您現在的位置: > Language Tips > Audio & Video > Special Speed News  
     





     
    How technology can help disabled people
    [ 2007-03-07 09:35 ]

    VOICE ONE:

    Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

    VOICE TWO:

    And I'm Faith Lapidus. This week on our program, we have the third part of our series on living with a disability in America. In January we looked at education. Last month we talked about jobs. Today we discuss assistive technology.

    (MUSIC)

    VOICE ONE:

    Technology offers many different ways to help people with disabilities lead more normal lives. Devices that help them perform an activity are called assistive technology. Assistive technology can help people reach their personal and professional goals.

    The invention of the telephone might not have been very exciting to a deaf person. But it led to a way to send text messages over a phone line with the use of a teletypewriter, or TTY.

    VOICE TWO:

    Today, with special care, Web site designers can make their sites highly accessible to disabled users.

    There are both simple devices and very complex ones to help people with disabilities.

    VOICE ONE:

    Even something as low-tech as a small piece of soft plastic can be an assistive technology. Attached to a pencil, it might help a child hold the pencil better if the child has trouble writing.

    VOICE TWO:

    Blind people can have documents read out loud electronically on their computer. And for people who cannot use their arms to type, speech recognition programs may be the answer. These let people give commands to their computer or have their words turned into print.

    What about a person who is not able to speak? There are now special devices to help them, too. An American company called Blink Twice produces a device that looks like a handheld computer game. The device is called Tango.

    VOICE ONE:

    Tango was invented by Richard Ellenson, the father of an eight-year-old boy with cerebral palsy. This condition affects a person's ability to move and speak. With Tango, his son Thomas can touch pictures that express his feelings or the words he wants to say. A voice then speaks the words that Thomas has chosen.

    The company's Web site has examples of what Tango sounds like:

    TANGO: "How was your day? OK. Where did you go today? Oh. Did you do anything fun? Let me think of another question. Did you see anybody I know? Ah-ha! Last question. Did you miss me? I missed you!"

    VOICE TWO:

    Other voices, ideas and words can be added to meet the interests and needs of the individual user. For example, when Thomas watches sports, he can play cheers for his team that were recorded in his father's voice.

    Richard Ellenson says he wants Tango to help people with disabilities build relationships, not just sentences. Right now, Tango costs about seven thousand dollars. But this is a new device, and the price of new technology often comes down after a few years.

    VOICE ONE:

    There are many devices to help people with disabilities use computers. There are ways for people to operate a computer by moving their heads or even just their eyes.

    There are also keyboards that can be used with only one hand. One of these small keyboards is called a FrogPad. One young girl used the FrogPad at school. Her mother said the small keyboard helped her daughter work normally at school, and her friends thought the FrogPad was great.

    VOICE TWO:

    Students with disabilities want to be like their friends; they want to be able to do things as normally as possible. So for young people, technology must not only help them do their work. The devices must also be cool.

    Ben is a fifteen-year-old boy in Maine. He was born with a condition called spina bifida. He cannot move his arms or legs. He uses a small device called a TongueTouch Keypad, made by a California company, newAbilities Systems.

    The keypad is placed in the mouth. Ben learned to use his tongue to touch different keys. They operate his telephone, his computer, his electric wheelchair, his bed and his music player.

    Ben is able to get in and out of his house without help. And he can even turn his music up loud if he wants to.

    (MUSIC)

    VOICE ONE:

    Sometimes, all it takes to improve on existing technology is a little imagination. Like adding a voice to clocks and watches so they announce the time. Or printing children's books in Braille with both raised marks and traditional text. That way the parent of a child who is blind can read the same book out loud while the child reads with his or her fingers.

    Using a motorized wheelchair requires the ability to operate the controls. But what about people who are not able to use their hands? One solution is to attach a tube to the chair. The person operates the wheelchair by sucking air through the tube or blowing into it. This is called "sip and puff" technology, and it can also be used to operate other devices.

    VOICE TWO:

    Things that are designed to help the disabled may also make life easier for people who are not disabled. The opposite is also true.

    Think of the millions of people who send and receive messages over cell phones and other wireless devices. This ability to communicate quickly by text messaging or e-mail is very useful. But imagine just how useful it can be to a person who is deaf.

    (MUSIC)

    VOICE ONE:

    Many times, the technology that helps people with disabilities is invented by people who have disabilities themselves.

    TecAccess is a company that helps government offices and companies provide technology for people with disabilities.

    TecAccess has fifty-two employees. Forty-six of them have one or more disabilities. The company is in Virginia, but its employees work all over the world.

    VOICE TWO:

    A man named Don Dalton started a company in Illinois called Assistive Technologies. Mister Dalton became a quadriplegic in a swimming accident almost forty years ago. His company offers computer technology to help people with disabilities become more independent.

