Blind and visually impaired Web users offered taste of multimedia future
A still from *Having a Ball*, one of three circus-themed e-cards by Kristine Ng.For the estimated 7 to10 million blind and visually impaired Americans, the Internet has proven to be the most powerful — and most empowering — tool since Braille. Widely available software programs such as JAWS for Windows and Windows-Eyes can read aloud online newspapers and magazines and other previously inaccessible materials. Yet as bandwidth and memory improve, businesses have increasingly sought to drive customers to glitzy, graphics-heavy Web sites that are more difficult, if not impossible, for blind users to navigate. Thanks to a group of senior design students at Washington University in St. Louis, blind and visually impaired Web users can now experience some of the Internet’s increasingly expansive potential. The 23 students — design, illustration and advertising majors in the School of Art — have created some of the first Web sites showcasing new accessibility components of Macromedia Flash MX, the increasingly popular authoring tool for Web interfaces, interactive video, Web-based games, streaming music and other multimedia content.
Magnets help doctors navigate through blood vessels
Magnetically guided catheters have been designed to possibly provide better control and access to the heart and brain than their traditional, wire-threaded counterparts.
New gene contributes to sense of balance
“Now that we’ve discovered this new gene, we can begin to understand the mechanisms that allow the body to sense gravity and maintain balance,” researcher says.
Genome of intestinal bacterium sequenced
School of Medicine researchers have completed sequencing the genome of Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, one of the most prevalent bacteria that live in the human intestine.
Lung-volume reduction surgery benefits emphysema patients
The procedure appears to improve overall health and quality of life for individuals with end-stage emphysema, and these effects last as long as five years in more than half of this population.
Holtzman receives research awards
He has received the 2003 Potamkin Prize for Research in Picks, Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders; and the Promising Work Award from MetLife Foundation.
Embryonic pancreatic tissue controls type I diabetes in rats
School of Medicine investigators’ work is directed toward developing a new treatment for type I diabetes mellitus, also known as juvenile diabetes.
Finding a better way: Simpler, cheaper prosthetics developed by researchers
A new process may expedite and simplify the procedure for the estimated 400,000 Americans with an amputated limb.
Tuition, fees, room-and-board charges announced
Undergraduate tuition at the University will total $29,700 for the 2004-05 academic year — a $1,400 increase over the 2003-04 academic year.
‘Nun study’ researcher to give Friedman Lecture
What do nuns have to do with understanding aging? A lot, according to renowned author and epidemiologist David Snowdon, Ph.D., this year’s keynote speaker for the Center for Aging’s Fourth Annual Friedman Lecture. The lecture and an update on the center’s activities will be from 9 a.m.-noon May 18 in Brown Hall Auditorium. Snowdon has […]