UC Berkeley DSP/TRIO

asapscience:

Ever since he was a small child with a serious illness, Ted Meyer has mixed art and medical images as a way to understand his experiences. Through his art he highlights the emotional impact of pain and healing on everyday people—patients, families, and medical personnel.

MIT Finger Device Reads to the Blind in Real Time

“Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are developing an audio reading device to be worn on the index finger of people whose vision is impaired, giving them affordable and immediate access to printed words.

The so-called FingerReader, a prototype produced by a 3-D printer, fits like a ring on the user’s finger, equipped with a small camera that scans text. A synthesized voice reads words aloud, quickly translating books, restaurant menus and other needed materials for daily living, especially away from home or office.”

Daily Post #153: July 11th, 2014

Great article about the everyday challenges we face with doctors and treatment. I’m so glad awareness is being spread!

Danielle Laporte (via tr4pezeswinger)

You change the world by being yourself, Smart Girls!

Hey all. I’m trying to do a roundup for Gurl showcasing representation of young female characters with mental illness/mental health issues that they can relate to to some degree. I definitely know of a lot, but I want to make sure that this list is as diverse as possible!

From 1989 to 2011, Barbara Gordon was widely considered the best-written disabled character in mainstream comics.  She remains the best representation that the disabled community have ever had from DC Comics.  Her disability did not prevent her from being a hero.  She had no superpowers to fall back on, unlike characters such as Daredevil and Professor X.  As Oracle, she moved out of Batman’s shadow to become her own woman, without forgetting where she came from. She led her own team, became a member of the Justice League in her own right, and provided a unique role linking together the heroes of DC Earth.

In 2011 DC put an end to that, stripping her of her leadership role, making her younger, regressing her back into a girl dressed like Batman, and deciding that representing the disabled community simply wasn’t worth the effort.  One of the most distinct silhouettes in mainstream comics was abandoned to give her back the standard young able-bodied attractive heroine body.

I can understand that the designs for female heroes’ costumes are so bad that there’s a lot of excitement for one that’s remotely practical.

But it does sadden me a great deal to see so many people effectively applauding what is one of the biggest steps backward mainstream comics have ever seen in terms of representation and diversity.