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Motherhood

Visually impaired mom can now 'see' her baby's ultrasound, thanks to science

'I've not been able to see his ultrasounds at all, so like this is so cool.'

Photo by Volodymyr Hryshchenko on Unsplash

A visually impaired mom can now 'see' her baby's ultrasound.

An ultrasound is typically the first opportunity for a new parent to visibly connect with their unborn child, but some parents don't get to "see" their baby's first image due to being blind or visually impaired.

This was the case for Ashton Johnson, an expectant mom from Nebraska, who also wasn't able to see the glossy black and white print-out of the ultrasound due to her visual impairment. Traditional ultrasound pictures are slick when they're printed, and without any ridges or bumps on the image, Johnson wasn't able to visualize what the picture looked like.

But her OBGYN, Dr. Katie Sekpe, had a plan to help the mom-to-be "see" her ultrasounds, instead of relying solely on her husband's descriptions. Dr. Sekpe contacted Dr. John Coté, another OBGYN, to ask him to create 3D prints of the couple's ultrasound pictures.

Dr. Coté isn't just a doctor who randomly owns a 3D printer, he's an assistant professor and researcher at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. He told KETV Omaha that giving moms a 3D print of their ultrasound increases their oxytocin levels and attachment to their babies. The research being done at the university is some of the first of its kind, according to Coté.

It's obvious from the video that Johnson is beside herself with the joy of getting to "see" her baby for the first time at different stages of her pregnancy. Technology sure is amazing!

You may want to grab a tissue before you watch the video below.

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3d printing

If the first thing you think of when you hear 'blind person' is all the things they can't do, this campaign is for you.

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There are more than 23 million people who are blind or have experienced vision loss in the United States and Canada.

They are doctors, lawyers, and professional athletes. They're actors, writers, and daredevils. They love skiing, dancing, and watching movies.

Check out this moving video about ways that blind or visually-impaired people are challenging misconceptions:

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There's also an audio-described version of the video here.

While being blind or vision-impaired has little bearing on people's ability to do many jobs, it does affect their ability to get a job in the first place.

Fred LeBlanc knows this all too well.

LeBlanc is the star of a PSA created by the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB). After 29 years working as a firefighter, he began to lose his sight in 2011. A diagnosis of legal blindness followed soon after. In an interview with the CNIB, he talked about how his diagnosis made him doubt his abilities to remain in the workforce:

"I questioned myself. If I struggled with everyday tasks, how was I going to lead a fulfilling career?”

With the support of the CNIB and other blind workers, LeBlanc found his confidence. He decided to run for the position of 13th District vice president with the International Association of Fire Fighters, a job he still holds.

"I thought 'why can’t I do what I set out to do?' I had to tell myself 'don’t be silly, this is not your fault, there’s nothing to be ashamed of,'" he told CNIB.

‌There's plenty of room at the table for blind workers — as long as we give them the chance. Image via iStock. ‌

In Canada, about 60% of people of working age are employed. That number drops to just 32% for the visually-impaired. Similarly, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labour Statistics, only about a third of working-age Americans with visual impairments or blindness were employed in September 2016.

Diane Bergeron, the executive director of CNIB, says that's not for lack of trying. In an interview with the Toronto Star last month, she relayed her frustrations, saying, "We go out, we get an education and then we come out of education and when we want a job there’s no job to be had."

According to the CNIB, creating a workplace that is inclusive and welcoming for blind and sighted workers isn't as daunting as it might seem.

‌A man reads on his tablet. Substituting printed correspondence for digital is one easy way to make a workplace more accommodating for people who are visually-impaired. Image via iStock. ‌

Jim Lee, Chief of Staff to the General President, International Association of Fire Fighters, is Fred LeBlanc's boss at the IAFF. For him, working with Fred is a mind-opening experience.

Prior to working with LeBlanc, Lee had no experience interacting with someone who is blind or partially sighted. Lee quickly saw firsthand that LeBlanc's abilities didn't change, even though his vision did. "Unless he tells you, you wouldn't know that Fred has vision loss," Lee told the CNIB. "His abilities didn't change at all."

To accommodate his colleague's vision loss, Lee and his team made minor adjustments to their workplace. Rather than printing hard copies, they focus on email correspondence. Documents use an off-white background to provide easier visual contrast.

