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Towson Has Way To Let Deaf People Listen To Radio - wjz.com
The deaf and hard of hearing will soon be able to "listen" to the radio--not with their ears but with their eyes.
Andrea Fujii explains how Towson University is helping to change millions of lives.
Though hard of hearing, Amanda Comninos is "listening" or reading the radio. Towson University and NPR have teamed up to create the first ever radio for the deaf and hard of hearing.
"The deaf have never been able to access radio before and this is the first time they'll be able to do it," said Dr. Ellyn Sheffield, Towson University professor.
When in the car, the driver sees a GPS screen, but the passenger sees the radio text of anything that's on.
"The opportunity to hear emergency alerting, disaster relief information, local school closings, Amber alerts," Sheffield said.
Born partially deaf, Comninos has always felt left out in car rides but not after using a caption radio prototype.
"It's very important to be involved with what's going on, not feel like an outcast," said Comninos,a former Towson University student.
With NPR, Sheffield has been working on the technology for four years and hopes the public can access it by 2012.
It's a multi-platform technology so the hearing impaired will also be able to plug in mini-HD radios into their iPad or iPhone and read the text as well.
They will have the ability to access something that many of us take for granted.
"I can't wait for it to come out. Hopefully I will be the first to use," said Comninos.
Sheffield recently won the Daily Record Publication's Innovator of the Year award for the Caption Radio.
Developers expect it to cost anywhere form $100 to several hundred dollars.
The deaf and hard of hearing will soon be able to "listen" to the radio--not with their ears but with their eyes.
Andrea Fujii explains how Towson University is helping to change millions of lives.
Though hard of hearing, Amanda Comninos is "listening" or reading the radio. Towson University and NPR have teamed up to create the first ever radio for the deaf and hard of hearing.
"The deaf have never been able to access radio before and this is the first time they'll be able to do it," said Dr. Ellyn Sheffield, Towson University professor.
When in the car, the driver sees a GPS screen, but the passenger sees the radio text of anything that's on.
"The opportunity to hear emergency alerting, disaster relief information, local school closings, Amber alerts," Sheffield said.
Born partially deaf, Comninos has always felt left out in car rides but not after using a caption radio prototype.
"It's very important to be involved with what's going on, not feel like an outcast," said Comninos,a former Towson University student.
With NPR, Sheffield has been working on the technology for four years and hopes the public can access it by 2012.
It's a multi-platform technology so the hearing impaired will also be able to plug in mini-HD radios into their iPad or iPhone and read the text as well.
They will have the ability to access something that many of us take for granted.
"I can't wait for it to come out. Hopefully I will be the first to use," said Comninos.
Sheffield recently won the Daily Record Publication's Innovator of the Year award for the Caption Radio.
Developers expect it to cost anywhere form $100 to several hundred dollars.