The Connecticut Post has this story on how fewer and fewer visually impaired children and adults are learning braille, and the consequences they face as a result:
Justin Egle was born at 23 weeks, before his retinas had a chance to fully develop, leaving him totally blind. Now 13, the Glenview, Ill., boy has fallen behind academically -- and his mother believes it's because he hasn't received adequate Braille training.
At the moment, I'm almost done with Halting State by Charles Stross, a police procedural novel set in Scotland a few years in the future. In a nutshell, virtual reality "Orcs" manage to rob an actual bank online, not only cleaning out the bank's accounts but also possibly threatening both Scotland's (and Europe's) ecomony and Europe's entire online network.
According to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, the number of Americans suffering from some form of paralysis has actually increased. In addition, the number of persons suffering from some form of spinal cord injury is much higher than previously estimated. USA Today has the story (with some very interesting statistics and what this all means in terms of health care and insurance) here. The Associated Press has more here.
Related links: Primary Effects of Spinal Injuries ; The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation; US News & World Report
My thanks to everyone who attended last night's showing of Get Smart. After all these years, it's nice to know that the adventures of Maxwell Smart (Don Adams, who was never funnier) still resonate with audiences after over forty years!
Following up on last week's post spotlighting online links to assist the elderly and disabled in filing their tax returns for this year (go to this link for further info), here are some more sites that may be helpful.
On Thursday night, April 16th, at 7:30 pm, in the second floor Meeting Room, Greenwich Library's Classic and Cult Television will show the original "pilot" episode of Get Smart.
It is with great sadness and regret to report that science fiction and fantasy author Philip Jose Farmer passed away on February 25th, 2009 at the age of 91 in Peoria, Illinois. The New York Times has posted his obituary here.
It's that time of year again, and for those tax filers who are elderly and/or disabled, here are some online links to assist you in completing your returns:
Science fiction and fantasy fans, not to mention anime and scientific scholarly ones, will be interested to know that this weekend (April 3-5), the 28th annual I-Con convention will be taking place in Long Island. Spread out over three different locations, I-Con will play host to a number of guests from the various literary and scientific fields, as well as offer a number of panels and programs. For details, go here, and also to the convention's MySpace and Facebook pages to hook up with other convention visitors.