Realizing how little things needed to change helped Lee understand that vision impairment doesn't mean workers needed to exit or stay out of the workforce.

"People with visual impairments have a lot to offer," said LeBlanc. "They just need the opportunity to prove that. Employers have to give them a chance to come in and show what they can do. A lot of employers would be amazed."

It would be easy to tell a story about blindness that focuses on depressing statistics around working or employment. After all, there are a lot.

‌A doctor and a patient look at a computer screen. A more inclusive workplace benefits everyone. Image via iStock. ‌

But the real power is in flipping that story to one of empowerment. Whether they choose to become athletes, artists, or professionals, individuals who are blind can and do lead rich, fulfilling lives, like anyone else. It's time to elevate the work experiences of people like Fred LeBlanc and remind everyone that blind workers can thrive in whatever career they desire — when employers give them the chance.

Making smartphones even more intelligent — and more inclusive.

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When braille was invented in the early-1800s, it was world-changing and life-altering.

Louis Braille was only 15 when he invented the world's first written language for the blind. Inspired by a language of raised dots used by French army officers to communicate silently at night on the battlefield, Braille envisioned a simple series of tactile raised dots to help translate the written word into something that could be read by the blind.

His innovation helped bring the worlds of blind and sighted people closer than ever before. Now whip-smart mobile phone developers are building off his work to keep our world connected and inclusive with helpful mobile apps that assist people with visual challenges in their daily life.

Downloading these apps and using them regularly is one small — but meaningful — way everyone can make the world more inclusive and accessible for people with vision challenges. Dozens of apps abound online, but here are 12 of our current favorites:

1. Contribute to a blind person's experience of a neighborhood with BlindWays.

BlindWays is a navigation app for iPhone that picks up where GPS navigation leaves off. Through information provided by sighted members of the community, the app guides blind travelers to the closest bus stop sign with easy-to-understand navigational cues. Best of all, it's user-powered and updated regularly — so the next time you're walking around the block to the store, take a few seconds to open the app and share some information that will help a blind person get around. It's only available in Boston right now, but they're hoping to expand to other areas.

2. Be My Eyes connects sighted and blind people for momentary acts of kindness.

Want to help a blind person navigate a quick challenge? Be My Eyes is the answer. This iPhone app connects blind or visually impaired users with sighted helpers through a live audio-video connection. Blind users can point their phone camera at an object or place they'd like assistance with — like installing batteries correctly or checking expiration dates on food — and sighted users can lend their eyes. For sighted users, it's a lovely way to be generous with a few minutes of your time.

3. Access braille and audio versions of 50,000 books with the BARD mobile app.

The next generation of braille is here (and on your phone). Image via iStock.

Have an Apple mobile device? Load it up with more than 50,000 books, magazines, and music scores courtesy of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped and the Library of Congress. It works with Bluetooth-enabled braille keyboards too!

4. Listen to radio stations with content by and from blind and visually impaired people with Sero.

Finding community with people experiencing life in the same way you are is an important part of being blind or visually impaired. The Sero (formerly iBlink radio) app for iPhone collects radio stations, reading services, and podcasts of interest to blind people, their caregivers, and their friends. And every station is owned or operated by people with limited or no eyesight.

5. Ariadne GPS combines navigation and narration to help people find their way.

Raised crosswalk indicators are useful for finding intersections. Ariadne GPS takes navigating to the next level. Image via iStock.

This excellent talking map service was designed with the blind in mind. Users can navigate using their finger on the screen while Ariadne gives them verbal and tactile clues about the world around them. Crossing the street? The iPhone will vibrate. Need a bus or train stop? Ariadne will let users know.

6. Turn sunshine into sound with the Light Detector app.

Need to get changed and want to make sure the blinds are closed? The Light Detector app for iPhone and Android shows the source of light in a room by transforming it into a sound. Users simply point the camera at a light source (or where they expect one to be) and the app creates a sound that rises or falls in intensity depending on the brightness of the light.

7 & 8. Talking Goggles and the KNFB Reader help blind folks experience Google Glass (without the dorky hardware).

