A real life Daredevil
 

So apparently this kid was big news about 2 years ago but I just now saw a show about him on the science channel. The thing is he has no eyes and instead sees by clicking. He sees pretty well too. Not perfect mind you but good enough to ride a bike, roller blade, and get in a Martial Arts class or two. At first I thought maybe he was just remembering where stuff was and then he was roller bladeing and avoided his little brother who almost ran him down on a tricycle. Later he was able to pick out a pair of tape dispensers on opposite ends of a table from a couple of cylindrical objects. Its pretty clear that he's definitely using the sound.

Ah, yeah, the echolocation kid. They've actually started teaching that to other blind people so I hear. Very good example of how well kids can adapt.

I can't do anything like that, but I've taught myself how to pinpoint sounds pretty good over the years, so I'm willing to believe that it can be done. I'd be interested in learning how if the opportunity ever came up. Not that I'm blind or anything, just that it would be an interesting thing to try.

Yeah, they even have machines that make the clicking noise for them that apparently makes a "clearer" image or something. With my nephew being blind, he already uses some echolocation to get around (although he likes to scream instead of click. :sweatdrop ) so hopefully someone can teach him how to be as accurate as this kid is.


It's really amazing the kinds of things that blind people can do that people don't think that they can. My nephew rides a bike, rides a scooter, shoots the bb gun at the fair, plays Lego Star Wars, (as well as a bunch of other video games meant for the sighted). My nephew actually seems to use his sense of smell a lot more. One time he was sitting in the hallway, with tons of other people (and smells) around him, and his dad walked by, not saying anything and Noah (my nephew) just goes "Hi dad!" It's crazy to think about how sensitive their other senses become.


I have a lot of respect for his mother. Especially for the "to society he's blind, but that doesn't make him handicapped" bit. So many times, with blind children, you see their parents hovering over them constantly, not letting them do stuff on their own and it really hurts them more than helps them, I think. I know it's kind of scary, just like the first time I took Noah to the park and he climbed to the top of the tallest slide all by himself, I was very nervous that he would fall, but then I realized that he was just as likely as any other kid to fall off of the slide, so I let him be.

One of the most interesting things, I think, it to be around someone who is "handicapped". You learn a lot about what really makes someone "handicapped", and the power of determination and not falling into that trap of "oh I just can't do it because of (some shortcoming)."

I kind of doubt you'd be able to learn unless you are blind. The thing is that those of us with sight have a massive amount of brain-space dedicated to processing sights, which blind people don't have, and I expect we don't have the space to develop an echolocation processing centre of the brain. A person born blind would have the biggest advantage (in being able to echolocate), because the visual part of the brain would never start developing. Thus, they'd have the most space to convert to echolocation.
I also was very impressed with the mother's attitude. So many parents of kids with various conditions want the world handed to them on a silver platter (I'm not saying all, mind you, but a lot).

I agree. She puts it very well too with the "blind but not handicapped" comment. It's staying away from being so PC that you just try to ignore that someone is different, but then also saying "but it doesn't hold him back."

How old is your nephew?

Eh, I think it's more a matter of teaching yourself to actually pay attention to what you're hearing better. I've already experienced the difference that can make.

Now, I probably couldn't be as good as that kid, since this is pretty much his sight, but I certainly think I could learn to pick out some of the differences in sounds bouncing back at me.

Anyway, my biology is rusty, but I don't know of any studies indicating that your occipital lobe (or the other one that focuses on sight... I forget what it's called) can just switch over to interpreting sound if you're blind. Different utilities involved, I think. I could be wrong though. Part of the reason I'd like to see (har har) a sighted person learn this is that it could provide some insight into the differences in the way the brain works between sighted and unsighted.

He turned 10 this summer (I was surprised to see that the teen in the article was only four years older. He looks at least 8 years older than my nephew, but Noah is pretty small for his age). We always try and make him be as independant as possible, letting him find his way around with his cane, letting him find what he dropped on the floor. He's given the same expectations and responsibilities as we would give to a sighted 10 year old.

The weirdest thing is how other people percieve him. I'm his aunt so I KNOW that he's just as capable as any other child, but everyone else sees this small blind boy, and assumes that he needs their help. There was a fair in town last weekend, and my nephew wanted to play the game where you shoot at a target, and the carnival worker was willing to let him pick ANY prize he wanted (even the giant ones that were bigger than he was) just because he was blind. (Noah refused, and just took his target. The carnie was shocked.)

I kind of wish that he could get some fake eyes like the kid in the article has. As a protective aunt, it's hard to watch him play on the playground and see all of the other kids keep a distance and stare at him. Not to mention that kids aren't the most tactful people in the world. I know the fake eyes wouldn't help 100%, but it would at least curb the "what's wrong with his eyes?!" comments. It's never fun to see your nephew want to leave the park because of the other kids.

Yeah of all the things I'd really like, I wish that people would think a second before they talk. Honestly is it that hard to notice someone with a handicap and not say anything, if only out of politeness? Christ I do it all the time.

It's like Leela all over again.

"Hey, can I ask you a question?"
"Is it about my eye?"
"...uh...."

The parts of the brain really aren't hardwired for specific tasks. I mean yes we all generally tend to map the same functions and sensory processes to the same area but those areas are not hard coded for that function. You remove the input and the brain doesn't go "Oh well guess that area is useless now." Its well established that people that are blind tend to have much keener other senses. Part of it is probably a matter of not having the distraction of vision but that can't really explain everything. That and knowing what we know about brain plasticity it would strange for the brain not to compensate by rewiring the vision area.

In fact the synopsis of this book confirms that very fact.

Alright. But like I said; I'm not really shooting for the same level of usability.

Well really all you need to do is completely blindfold yourself for a few months or years. As long as your brain isn't getting sensory input to an area it will start retasking. It doesn't really matter why that input stopped just that it did.