For several years, scholars and pundits alike have used the term "digital divide" to describe the technology access differential between individuals of varying socioeconomic, racial, and ethnic groups. But people with disabilities also face a digital divide in access, despite the transformational effects technology can have in their lives.
FROM MOBILE FUTURE COALITION: The Mobile Future Coalition just released an important report on wireless technology, and how it is being used every by Americans with disabilities entitled "Mobile Ability: The Transformational Impact of Wireless Innovation for People with Disabilities". Here are a few of the highlights:
* For the nation’s 37 million adults who experience trouble hearing, new technologies have the capacity to translate spoken word into text in real time.
* For those who have difficulty seeing, new mobile apps can use smartphone cameras to scan labels and announce the contents of grocery items, their nutrition labels, and even pill bottles.
* For the 6 to 8 million Americans who have problems speaking, there are many low- or no-cost cell phone apps that convey typed words into audible speech.
The full report is available here:
http://www.mobilefuture.org/content/pages/mobile_ability
* For the nation’s 37 million adults who experience trouble hearing, new technologies have the capacity to translate spoken word into text in real time.
* For those who have difficulty seeing, new mobile apps can use smartphone cameras to scan labels and announce the contents of grocery items, their nutrition labels, and even pill bottles.
* For the 6 to 8 million Americans who have problems speaking, there are many low- or no-cost cell phone apps that convey typed words into audible speech.
The full report is available here:
http://www.mobilefuture.org/
