Suchergebnisse

Human visual preferences for slides of five natural landscapes or biomes-tropical rain forest, temperate deciduous forest, coniferous forest, savanna, and desert-were examined. Subjects were third graders, sixth graders, ninth graders, college students, adults, senior citizens, and a group of professional foresters. A series of 20 slides, 4 examples of each biome, was shown twice to each group of subjects. On one pass through the slides, subjects judged how much they would like to live in an area similar to the one represented; on the other pass, subjects rated the slides for how much they would like to visit an area similar to the one shown. Judgments were made on a 6-point Likert scale. Elementary schoolchildren showed a significant preference for savanna over all other biomes. From midadolescence and through adulthood, more familiar natural environments were equally preferred to savanna. Results were interpreted as providing limited support for the hypothesis that humans have an innate preference for savanna-like settings that arises from their long evolutionary history on the savannas of East Africa.

This publication provides an overview of a project on identification of visual problems and follow-up conducted by the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT).1 This project had three main objectives: (a) to determine the most appropriate means for identifying NTID students with visual impairments and make recommendations for medical and personal/social follow-up (Objective 1); (b) to determine the types and incidence of visual impairments among these students (Objective 2); and (c) to conduct research that would assist in the provision of appropriate counseling relative to academic and career opportunities/experiences for persons with both auditory and visual impairments (Objective 3). Several approaches were investigated as possible means for assessing the visual functioning of NTID students (Objective 1). Subsequently, some of these approaches were used to determine the types and incidence of visual impairments within this population (Objective 2). The approaches investigated were: (a) a vision questionnaire (personal/family ocular history) for students; (b) an off-campus general health physical examination; (c) an off-campus opthalmological examination; (d) an on-campus ophthalmological examination (standard to which all other assessment results were compared); and (e) an on-campus visual screening program. This screening program included the use of Bausch and Lomb Orthorater Vision Testers (a vision screening instrument used in assessing visual acuity, color vision, and binocular vision), the Ishihara Color Vision Test (a test designed to evaluate the ability to discriminate colors), and Titmus Stereopsis Tests (a series of tests designed to assess the ability to perceive objects in three dimensions using both eyes). Visual parameters assessed included near and far (distance) acuity (the ability of the eyes to resolve or differentiate detail), color vision (the ability to discriminate colors), and binocular vision (muscle balance and depth perception). In addition, three psychophysical screening tests for the presence of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) (a progressive loss of vision due to retinal degeneration) were investigated; one approach involved a test for assessment of dark-adapted visual sensitivity (the ability to see in darkness or dim illumination), and the other approach involved two tests for temporal processing of visual stimuli. The methodology designed to investigate appropriate counseling relative to academic and career opportunities/experiences for persons with auditory and visual impairments (Objective 3) was as follows: (a) literature review; (b) interviews with content/technical experts at NTID to identify both visual skills believed to be important for students to succeed in various technical areas, and academic and career recommendations relative to students having both hearing and visual impairments; and (c) in-class and on-the-job follow-up for NTID students and graduates having visual impairments (e.g., observations and interviews). Based on the data collected using the above methodologies, recommendations have been made for identification and follow-up of NTID students with visual impairments. These recommendations address: (a) the rationale and methodology for a recommended visual screening program; (b) the pass-fail criteria for referral for an in-depth examination by an ophthalmologist; and (c) recommended follow-up procedures, including medical treatment and correction, personal/social follow-up, and counseling relative to academic/career experiences. The implications and application of this project to all persons with hearing impairments, including younger age groups, are also discussed. Given the importance of vision to persons with hearing losses, it is recommended that: (a) an in-depth ophthalmological examination be done routinely upon discovery of a hearing loss; (b) reassessment of visual functioning, as well as auditory functioning, be done periodically for all persons with severe to profound hearing losses; (c) interpreters be used as appropriate to help ensure adequate communication during both visual assessment/examination procedures and any necessary follow-up; and (d) information be provided for hearing-impaired persons, parents, and professionals concerning the importance of visual assessment and visual hygiene for persons with hearing loss. The need for further research relative both to the status of the visual system and how to best facilitate the use of the visual modality for learning among hearing-impaired persons is emphasized. Also, the need for further investigation of academic and career experiences appropriate for persons having both auditory and visual impairments, and the need for training of instructional staff to work with these persons, are stressed.

A contribution to the theory delineated by Georg Simmel in "Sociology of the Senses: Visual Interaction" (Park, R. E., & Burgess, W. W. [Eds], Introduction to the Science of Sociology, Chicago: U of Chicago Press, 1969). Specifically, how social relations are visually constituted through gaze or glance is examined, comparing Simmel's account of the pure form of mutual glance, through which individuals are primordially united beyond the bounds of speech, & Jean-Paul Sartre's description of the look through which human beings objectify one another, again outside of spoken language. It is argued that Sartre & Simmel illustrate two fundamental sides of human sociality, which must be dialectically related to one another in order to provide an adequate phenomenological description. The account is grounded in a set of specific social phenomena that exemplify the operation of the gaze in constituting sociality. 7 References. Modified AA.

This article reviews the history of the development of lighting standards for the visually impaired. All available literature on how different levels of illumination affect visual acuity and visibility among persons with visual impairments is reviewed. And the implications of this research for meeting the needs of visually impaired children in the classroom are discussed.