December 4, 2014 from 4 to 5:30pm at PCC Sylvania in the Campus Center – 260

ONLINE – Dis/Representation Virtual Room

In Person – CC 260 is the Disability Services Accessibility Center. It is located on the south end of the Amo Bernardis Campus Center at the Sylvania Campus.

Technology to Empower presentation file that was used during the conversation – includes additional slides added after the session to reflect resources shared within our chat!

Brief agenda is included below:

  • Refreshments and mingling
  • Recap of Eye Writer Video and Project Daniel videos
  • Online discussion – see prompts below
  • Brief demonstration of 3D modeling software
  • Online discussion of Maker Space connection points
  • Optional Tour signups

 Resources for this Session

Eye Writer Video

Ted Talk on The Invention that unlocked a locked-in artist
https://embed-ssl.ted.com/talks/lang/en/mick_ebeling_the_invention_that_unlocked_a_locked_in_artist.html
Graffiti artist with ALS gets the chance to create art again through a hack to make eye gaze gear affordable – The instructables are now available to anyone who wants to replicate.

Discussion Prompts

  • How does the hacker or maker movement intersect with the disability rights movement?
  • Is it possible for technology to be both empowering for some, and a source of barriers for others?

Project Daniel Video – 3D Printing arms for children of war-torn Sudan

One boy in the Sudan prompts an intervention that scales up to building low cost prosthetic arms for amputees. Here at PCC we have a MakerSpace that can be used for a variety of projects including 3D printing of prostheses.

Articles

  • Digital Divide – Article from Disability Studies Quarterly
  • 3D printing and expectations for reasonable accommodation – Biology

Website Links

  • Not Impossible Now – http://www.notimpossiblenow.com/
  • PCC MakerSpace – http://www.pcc.edu/resources/makerspace/

Understanding the Context – Why this session is part of this series

We live in an information age, and yet, not all individuals have equal access to information. This is because not everyone has access to technology, and of those who do have access to technology, not all find the offerings equally usable.

Technology to Empower gets at the idea that we have the potential to switch the frame of reference from a model in which:

  • online content authors and publishers tend to create inaccessible offerings
  • AT is expensive and hard to use
  • AT is prescribed not created

to a model in which:

  • online content is expected to align with standards
  • AT features are built into standard technology
  • Individuals who experience barriers are co-creators of solutions

We can leverage technology as a means of shifting the balance and empowering individuals to craft their own paths.

Captioning Provided for Online Participants

ASL Interpreters Available Upon Request