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August 29, 2008
YouTube Gets Closed Captioning Support
In a move to make videos easier to understand without volume or for the hard of hearing, YouTube has given users the option of embedding closed captions that show up as semitransparent overlays. Caption files that have text dialogue synced up to the proper timestamps can be uploaded during the time of upload or afterwards, and YouTube has provided multiple language support to let viewers swap between different languages of a single video without having to leave playback.
Videos with closed captioning have it as an option in the lower right-hand corner menu; a part of the user interface that also houses the toggle to turn video annotations on and off. Even with the inclusion of closed captions you can continue to keep annotations enabled, although the two may overlap if annotations have been ledged on the bottom of the screen.
Posted @ 7:38 AM
Biophysical Method May Help To Recover Hearing
Scientists based in Switzerland and South Africa have created a biophysical methodology that may help to overcome hearing deficits, and potentially remedy even substantial hearing loss. The authors propose a method of retuning functioning regions of the ear to recognize frequencies originally associated with damaged areas.
Hearing loss is an increasingly important problem in societies of growing average age. The conventional hearing-aid and cochlear implant technology have only been partially successful in recreating the experience of the fully functioning ear.
Posted @ 5:17 AM
Man charged with smuggling stolen hearing aid to Colombia
A Plainfield man has been charged with stealing hearing aids from a Franklin, Somerset, company and smuggling them out of the country to be sold on the black market in Colombia.
Gerardo Casteblanco, 41, of Plainfield, an employee of Oticon in Franklin, was charged Wednesday and taken to Somerset County Jail in lieu of $75,000 bail set by state Superior Court Judge Julie Marino, sitting in Somerville.
More than $600,000 worth of hearing aids, parts, tools, software and other equipment belonging to Oticon were found during a search of Casteblanco's Birch Avenue residence, said Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne Forrest. Casteblanco was arrested yesterday at his home.
Posted @ 5:16 AM
Cure for deafness now within reach
The transfer of a specific gene is shown today by a milestone experiment to trigger the growth of new hair cells in the inner ear - the usually irreplaceable sensory cells that pick up sound vibrations and that are lost as a result of ageing, disease, certain drugs, and by excessive exposure to loud sound.
The approach, which one day could help millions of people worldwide with deafness and inner-ear disease, is made possible by a technique that is demonstrated in the journal Nature by an American team lead by Dr John Brigande of the Oregon Hearing Research Centre, Portland, who himself is profoundly hard of hearing.
Posted @ 5:11 AM
Cochlear Implant Lawsuit Not Preempted, Judge Says
A lawsuit against the makers of a cochlear implant can go forward, a federal judge in Texas has ruled, because a Supreme Court decision that gave medical device makers protection from product liability lawsuits does not apply to this case. In her opinion, US District Court Judge Barbara Lynn wrote that preemption was not warranted in the case because “plaintiffs’ strict liability claims are predicated solely on violations of federal law.”
Posted @ 5:10 AM
Communication gap frustrates deaf drivers, police
For a hearing driver, getting a traffic ticket is a relatively straightforward experience.
But if you're deaf, will you leave the scene knowing exactly why you were pulled over and what you should do next?
It depends on the willingness of both parties to bridge the communication gap, say deaf individuals and local law enforcement officials. The resources available to police officers in dealing with the deaf and hard-of-hearing community vary by department, and the deaf community — like any population — is not uniformly aware of police expectations in the event of an arrest, traffic stop or emergency situation.
Posted @ 5:09 AM
Counting the Days Until the World Goes Quiet
Some sounds, like car horns and bad ringtones, are annoying. Some are soothing, like wind through trees or waves crashing on the beach. Some are smile-inspiring, like the perfect song or the laughter of friends and family. These sounds are the symphony of life.
But what if, a month from now, everything suddenly stopped and the world was quiet? Before they disappeared forever, which noises and voices would be savored?
For Jessica Stone, it wasn't a hypothetical question.