    His newest product, in fact, is called Independence One. Once the system is put into a house, the user wears a wireless headset to control it. By voice, the user is able to control many devices and systems around the house.

    Don Dalton uses the Independence One controller when he rides in the elevator in his office building. The system answers him in a woman's voice.

    DON DALTON: "Wake up."
    INDEPENDENCE ONE: "Hello. I'm here."
    DON DALTON: "Elevator down."
    INDEPENDENCE ONE: "Elevator going down."

    VOICE ONE:

    A video on his company's Web site also shows how Mister Dalton uses his voice to operate devices in his house. He can turn on the television, close a window in a different room, or work on his computer, all by using his voice.

    He also uses the controller to make telephone calls over the Internet.

    DON DALTON: "Start computer phone."
    INDEPENDENCE ONE: "Starting computer phone. Please say login."
    DON DALTON: "Login."
    INDEPENDENCE ONE: "Logging in."
    DON DALTON: "865-7004. Dial phone."
    INDEPENDENCE ONE: "Thank you. Dialing."
    INDEPENDENCE ONE: "I'm calling the cell phone on my wheelchair and it's ringing. [sound]"

    (MUSIC)

    VOICE TWO:

    In the United States, the federal government is expected to be a leader in supporting the use of assistive technology. For example, federal agencies are required by law to purchase or develop technology that can be used by all employees.

    The government is providing money to research new assistive technologies. Loans are also available to help disabled federal employees and others to buy equipment. For example, a disabled person who owns a computer may be able to work from home instead of having to travel to an office.

    Research centers are working to improve technology for people with disabilities. They are working in the areas of education, employment, computers, communication and community living.

    (MUSIC)

    VOICE ONE:

    Assistive technology can do a lot to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities.

    That is, if the technology is available to them. Sometimes it can be very costly. People with a disability, especially a severe disability, have lower earnings and higher poverty rates than the general population. But government programs and private organizations may be able to help them get the assistance they need.

    VOICE TWO:

    Next month we have the fourth and final report in our series on living with a disability in America. Find out how recreation programs are helping people with disabilities have fun like they might never have thought possible.

    VOICE ONE:

    And if you missed any of the earlier reports, you can find transcripts and audio files at voaspecialenglish.com.

    Our program was written by Karen Leggett and produced by Caty Weaver. I'm Steve Ember with Faith Lapidus. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.


    點擊進入更多VOA慢速


    (來源:VOA  英語點津姍姍編輯)

     
     
    相關文章 Related Stories
     
             
     
     
     
     
     
             

     

     

     
     

    48小時內最熱門

         

    本頻道最新推薦

         
      The ABCs of allergies
      Bush: Iraq policy needs more time to work
      Prevent health problems while traveling
      Britain finds guilty men in 2005 London bomb plot
      《欲望城市》(精講之四)

    論壇熱貼

         
      How to say "前世和今生"
      How do you say 競聘某崗位
      私房錢怎么說呢
      Meaning of 出列
      Go with Your Gut (e-c) practice
      "半吊子"該怎么說






    无码精品A∨在线观看免费| 亚洲av无码一区二区三区在线播放| 人妻少妇AV无码一区二区| 午夜无码视频一区二区三区| 久久久久久精品无码人妻| 中文字幕一区二区人妻| 熟妇人妻无码中文字幕| 日韩AV无码一区二区三区不卡毛片 | 亚洲欧洲中文日韩av乱码| 无码专区6080yy国产电影| 久久久久久国产精品免费无码| 亚洲中文字幕视频国产| 亚洲日本va午夜中文字幕一区| 人妻少妇看A偷人无码精品| 人妻av无码一区二区三区| 亚洲乱码无码永久不卡在线| 最近中文字幕国语免费完整| 亚洲中文字幕日产乱码高清app| 精品爆乳一区二区三区无码av| 亚洲AV永久无码精品成人| 免费看成人AA片无码视频羞羞网| 最近中文字幕高清中文字幕无 | 精品人妻无码专区中文字幕| 亚洲精品无码久久久久去q | 无码人妻丰满熟妇区96| 最近免费视频中文字幕大全| 中文字幕aⅴ人妻一区二区| 国产成人一区二区三中文| 亚洲av无码不卡私人影院| 99久久人妻无码精品系列 | 国产精品无码一区二区三级 | 人妻无码αv中文字幕久久琪琪布| 无码AV动漫精品一区二区免费| 亚洲JIZZJIZZ中国少妇中文| 亚洲综合日韩中文字幕v在线| 精品人妻va出轨中文字幕| 午夜视频在线观看www中文| 亚洲伦另类中文字幕| 中文精品人人永久免费| 精品无码成人片一区二区98| 中文有无人妻vs无码人妻激烈|