It's the Google Glass that Google Glass wishes it were! Image via iStock.

If there's text on something — a street sign, a poster, even a bottle of shampoo — text- reading apps like Talking Goggles and the KNFB reader can recognize it and read it out. Users can point the phone's camera at what they want to read, and the app does the rest. Even better? It works on both iPhone and Android, and it can read in different languages — with the correct accent.

9. Need to know what's in front of you right now? This iPhone app lets users Tap, Tap, and See.

What's in the pantry — a can of peaches or a can of baked beans? TapTapSee helps blind or visually-impaired users identify the objects around them with a quick click of their iPhone or Android device camera. Once a photo is taken, a voiceover will share what the object is. A useful app for blind and sighted folks!

10. Listen to music (and the rest of the world) with the Awareness! app.

It's every pedestrian's nightmare: You're walking outside, listening to Katy Perry roar, and you don't hear that oncoming train. Unsurprisingly, missing important auditory warnings is a very real concern for blind and visually-impaired people. Awareness! is a music-listening app for iPhone that helps users stay connected to the rest of the world while they rock out. Songs play like normal, but in the case of important sudden noises, Awareness! will silence the song and let the real world — and all its dog barks, car horns, and fire alarms — through.

11. Make sorting money easier with the LookTel Money Reader.

A woman going through her wallet. Image via iStock.

With or without a visual impairment, sorting through America's uniformly green bills can be a challenge when you're in a rush to pay. Fortunately, the LookTel Money Reader app for iPhone removes the chance of confusion. Turn on the app, point the camera at the bill, and LookTel will announce the denomination out loud.

12. Make sure your pants and shirt match with Color ID.

Searching for your lucky green tie? Want to know if the cat you're petting is a brown tabby or a silver one? Color ID can help. Like most of the apps on this list, all it takes is pointing the mobile phone camera at an object, and Color ID does the rest. Now you'll finally know if those pants your wife hates are khaki or just greenish-brown. It's available for iPhone and Android.

This is just a small sample of the mobile apps available to help make the world a little easier to navigate for blind and visually-impaired people — and there's more being developed all the time.

Here's to a digital world that makes the real world safer, more fun, and more inclusive for everyone!

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The blind 15-year-old who is playing starting quarterback ›

Heroes

They had 15 hours to come up with an idea that'd improve lives. They did it.

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They had 15 hours to come up with an idea for a revolutionary device that would make people's lives better.

And they had to beat out hundreds of other teams that had some of the best student hackers in the world.

"Our first idea was a dancing robot that, like, danced with you if you’re lonely in a dance club," Charlene Xia said with a chuckle.

She and friends Chandani Doshi, Grace Li, Jialin Shi, Bonnie Wang, and Tania Yu were taking part in the MakeMIT hackathon — MIT's premier technology design competition. They and other students were tasked with coming up with a prototype for a new device.

(Left to right) Tania Yu, Charlene Xia, Bonnie Wang, Chandani Doshi, Jialin Shi, and Grace Li. All images via Team Tactile, used with permission.

Xia continued: "Then we moved to a braille watch that we saw a concept model of that somebody posted online. It got us thinking, 'Well, wait a second, is there a thing like a text-to-braille converter? Like it translates and scans images of text on a book and converts it to braille when you move up and down?' We kept googling and nothing came out."

The young inventors began to lay the foundation for Tactile, the world's first real-time text-to-braille converter.

It was a daunting challenge to say the least, but one that these young women, dubbed Team Tactile, were more than ready for.

"The good thing was that our team was very diverse," said Shi. "We have people who studied material science, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and computer science."

Of course, as most projects go, hurdles inevitably popped up. From the hourlong lines at the 3D printer to their code not working properly, it was one heck of a photo finish.

"Basically, nothing came together until the last 15 minutes," added Shi. "That’s when we were finally able to take a picture of some text and finally translate that into some motor movement, which translated into a braille character. It was stressful, but it was definitely one of the highlights of our time here at MIT — that moment when something you make from scratch finally works and your concept is realized."

The current Tactile prototype.

Team Tactile ended up winning first place in the hackathon. But their journey was just getting started.

The team received incredible support and encouragement from the mentors involved with the hackathon — and one mentor, in particular, had a lasting effect.