Posted @ 5:08 AM
Vibering Jewelry Senses Danger To Help Deaf
Sometimes I come across products and ideas that help make the world better in ways that might not have been imagined. The Vibering by designers Kwang-seok Jeong, Min-hee Kim and Hyun-joong Kim is one such creation.
People who are hard of hearing or deaf miss out not only on the sweet sound of music or the sound of a loved ones voice, they also cannot register more important sounds like car horns or any other sounds of danger emanating from out of sight sources.
Posted @ 5:07 AM
Allstate award of $500 aids Kansas School for the Deaf
Allstate Insurance agent Jeremy Schafer has been was awarded an Agency Hands in the Community award.
With this award comes a $500 donation from The Allstate Foundation to the Kansas School for the Deaf where Schafer volunteers.
Posted @ 5:06 AM
Technology helps Oroville interpreter communicate with deaf community
She's worked as a sign language interpreter for 23 years. And if she could be granted one wish, it would be that people understand how deaf people communicate.
About 23 years ago, Bobbie Holcraft needed a job. She found a newspaper advertisement for a sign language interpreter, and the employer would train. However, they wanted someone who knew something about signing.
Holcraft checked out a library book, studied for three days, and got the job. She has worked as an American Sign Language, or ASL interpreter ever since, and she would like to make people aware of communication obstacles the hearing impaired face.
Posted @ 5:05 AM
Deaf girl rape case: DNA tests of cops
The deaf and dumb girl rape case registered on July 30,2008 in which two policemen were arrested following their identification and later three other alleged accused surrendered before police and confessed their crime will undergo a DNA test.
All the five alleged accused are in Judicial custory and the police have decided for a DNA test of them from a Chandigarh laboratory.
Posted @ 5:04 AM
August 25, 2008
Hearing Aids Are Loud, Hip
How can you make a hearing aid sexy?
You call it "Passion" and color it shocking pink or lipstick red.
You call it "Vibe" and dress it in leopard print or checkered flag that looks positively NASCAR.
Manufacturers are banking on such flash to attract baby boomers who have punished their ears with loud concerts and music played through headphones. Of 78 million boomers, one in six is estimated to have hearing loss.
Posted @ 1:10 AM
School For Deaf Plans Overhaul Of Gallaudet Hall
The American School for the Deaf is planning a $31 million overhaul of Gallaudet Hall, the 87-year-old signature structure on the landmark school's North Main Street campus.
The Georgian-style building, with distinctive white columns, opened in 1921 — when the school moved to West Hartford from Asylum Avenue and Cogswell Street in Hartford. It has never had a major renovation.
The school has applied for zoning approval and a public hearing will be held Sept. 3 before the town plan and zoning commission.
Posted @ 1:09 AM
Niagara Falls Teen Teaches Hearing to Understand Deaf
Jena Kramer looked just a little bit nervous as she sat at the front of a group of teens and pre-teens at the 18th Street Community Center.
Then with a big smile and a nod to her mom she began to sign.
Jena, 14, who will become the first fully deaf (she has her own personal translator) student at Niagara Falls High School this year, is on a mission to teach hearing kids how to communicate in sign language. Every Wednesday in August, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the 18th Street Community Resource Center, Jena will conduct classes to teach the language of the deaf to those who can hear.
Posted @ 1:08 AM
Sarah needs sponsors to compete in Deaf Olympics
A young Ashington football star is hoping to compete in next year's Deaf Olympics.
But without vital sponsorship she might not make the games.
Sarah Page, of Houndslow Drive, has just returned from the Women's Deaf World Cup held in Greece, where she helped England finish third in the competition.
Now the 17-year-old, who is profoundly deaf, is preparing to represent Great Britain at the Deaf Olympic Games, which will be held in Taipei next year.
Posted @ 1:07 AM
Deaf Elderly Misdiagnosed with Dementia
Elderly deaf adults may score lower on mental health tests because of a language translation issue, new research shows.
