Also, China plans to celebrate International Day of the Deaf. “The latest statistics show China has about 20 million people with hearing disabilities, which is about 20 percent of the world’s total.”

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Two calls for applications…

Call for Applications: Research in Hearing and Balance Science

The Deafness Research Foundation (DRF) requests applications from both new applicants, and DRF awardees applying for a second year of funding, who are dedicated to exploring new avenues of hearing and balance science. All proposals related to research in hearing and balance, both basic and applied clinical, will be considered.

DRF is the leading national source of private funding for basic and clinical research in hearing and balance science. Each year DRF awards research grants in the amount of up to $25,000 to researchers who are dedicated to exploring new avenues of hearing and balance science.

Eligibility: To be eligible for consideration, applicants should demonstrate experience and strong research training as well as sufficient institutional support (facilities, time, and mentorship) to carry out the proposed work. Applicants should hold the M.D., Ph.D., or equivalent degrees as well as a faculty or post-doctoral appointment. Graduate students are not eligible for DRF grants. Applications from Principal Investigators with research funds exceeding $100,000 will not be accepted. Applications for research continuation or bridge funding should not be submitted.

First Year Applicants: Please use the First Year Application form on the DRF web site. Application and all supporting documentation must be sent in electronic formats. Electronic format requires a PDF file and must be uploaded through DRF web site. First Year Application is due by 5 PM EST on December 1, 2008. Late applications will not be accepted. To download a copy of the application and view the general instructions, please visit the web site.

Second Year Applicants: Second year applicants must submit a “Letter of Intent” to apply for second year funding to Trisha Donaldson, Grants and Programs Coordinator, Deafness Research Foundation, 641 Lexington Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10022 DRF by 5 PM EST on December 1, 2008. Emails to grants@drf.org are acceptable. In addition, the completed second year application/progress report must be submitted in electronic format that requires a PDF file and uploaded through the DRF website. Second Year Application is due by 5 PM EST on January 14, 2009. Late applications will not be accepted. To download a copy of the application and view the general instructions, please visit http://www.drf.org/research+grants/.

For additional information about the application process, contact Trish Donaldson at 212-328-9483 or send an email to tdonaldson@drf.org. For more information on our grant policies, visit http://www.drf.org/grant+policy/.

Call for Applications: DRF Centurion Clinical Research Award

The Deafness Research Foundation (DRF) is partnering with the American Academy of Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery’s (AAO-HNS) CORE Grants Program to offer a new one-year grant of $50,000 for clinical research in the hearing and balance sciences. The purpose of this award is to support clinical research projects in hearing and balance science. Clinical research involves human participants and may be directed toward diagnosis, epidemiology, genetics, clinical pathophysiology, and treatment.

Eligibility: To be eligible for consideration, candidates for this award should hold the M.D., Ph.D., or equivalent degrees as well as a faculty or post-doctoral appointment and demonstrate experience and strong research training as well as sufficient institutional support (facilities, time, and mentorship) to carry out the proposed work. Ideal candidate should be in their first 5 years after completion of formal training.

A faculty mentor should be identified and a letter of support and availability should be included in the application. Previous DRF or AAO-HNS Foundation research grant recipients are eligible to compete for this grant. However, candidates who have successfully obtained funding from a private or federal funding agency for the same research are ineligible. Candidates who have applied for support of the same research from other funding sources, and who are notified of an award from both another agency and from DRF must choose only one of the awards.

Format: Applications are in a similar format to the National Institutes of Health. All applications must be completed and submitted online through Proposal Central at https://proposalcentral.altum.com. See the AAO-HNSF website to begin the application process.

Submission Deadlines

• Letter of Intent – submit electronically by December 15, 2008 midnight EST
• Application - submit electronically by January 15, 2009 midnight EST
• Late Applications will not be considered.

For additional information about the application process, contact Stephanie Jones, Assistant Director, Research and Quality at 1-703-535-3747 or send an email to SLJones@entnet.org.

DRF is the leading national source of private funding for basic and clinical research in hearing and balance science. Each year DRF awards research grants to researchers who are dedicated to exploring new avenues of hearing and balance science. The DRF Centurion Clinical Research Award is funded by the Centurions of the Deafness Research Foundation. To learn more about the Centurions, visit http://www.drf.org/Centurions.

Download DRF Flyer Call For Application: (PDF format)

Download DRF Flyer CORE Application: (PDF format)

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