Daniel502

New Glove Speaks for the Deaf

2008-05-12T17:42:00Z

Text messaging is changing the way that the world communicates. Now, innovative technology is allowing the deaf community to utilize text messaging. The HandTalk glove translates hand movements into text which can be sent via mobile phones. The glove, designed by inventors at Carnegie Mellon University, only translates a few dozen words so far, but researchers are working to increase that number.

The full article can be found here. Here are some excerpts:

"The Handtalk glove senses the movements through the flexor pads which detect the different patterns of motion and the way the finger curls. The device can sense carefully each resistance and each movement made by the hand. Currently the device can convert only 32 words, but depending on the success of this device few more additional words may be added later onto this expressive system.

“That could be a big advantage” for hearing-impaired people, Mr. Bhat said. “It would cut out the need for an interpreter.”

The device works in a very interesting way. When it is first held in the fist it greets ‘Good Morning’ and when one extends the index finger, second finger and thumb, the device responds ‘I’m having a good time’ and hold out the index finger, little finger and thumb, The Handtalk glove will courteously respond as ‘Thank you for your time’. The inventors of this device give us a strong hope that this polite and humble invention can reach the hands of the needy as soon as possible."

78 Year Old Blind Man Bowls a Perfect 300

2008-05-12T16:00:00Z

Dale Davis, an amateur bowler from Alta, Iowa, recently bowled a 300 game. He is the first person with complete loss of vision to bowl a perfect game. Known as "The Hammer" for the ferocity at which he throws the ball, Davis sports an impressive 188 average. Although he cannot see the lane, or the pins that he is throwing at, Davis does have very slight peripheral vision out of his right eye. Using only that vision, he lines up his shot and relies on the feel of the ball release, crack of the pins and the reaction of his fellow bowlers to evaluate his shots.

Read the full story here

Blown Away by Support

2008-05-08T17:02:00Z

When I first registered for the MS Walk in late March, I was determined to raise as much money as possible to fight against the disease. I set my team’s goal at $1,500 and began to send emails to friends and family soliciting their support. As more and more people joined my team or donated to the cause, I quickly saw my $1,500 goal surpassed.

Ok, I thought, I’ll raise the bar and challenge my team – I’ll set the new goal at $3,000.

Within a few weeks, the new goal had been demolished.

Amazed, I increased the goal to $5,000, more than triple the amount of the original goal.

As late April approached, my team had grown to 10 members and our donations totaled more than $5,400. I was blown away. I never thought that we would be able to raise so much money or that so many of my friends would sign up to walk alongside me.

The support kept rolling in.

By the time the day of the MS Walk came, I had 16 of my closest friends and family walking beside me. I even had family members from out of town join me. My aunt and cousin planned a surprise trip to Denver, and flew in from Texas the night before the walk. It was overwhelming to have so many loved ones by my side for such a meaningful event.

This is my first MS Walk, but I will be participating in many more to come. This experience taught me so much about how much friends and family are willing to support me. In the end, my team raised over $7,300 from over 150 different donors.

Although the walk itself was only three miles, I sincerely believe that we took huge strides this weekend to help research and find a cure for MS.

Paralympic World Cup 2008 Begins in Manchester

2008-05-07T21:11:00Z

The Paralympic World Cup begins today and runs through May 11 in Manchester, U.K. The games feature over 400 of the top Paralympic athletes in the world participating in athletic events, and competing for a chance to take part in the Paralympic Games in Beijing in September.

Participants are placed into categories which include "Amputee", "Cerebral Palsy", "Wheelchair", "Vision Impaired" and "Les Autres" (French term meaning "the others"). In addition to track events, the Paralympic World Cup will feature events in swimming, basketball, and cycling.

Read more about the Paralympic World Cup and get event results from the official website.

Waterboarding Ad Soaked in Controversy

2008-05-07T20:44:00Z

Amnesty International started a new advertising campaign that is stirring up controversy all around the country. The ads can be seen in movie theaters in select major markets across the United States. One shocking ad shows an actual waterboarding session, done with permission of the "victim." With some parts showed in slow motion, it is very difficult to watch the man struggle on camera.

Designed to make viewers squirm, the campaign is reaching out to the American public who might have only heard about the technique from the recent hearings of Michael Mukasey, President Bush's nominee for attorney general. Amnesty International is working to get the waterboarding technique declared illegal and stop the U.S. from using as an interrogation technique.

Is waterboarding an effective technique to use against enemies of the country? Is the waterboarding of one person worth potentially saving the lives of hundreds thousands of people? Is waterboarding torture?

The ad as well as extended information can be seen here.