David Feldman, Ph.D., a licensed psychologist and assistant professor of psychology at Macon State College in Macon, Ga., and colleagues looked at scores on the nationally used Mini Mental Status Exam. The exam is given by doctors to detect early signs of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Posted @ 1:06 AM
VL2 approved for $12 million funding over next three years
The Science of Learning Center on Visual Language and Visual Learning (VL2), headquartered at Gallaudet, has been approved for funding for the remaining three years of its five-year cycle at $4 million per year. The approval came August 11 from the National Science Board, and all members of the team are “popping the champagne,” as recommended by Dr. David Lightfoot, assistant director of the National Science Foundation, Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences.
The science board’s approval follows a highly successful second-year review of VL2 in April by a renowned group of researchers, including international scholars that resulted in a recommendation for the continued funding.
Posted @ 1:05 AM
Deaf BMX cyclist fulfils Olympic dream
Maria Belen Dutto fulfilled on Wednesday her dream of competing at the Olympic Games. However, the Argentine could not hear the shouts of the crowd gathered at the BMX circuit, and she will not be able to hear her national anthem if she wins a medal on Thursday.
Dutto is 98 per cent deaf, but she represents Argentina alongside Maria Gabriela Diaz in one of the newcomer sports of the Beijing Olympics.
BMX is a young, spectacular cycling discipline. Protected with helmets and knee and elbow pads, eight cyclists race frantically through a dirt circuit, complete with bumps and jumps, in around 35-45 seconds.
Posted @ 1:05 AM
Awesome Parents Celebrate 50th Wedding Anniversary
James Walter and Barbara Ann Allison Wheeler of Brandon renewed their vows at a celebration of their golden wedding anniversary July 19 at the Tampa Baptist Deaf Church, where Walter is a deacon. The Rev. Ronaldo Feliciano officiated. They were joined by 160 friends and family members.
As part of the festivities, their granddaughter Gabrielle Tatro played harp "for hearing people," Barbara Wheeler said in an interview conducted after the festivities by writing questions and answers on paper. The guests of honor are both deaf.
Posted @ 1:03 AM
Theater to offer captioned movie for deaf and hearing-impaired
It’s only appropriate that members of Chattanooga’s hearing-impaired community will be able to screen a captioned version of the movie “Wanted” this weekend since many of them have wanted such a service for a long time.
Chattanooga State Technical Community College has teamed up with Carmike Cinemas to offer the open-captioned movie at Northgate Cinema 8 at 4 and 7 p.m. on both Sunday and Monday.
Posted @ 1:02 AM
Two-month-old Ivy using sign language
A TWO-month-old baby girl can tell her parents when she is hungry — using the British Sign Language word for ‘milk’.
Overjoyed parents Coun Dave Hollings, 46, and Chantelle De La Croix, 37, first thought it was coincidence when baby Ivy clenched her fist, shook it and moved it towards her mouth.
But then the next day Ivy did the same action again when she was hungry and has been doing the same ever since.
Ivy’s mum Chantelle is deaf and communicates using British Sign Language to her husband and daughter.
Posted @ 1:01 AM
President of School for Deaf, Blind replaced
Pamela Shaw, president of the state School for the Deaf and the Blind in Spartanburg, is no longer in that position after seven months on the job. The commission that oversees the agency isn’t saying publicly why.
After a 4½-hour closed meeting, the school’s Board of Commissioners announced Friday that Shaw, of Spartanburg, would be replaced by Carol Mabry, who will serve as interim president of the school while a search for a new president is conducted.
Posted @ 1:01 AM
Family Prepares for Cochlear Implant
She is only a year old, but Abby Jennette already understands some sign language, knowing signs for the words “yes,” “more” and “bird.”
Abby, or “Abby Joy,” as her parents, Chris and Christa Jennette, call her, was born hearing-impaired. She failed a newborn-auditory screening test and several subsequent hearing tests.