Paul Parravano is the co-director of MIT's Government and Community Relations office. He's been blind since age 3. He told Team Tactile that their invention could have a huge impact on the visually impaired community, especially since they experience many pain points when it comes to access to information — no more than 5% of books are accessible to them.

Ultimately, providing someone who is visually impaired with the ability to read any book out in the world was too important not to pursue.

"The impact that we could potentially have in the future is really what drove us to continue working as a team," said Wang. "Just working it out despite our problem sets, all the exams, projects and everything, we still keep going and just try to take the prototype as far as we can."

There are already aids on the market, but what sets Tactile apart is its affordability, accuracy, and ability to improve braille literacy.

There are devices such as the B2G, which acts as a mini-laptop for blind people to access information. However, it costs a staggering $2,495. Tactile, on the other hand, could cost as little as $100.

There are other cheaper alternatives, but they're not necessarily as effective. "For instance, there’s an app that lets you take pictures of printed text and then it turns to audio," said Li. "As you can imagine, this is not applicable for every situation. It’s also less accurate."

But the ability to read instead of having something read back to you is where the biggest difference lies.The team noted that braille literacy is very low right now — in fact, less than 10% of the 1.3 million legally blind people in the U.S. are braille readers. Tactile could help change that.

A rendering of Team Tactile's vision for their revolutionary invention.

"An audio translator won't be able to translate all the mathematical signs and symbols," said Shi. "There’s also everyday life — something as simple as reading packaging labels and just knowing your surroundings. Not [having to ask] for help for every little thing."

There's nothing stopping these badasses.

Right now, the team is still working to refine Tactile to make sure it's as efficient and affordable as possible. After graduation, they plan to work on it full time, and they have their sights set on getting this invention into the hands of all those who truly need it — whether in the U.S. or in the developing world.

Added Wang, "Ideally ... one day, every visually impaired person will have a Tactile device — something that they carry around with them every day and use on a daily basis to access the information around them."

Team Tactile's invention is so promising that they were selected to be a part of Microsoft's #MakeWhatsNext Patent Program.

The program focuses on two things: helping young female inventors navigate the legal hurdles that come with securing patents and empowering young women to bridge the gender gap in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics).

"They really helped us take the stress away from the patent process and allowed us to focus on the technology — the part that we're passionate about developing," said Wang.

Tactile is a great example of the type of life-changing innovation that can come from technology, and Microsoft is committed to ensuring that everyone — especially young girls — has access to computer science education resources so they, too, can unlock the power to create with technology.

"Why is that the case when you think of patents, you don't think of women inventors?" wondered Xia. "Right now, there's a movement towards building this community of women engineers and inventors, and we're really happy and honored to be part of this movement and contribute as much as we can to make sure this movement continues and grows."

This famous painting was just transformed into 3D touchable art for the visually impaired.

A museum in Vienna is making sure everyone, including the blind and visually impaired, gets to experience art.

You might recognize "The Kiss," a famous painting that lives in the Belvedere Museum in Vienna.

More properly known as "The Kiss (Lovers)," the painting was created between 1907 and 1908 by the Austrian painter Gustav Klimt. It's done in oil and gold leaf. It's pretty famous, so you've probably seen it before, although you might have not known the name.

Over a million people come to Vienna to see the painting every year.

Photo by Dieter Nagl/AFP/Getty Images.

Some even stage their own re-enactments of the painting's tender moment.

Photo by Dieter Nagl/AFP/Getty Images.

Knowing that some of those visitors couldn't actually see the painting — even if it could be described to them — the museum sought a way to enhance the exhibit.

So, working with a EU project known as AMBAVis (Access to Museums for Blind and Visually Impaired People), they created a miniature, touchable 3D relief of the painting.

Photo by Herbert Pfarrhofer/AFP/Getty Images.

Andreas Reichinger used a computer and 3D printer to model and translate the painting into a roughly 16-inch relief.

The relief lacks the bright colors of the original, but all the details, such as the texture of the ground or the patches on the pair's cloak, have been carried over. Visitors will be encouraged to touch and feel it.

There will even be sensors in the relief that can provide audio commentary when certain places are touched. Other museums have done similar projects with the works of Goya, El Greco, and Velázquez before, to rave reviews.