My Mom - A Mother's Day Story

2008-05-06T17:12:00Z

When I was a little boy, I relied on my mom to get me through every trip to the doctor’s office, no matter how routine it was considered. Her lap was my chair for most of the day. After the physical exam, which was the least of my concerns, we had to walk down a hallway lined with teddy bear wallpaper towards my least favorite part of the visit. After a few trips down this hallway as a child, I had learned to not be fooled by the innocent bears who now seemed to hum a dirge as I walked slowly by them.

Awaiting my arrival down the hallway, plotting her attack, was a nurse. Her instruments of pain: needles. Right beside the needles was a seemingly endless amount vials to fill with my blood. My mom took her position and sat in the chair typically reserved for the victim patient. After calming me down for several minutes, (I required more than just your standard lollipop), my mom opened her arms and invited me to sit on her lap.

As the nurse prepared my syringe, my mom wrapped her arms around me and hugged me tightly. The nurse showed me dozens of blood-filled vials, assuring me that many kids had come through and survived the ordeal. I didn’t care about the other kids. Showing me about a hundred viles of blood only exacerbated my fear.

The nurse approached me and I began to cry in anticipation of what was coming. I begged and pleaded to be released from this torture, but to no avail. My mom began to rub my back to help me relax. As the nurse grabbed my arm, my mom whispered in my ear that everything would be ok. The tears flowed down my face as the nurse pricked my finger. My mom squeezed me tighter, maybe to pump some more blood out, but mainly because I think she actually felt my fear. She did everything in her power to make the situation as painless as possible.

That’s my mom.

Flash forward 20 years to November, 2007; the month of my MS diagnosis. My parents knew that I was experiencing some strange symptoms, but none of us had expected that MS would be the culprit. After receiving the news from my neurologist, I knew I had to tell my parents. It was one of the most difficult phone calls of my life. As we talked that night, it didn’t take long before my mom’s loving nature came to light.

First, she cried. I suppose most mothers would if they heard that their child has a chronic disease at such a young age. After working through the crying, she began suggesting ways to help me get through this rough time. She offered to fly out to Denver to be with me. She offered to make me chicken noodle soup and ship it to me. If there was anything in her power that she could do to help me, I know that she would do it with no hesitation.

Even though so much has changed in 20 years, my mom’s love has never wavered. My mom and I have a great relationship and it has only been enhanced since my diagnosis. Now whenever we see each other, her hugs seem extra long and she squeezes me tight. If I am having a bad day, she will rub my back to calm me down. She will do everything in her power to make the situation as painless as possible.

That’s my mom.

Hailey's Story (Part 2 of 2)

2008-05-05T17:57:00Z

Part 1 of this story can be found here

During her stay in the hospital, Hailey was taken off of all medications. This was an opportunity for doctors to start fresh. She constantly underwent tests and evaluations. Hailey spent three weeks in the hospital and two weeks out-patient. After her hospital stay, her parents enrolled her in the Vanguard Preparatory School in Dallas. The private school specifically addresses the needs of students experiencing academic, social and emotional difficulties. Hailey continued to struggle, but the faculty at Vanguard was more understanding of her behavior and trained to diffuse difficult situations in the classroom.

While Hailey’s school life had become more stable, her home life began to fall apart. Hailey’s father, David, moved out of the house in 2000, leaving her mother Cheri to care for her and brother. Whether it was this instability, or a further progression of her condition, Hailey’s behavior worsened in 2001. One day while at school, she started babbling incoherently. Hailey’s teacher immediately reported the problem and called Hailey’s mother. Hailey was re-admitted to the hospital.

This time, the staff at the hospital had trouble getting Hailey’s cooperation taking tests to determine the problem. She didn’t seem to care. It was as though she had given up. My aunt continued her quest to find out what was going on with Hailey. She began reading more material about Autism and recognized that Hailey’s behavior exemplified many characteristics of Autism. Hopeful that Autism was the explanation for Hailey’s difficulties; my Aunt scheduled a consultation with an Autism specialist at the hospital.

After the specialist spent copious time testing and observing Hailey’s behavior, she indicated that Hailey possessed traits of a child with Autism including social isolation, adverse reaction to touch and abnormalities in her auditory processing. At age 11, Hailey was diagnosed with Autism – specifically Asperger’s Syndrome. The diagnosis came as a relief to my aunt, who was worried that they might never receive an accurate diagnosis for Hailey. People with Asperger’s typically struggle with normal social interactions. Additionally, they typically have circumscribed interests. For Hailey, these interests were animals and art. She always loved animals and was drawing a lot of pictures of animals in a sketchbook.

Over the next few years, my Aunt instituted many changes around the house meant to help Hailey. Lights were kept low, sounds and distractions were kept to a minimum. Hailey thrived on a system of schedules and was responded well to the changes made around the house.