When she was 6 weeks old, Abby was referred to a doctor in Springfield where it was discovered that she has profound hearing loss in her left ear. Her right ear turned out to be in just as poor condition as her left.
“Essentially, she’s a deaf child,” Christa Jennette said.
Despite her disability, the Jennettes have learned a lot about hearing loss and have worked with their daughter, who they describe as a joy in their lives. “She’s just been such a happy baby,” Christa said. “She catches on very fast.”
Posted @ 1:00 AM
Deaf Swimmer Defies Limitations
The sectionals are where Western New York's top high school swimmers come to compete. A sophomore from North Tonawanda, just 15 years old, blends into the crowd of elite athletes. He's earned the right to be here-- among the area's best. This is how family and friends describe him:
"He is determined. He will not give up. He is a fighter and he's very confident." "He has more of a drive than most other kids." "He's just an animal! There's no other way to put it."
And there's something else about Scott Farrell you'd never know by looking at him.
Posted @ 1:00 AM
Local girl places in Latin convention
To Staci Greenberg, her daughter is an example of how much children can achieve when given the proper support and resources.
Peri Himsel, 15, is deaf. Five years ago, Greenberg began investigating several schools that were operating programs for deaf students. Eventually, they settled on Glen Landing Middle School which offered support for deaf students through the Gloucester County Special Services. With the support of both teachers and interpreters, Greenberg felt that her daughter was exactly where she needed to be.
Posted @ 1:00 AM
Center hands out first scholarship
Before she was diagnosed with a hearing problem, Pam Groth said that her life was a lot like living in an old photograph- flat and colorless.
The first-time recipient of the Northville Hearing Center Educational Scholarship, Groth’s winning essay explained how being fitted with a hearing aid changed her life, and opened her up to the type of everyday sensory experiences that most people take for granted.
“I always tell people that is was like everything was in black and white,” Groth said. “Then when I got my hearing aid, my world became color. I could hear music for the first time. Your world changes when you can hear sound.”
Posted @ 12:59 AM
Transatlantic study to help deaf and hard of hearing children with their maths
Parents and teachers of children with hearing problems are well aware that they often struggle in maths as well as in other subjects.
According to a recent study by the National Center on Low-Incidence Disabilities in America, children with these disadvantages lag farther behind their hearing classmates in maths than they do in reading.
Other studies have suggested that these children's difficulties with reading are related to language skills, instructional methods, and underlying cognitive strategies.
Posted @ 12:57 AM
August 5, 2008
Marlee Matlin Speaking at Starr's 95th Anniversary
Through American Sign Language and the assistance of her personal interpreter, Matlin will address the audience of students, staff, families and friends of Starr Commonwealth as the organization celebrates its 95th anniversary.
Matlin is an Academy Award winner for her role in "Children of a Lesser God," which also happened to be her film debut. She is the first deaf actress to receive the Academy Award and one of only four distinguished actresses to do so with her film debut. Along with her Oscar, Matlin has won a Golden Globe and has been nominated numerous times for Emmy and People's Choice awards for her television roles, including "Seinfeld," "The Practice" and more. Guest star roles on "The West Wing," "My Name is Earl" and "Desperate Housewives" have contributed to Matlin's stardom and celebrity status.
Posted @ 3:46 AM
Woman Won't Let Deafness Make Her Miss a Step in Life
When Marlee Matlin competed this spring on Dancing With the Stars, Antonia Mueller cheered for the award-winning deaf actress in the silence of her living room.
Born with 90 percent hearing loss, Mueller has been taking hip-hop, Latin and jazz lessons for six years at the Simply Dance Academy in Port St. Lucie.
The mother of four knows all about the counting, the cues and other extra things that deaf dancers must do to compensate because they cannot hear the music.
Posted @ 3:41 AM
Deaf Cheerleaders Tops in Contests
The past school year was an exciting one for 17-year-old Shaniqua Felton of Green Bay, who achieved national success on her varsity basketball cheerleading team.
