seems they are missing a few.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Kevin Price" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, October 02, 2002 1:24 PM
Subject: NBC/MSNBC report on Assistive Technology


Did anyone see this report about assistive technology?  It was on the
NBC
nightly news I believe Thursday of last week.  Most of the footage I
believe was from this year's CSUN 2001 conference in March.  There is
also
a video online (but it is not captioned)
http://www.msnbc.com/news/813923.asp?0cl=c4

New technology for the disabled- Assistive technology meant to allow for
more independence
Thanks to technology, many people are now able to live more independent,
fulfilling lives. NBC's George Lewis reports.

By George Lewis
NBC NEWS

Sept. 27 - It is a fascinating story about how the technology revolution
is
transforming lives for disabled Americans in ways many had never dreamed
possible. One in five Americans will at some point be disabled, but
thanks
to what is called assistive technology, many are now able to live more
independent, fulfilling lives.

THIRTEEN-YEAR-OLD Izak Ross demonstrates software to groups of grownups.
A
whiz kid? That's not what Izak's teachers told his parents when he
entered
grade school.
"They told us that Izak really didn't belong in school," says Lori
Milstein, Izak's mother. "'Don't expect him to learn to read or write or
go
to high school or college.'"
Izak has severe dyslexia, a reading disability. Three years ago, his
mother
found a computer program that turns written text into speech and helps
people like Izak decipher the words.

"As soon as you see the word highlighted and you hear the word spoken
out
loud, it creates a connect in the brain and allows you to recognize the
word later," says Izak. And it made a huge difference in his performance
at
school. "It brought me from at the end of fifth grade from not reading,
to
reading fluently," says Izak. "And from the bottom of three classes to
the
top of three classes in the next year." Now Izak shows off the program
at
conferences on technology and disabilities.

The computer revolution has given rise to a whole new family of devices
designed to help people with disabilities, including devices which help
them learn and communicate better.

Some pharmacies can now put a microchip in pill bottles letting the
visually impaired hear what the label says. Devon Ferguson wears a
reflective dot which enables an optical sensor to track his head
movements
so he can play computer games or send e-mail. There are computers that
read
sheet music, so blind musicians can hear the notes and then get a print
out
of the composition in Braille. And while no one is suggesting computers
are
about to replace the familiar guide dogs, there's a talking GPS guidance
system that helps blind people navigate city streets.The question is
now,
who's going to help people navigate through this maze of new devices?

Harry Rizer directs the Center for Technology and People with
Disabilities
and foresees job openings for a new breed of technology advisors. "My
goal
is that there are more professionals who know how to use it and to
identify
the most appropriate technology for the right people," says Rizer.

Maybe Izak Ross will be one of the future professionals

Learn more about technology for the disabled
. Center for Technology and Persons with Disabilities 818-677-2578
. Computer Access Center 310-338-1597
. Origin Instruments 972-606-8740
. Kurzweil Educational Systems 800-894-5374
. Dancing Dots 610-783-6692
. Pulse data/Humanware 925-680-7100
. Unique Logic and Technologies [log in to unmask]


Kevin Price
Coordinator-Assistive Computing Resource Center (ACRC)
Academic Computing and Media
California State University, San Bernardino
5500 University Parkway / PL-002
San Bernardino, CA  92407-2397
909-880-5079  FAX  909-880-7075