It's really cool to see this museum experimenting with expanding access to art.

In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that about 3% of people over 40 years old are visually impaired or blind. In Vienna, this means that the new version could bring the painting to thousands of new people.

"We want to open up a whole new chapter of making art available for the blind and visually impaired," Rainer Delgado from the German Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired said in an AFP report. He also suggested that, in the future, these kinds of reliefs could be widely available to anyone with access to a 3D printer.

Museums often are the first institutions to slowly push boundaries and tear down barriers to art.

It's awesome that the Belvedere is continuing that tradition.

11-year-old Rachel Hyche has been blind since she came home from the hospital.

"Rachel rides horses, watches movies, drives a golf cart, roller skates, and does most things other kids her age do," her father, David, told Upworthy. "Some of the things are done a little different but we usually find a way."

David says that at just 18 months old, Rachel was a confident toddler whose self-affirming favorite phrase was "I do it by self." But, when Easter rolled around that year, David realized there was a problem — how could Rachel participate in an Easter egg hunt if she couldn't see the brightly colored eggs?

Photo by Bianca Spelt/AFP/Getty Images.

He had been asked to help plan the Easter egg hunt for his local church in Alabama, and he wanted Rachel to be able to participate. With her insistence on doing everything "by self," he was determined to find a way for her to do so without parental assistance. David needed a way to let Rachel be her independent egg-hunting self without cramping her style.

Rachel might be visually impaired, but her hearing was totally fine — and that's when David found the perfect solution:

Easter eggs that beep.

It took some quick research online, but thanks to his day job as a bomb technician, David knew a thing or two about electronics and was able to craft an innovative beeping egg for his daughter.

Made with simple components and a 9 volt battery. Photo provided by David Hyche, used with permission.

The idea was well-received by both kids and their parents.

"The kids really enjoy being able to do this activity by themselves. I have seen kids grow in confidence before my eyes and parents change their attitudes about what activities their kids can do with a little modification," David said, noting that letting Rachel try anything and everything she wants can be difficult at times.

"I learned from my Rachel not to decide for her what she likes and doesn’t like or what she can and cannot do. Sometimes this is hard. A skateboard comes to mind."

Photo provided by Captain Shajahan Jagtian, used with permission.

Teachers at schools for the visually impaired also fell in love with the idea and started using the eggs for lessons beyond the Easter hunt.

"Teachers for the blind have also used the eggs year-round to teach location skills. I noticed early on that my daughter had trouble finding items she dropped or lost. The eggs teach the kids to search in three dimensions, not just on the floor," David explained.

In the last couple years, the beeping Easter eggs have spread to communities all over the country.

Bomb squads in Prince George County. Maryland, and Tampa Bay Florida, recently used crafting the eggs as a training exercise in soldering and circuitry as well as an opportunity to give back to the community.

"[The officers] really don't like to be out in the front of things so for us to use our skills to help kids that are not as fortunate as most makes all of us feel good," said Randall Mattson-Laurent of Tampa Bay.

Photo provided by Captain Shajahan Jagtiani, used with permission.

David Hyche has spent the past decade working on other innovative Easter ideas to help even more kids with disabilities.

"This year I built and tried a vibrating egg that I believe will allow kids who are both deaf and blind to participate next year," he told Upworthy. "I believe that the kids will be able to locate the eggs through vibrations if we place them on a wood floor."

David knows that simple modifications like these can truly help kids with disabilities feel included, just like they did for his daughter.

David and his daughter Rachel. Photo provided by David Hyche, used with permission.

"I really enjoy the exposure that the blind and visually impaired kids and adults get through this project," he said. "I had never known a blind person prior to Rachel and I was nervous around them at first. I think that the more that the public understands anything that they are not familiar with, the more it will be accepted."

As for Rachel, she's outgrown the Easter egg hunts, but has inherited her dad's helpful spirit.

"As a self-described, 11-year-old pre-teen, my daughter claims to be too grown up to hunt eggs," he says. "We now move into the phase of her helping other kids during the event. She still gets candy."

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A simple way to make egg hunts less stressful for everyone, courtesy of the Netherlands - Upworthy ›