As a sophomore at the Wisconsin School for the Deaf in Delevan, Felton has been part of the two-person team for the past three years. This year, Felton and Nick Shaw of Sun Prairie won two awards in their first competition against hearing cheerleading squads.
In March, the team was invited to the Cardinal Classic competition in Sun Prairie to compete against squads that are not hearing impaired.
Posted @ 3:39 AM
Deaf Children Dance In Music Video
A group of deaf and hard-of-hearing children had the opportunity Thursday to create a music video. The children attend a special summer camp in Broward County that integrates the children with hearing disabilities with hearing children in an educational program.
"I try and plan always opportunities for our deaf and hard-of-hearing kids that they wouldn't have otherwise," said program education coordinator Allyson Dudich.
Posted @ 3:39 AM
The deaf and domestic violence
We all know there is problem with domestic violence in our society, but imagine if you were deaf and experiencing domestic violence. Deaf people are at risk for being long-term victims of domestic violence. There are several issues and barriers that deaf people face and fortunately Vermont is one of the few states that have services specifically for deaf persons experiencing domestic violence.
Some specific issues that deaf people face are...
Posted @ 3:37 AM
2 cops suspended for raping deaf girl
She was handed to the law saviours in khaki for tracing her parents but they not only shattered her faith but also treated her as an object to satisfy their lust.
Crossing all limits of dignity two cops of the Moga police raped a deaf, dumb and mentally challenged 20-year-old on the night of July 28. The two, a constable and a sepoy, were finally nailed after 60 hours on Thursday.
Posted @ 3:36 AM
Signing Mass, music is a subtle art of hands in motion
On the first Sunday of every month, a very special Mass is celebrated at St. Charles Borromeo Church in Woonsocket.
The first three pews on the left are filled with worshippers who happen to be deaf – as is the priest, Father Joseph Bruce, who celebrates this Mass in voice and sign. Sitting in a chair at the altar is Mary Ann Sullivan. As the choir begins the opening hymn, Sullivan stands and signs along with the song. The deaf participants follow suit, and together, raised in song, both hands and voices fill the church.
Posted @ 3:36 AM
There's no need to suffer in silence
If your hearing isn't as good as it used to be, you may be thinking about getting a hearing aid.
Then again, there's a good chance you can't be bothered, even though you find yourself cranking up the volume on the TV set or asking a friend sitting next to you to speak up. If so, you are not alone.
More often than not, people put off getting a hearing aid after they first notice it's getting harder to hear, said East Bay, Calif., audiologist Leigh Kjeldsen. ''People wait an average of seven years between knowing they have a problem with hearing and doing something about it.''
Posted @ 3:35 AM
Idaho school for deaf, blind remains in Gooding for now
State Board of Education Director Mike Rush expects the Idaho School for the Deaf and Blind to remain in the farming town of Gooding for at least three more years.
The board is contemplating whether to keep the school where it is, move it to a bigger city, or _ what has become the least popular option _ close the 40-acre campus and deliver the education through outreach programs at individual school districts.
Posted @ 3:34 AM
Summer Course Looks at Images of Deaf in Literature, Film
This summer, students at the University of Virginia have been given the chance to look at traditional literature and film with a new eye — or a new ear.
"Deafness in Literature and Film," taught by Christopher Krentz, an assistant professor of English and director of U.Va.'s American Sign Language program, is one of the University's summer course offerings. Krentz examines the representations of deaf people in literature and film during the last two centuries, including works by mostly unknown deaf authors, either written in English or performed in American Sign Language on film.
Posted @ 3:32 AM
August 2, 2008
Malawi needs more sign language interpreters
Malawi National Association of the Deaf (MANAD) says the country needs more sign language interpreters to abate challenges deaf and speech impaired persons are facing in their day to day livelihood.
Speaking to Nyasa Times, officials from the deaf community in the country disclosed that currently, estimates show that Malawi has over 50,000 hearing impaired people against only eleven sign language interpreters.
Posted @ 2:29 AM