Academically, Hailey was performing well at the Vanguard School. With the right support elements now set up for her, Hailey’s behavior began to improve and her maturity and personal growth began to emerge. Hailey’s interactions improved enough that my Aunt pulled her out of school at Vanguard and enrolled Hailey in a public school near their home to alleviate the financial strain of the Vanguard school. Hailey was placed in many of the mainstream classes, but she had to be held back a year because the education standards at Vanguard were much lower than those of the public school.

Hailey has thrived academically in the public school environment. Although she continues to struggle socially, she does have a small group of friends with whom she eats lunch and socializes. She received a driver’s license but her time spent driving without her mom’s supervision is limited. Now in her junior year of high school, Hailey is considering her about post high school plans.

Hailey’s behavior has improved dramatically since receiving her Autism diagnosis. Once she was diagnosed, her mother was able to accommodate Hailey better at home and teachers could assist her better at school. Although her behavior is still sometimes unpredictable, she positively interacts with her family and friends more frequently. Once living a life of psychiatric wards, and a myriad of medications, Hailey can now lead a full and rich life as a fully-functioning member of society.

Caption This: Black Belt Bird

2008-05-01T16:03:00Z

This is the eleventh installation of the weekly "Caption This" blog posting.

Do you think you got a better one than me - prove it! Leave your caption in the comments section. Got a picture you think is perfect for this blog - send it my way. Enjoy!

"Teaching his 150 pound bird karate might not have been the best idea."

Miss any recent Caption This entries? Catch up!

Caption This: Tastes Like Chicken

Caption This: Kitty Puree

Army Barracks in Terrible Conditions

2008-04-28T22:46:00Z

I was disgusted when I saw the YouTube video that a military parent posted of his son's barracks conditions at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The video documents mold, rust, busted toilet seats, toilet overflows and more. It was shocking to see such living conditions that anybody would have to endure, never mind our country's soldiers. These men and women who served in Afghanistan on a recent 15-month tour should not be forced to plunge clogged bathroom drains, breathe in toxic fumes and shower in mold-infested bathrooms. This is embarrassing and appalling.

Here are some pictures from the video.

A soldier tries to unclog the bathroom drain at Fort Bragg

Mold adorns the ceiling at Fort Bragg

A sewer pipe stuffed with tissues still allows in toxic fumes

Boot Camp Helps Chronic Pain

2008-04-28T19:26:00Z

The Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago's Center for Pain Management is rethinking the way that doctors treat patients with chronic pain. Participants can sign up for a 4-week program which costs $20,000. The program teaches students how to live functional lives despite their pain. It preaches coping techniques and energy conservation methods so that patients can be as efficient as possible despite their persistant pain. The high-priced program has yielded positive results. 75% of participants say they felt better after completing the course.

Volunteers Piece Together Autism with a 60,000 Sqaure Foot Puzzle

2008-04-28T18:50:00Z

Families of Autistic Children of Tidewater, a local Autism group in Virginia Beach, VA is assembling a huge puzzle in the spirit of Autism Awareness. The puzzle is 60,000 square feet and is composed of 28,000 individual pieces. Each puzzle piece contains a fact about Autism. Volunteers were invited to assist with assembly. Volunteers worked with one another to work on specific segments of the puzzle together to ensure that the puzzle was completed as efficiently as possible. After assembly, the pieces will be sold for $5 each in an effort to raise money for the charity organization. The group is hoping to raise enough money to begin construction on a new resource center and clubhouse for their summer day camp.

Two Men Walk Across America for Autism Awareness

2008-04-28T15:39:00Z

I am proud of the steps that I am taking to help fight Multiple Sclerosis. This weekend, I will be participating in the National MS Society's Walk for MS in Denver. To date, my team has raised over $5,700 for the cause. I am proud to boast that I have a large group of friends who will be walking beside me this weekend. Organizing such an event was a lot of work and extremely time consuming.

With this knowledge, I was blown away when I recently read a story about two men who will walk across America to raise awareness and money for Autism research. Robert Williams and Bobby Genese are participating in the The Elias Tembenis Walk for Autism, a year-long journey that spans most of the United States and will cover nearly 3,000 miles. The men will walk from San Francisco and end the journey in Washington, D.C. The men are family friends of the Tembenis family and knew Elias well.

Elias was born in the summer of 2000. After receiving vaccinations at his four-month check-up, Elias began having seizures. Within the next few months, Elias began showing signs of autism.

Elias passed away suddenly in November, 2007 from complications relating to ASD as well as his seizures.

Proceeds will benefit the National Autism Association's Helping Hand Program, a national fund assisting families unable to afford autism therapy and medical services, and will also support autism initiatives in Elias's hometown.

You can help support the men on their journey. Follow this link to make a secure online donation.

Home, Sweet Home

2008-04-25T19:16:00Z

I apologize for the long delay in between posts. Life in Denver has been keeping me busy as of late. However, I was able to get away for about 25 hours and travelled back to Dallas last weekend to be with my family during Passover. It was the first Lifshen Passover I have been present for in several years. It was also the first time seeing the majority of my family since disclosing my MS diagnosis. Naturally, I was a bit nervous and apprehensive while waiting for the family to arrive for the Seder.

As I have discussed before, people react to bad news in a variety of ways. I didn’t know how my aunts, uncles, cousin, grandmother and family friends would treat me during my visit. Although I didn’t want to spend the weekend talking about MS and answering the oft-asked, “How are you feeling” question, I understand that people only ask out of natural curiosity and because they care.

Despite my initial concerns, I was happy that my family conducted themselves well during my trip (somewhat of an accomplishment if you know my family). We schmoozed before the meal started, and not a single person made me feel uncomfortable or awkward by asking me in-depth questions about MS. I was able to enjoy dinner and, if you can believe it, actually forgot about MS for a while.

During the post Seder schmooze-fest, I got into some more in-depth conversation with a few family members about MS. I still find it extremely difficult to describe to people just how MS feels: Sometimes pins and needles, sometimes tingling, sometimes sore, sometimes numbness, sometimes tired, sometime a nasty combination of any number of those sensations. We talked about how my medications made me feel and how hard it is some mornings to get out of bed and moving around.

Overall, I was really impressed with the way that my family handled the situation. Although I was diagnosed the week before I was home for Thanksgiving, I chose not to tell people during that visit because I did not want to detract from the fun that everybody had from being together again. After worrying about the same thing for this visit, my fears were put to rest by the wonderfully supportive and non-invasive stance that my family has developed.

Bush Children's Book Event Crashed by Man Assaulting Girl in Wheelchair

2008-04-25T18:05:00Z

A man was arrested in New York for repeatedly punching a wheel-chair bound girl with cerebral palsy. The man heckled First Lady Laura Bush and daughter Jenna as they left an event promoting the Bushes new children's book, "Read All About It." The man, later identified as 22 year old German Talis, yelled obscenities about Iraq as well as Iran.

Wendy and John Lovetro, who were with their daughter Maureen at the event, told Talis to shut up. At that point, he attacked Maureen.

"He began yelling about Iraq and Iran at Jenna Bush. She was waving at the crowd. I told the guy, 'What are you doing? Shut up. This is about a child and books,' "said John Lovetro. "He was unperturbed. I said, 'Get out of here! You're being a moron!' "

The next thing he knew, Talis was allegedly punching Maureen - a fan of the first lady since meeting her in 2004.

"I heard my daughter hysterical yelling, 'He's hitting me!' "said Wendy Lovetro.

"He punched her on the shoulder blades, but that wasn't enough," she said.

"My husband pushed the wheelchair away from him and he reached beyond my husband and began pounding my daughter in the thigh."

At that point, John Lovetro began fighting with Talis. Before long, the police broke up the fight and arrested Talis. John Lovetro was not arrested.

This story is disturbing on a number of levels. First, to be violent towards a complete stranger at a public event (complete with Secret Service agents) is astonishing. Secondly, Talis didn't even attack the person who had verbally engaged him! Perhaps he thought Maureen had made the comments, or perhaps he was just looking to get his anger out on somebody who he didn't think could fight back.

Regardless of his reasons, Talis' actions are absolutely reprehensible. There is no excuse for what he did and I hope that he receives punishment by the full extent of the law.

Story here

Colorado Teen Charged After Running Over the Toe of a Classmate with Scooter

2008-04-24T16:50:00Z

Story is here

A Colorado teen is being charged with three misdemeanor offenses for an incident that occured in the hallways of his Aurora high school. 17 year old Joshua Martinez, who rides in a scooter because he has a form of cerebral palsy, is being charged with assault, battery, and reckless endangerment. The charges stem from an incident that occurred in the hallways at Ridgeview High School. A female student at the school alleges that Martinez ran over her toe in between classes while passing in the school's hallway.

According to students and some school officials, Martinez has been noted for driving too fast in the hallways.

A police report obtained by the station quotes a school resource officer as saying Martinez sometimes had been reckless in operating his electric wheelchair, zipping around corners without slowing.

The name of the girl, who did not suffer any fractures or serious injury from the incident, cannot be disclosed due to her age.

Despite the reports of Martinez riding too fast through the hallways, I am hard-pressed to believe that this girl suffered any sort of physical or emotional injury as a result of the incident. Without one of these two factors, why would she press charges? Instead, she should have taken her complaint to a school administrator, who might have been able to issue a warning, or even suspend Martinez for repeated offenses. As there is no mandated speed at which to ride through the school, how can Martinez be charged?