Eye-Tracking Software to Help People with Disabilities Use Smartphones

An Israeli start-up company, uMoove, has spent the last three years developing a smartphone/tablet technology that allows users to control the device through eye and head movements. Moti Krispil, the founder and CEO of uMoove, sought to create this program to help people with disabilities use their devices “to do things like browse the Web, play games, and read books.”* The creators of uMoove were inspired by one of the founders’ relatives who’s living with ALS and is unable to use a smartphone or tablet.

While other companies, Samsung in particular, are trying to develop this same eye-tracking software, Moti and his team are determined to make this technology compatible on any device to make it available to all users and maximize it’s potential.

To learn more about uMoove…. 

Check out their website here http://umoove.me

*Or click this link to read Brian Chen’s NY Times article, “Eye-Tracking Tech Will Be Open to iPhones and Other Devices.”

36,000 Papers Cranes for Brain Injury Awareness

Above photo courtesy of the Hasting's Museum's Facebook Page

In honor of Brain Injury Awareness month, the Diorama Hall at the Hastings Museum in Nebraska has been adorned with 36,000 handcrafted paper cranes. As the president of the Brain Injury Association of Nebraska, Jacquie Cox, says, “Our goal was to get 36,000 because that would be one for each person in Nebraska living with a disability from a brain injury.” To see more of the brightly colored cranes and to help spread awareness, check out the Hastings Museum’s Facebook page! Also, you can read about this initiative here in Shay Burk’s Hastings Tribune article, “Paper cranes draw attention to brain injuries.”

For info about those affected by brain injury in your state, check out the Brain Injury Association of America's website: http://www.biausa.org

The Sky's the Limit: Quadriplegia Doesn't Stop Skydiving Enthusiasts

Watch the below video, courtesy of the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, to see how Randy Haims, a wheelchair-bound man on a ventilator, made his dream of skydiving a reality. A little disclaimer: While we're not necessarily encouraging you all to go skydiving, we are encouraging you to go out and challenge the limits and make what might seem impossible, possible. 

As fellow skydiving enthusiast Kim Anderson, PhD, says in the video, "You have to get back into life and you have to keep trying. The more you try and the more you prove people wrong, that you can do things, the more satisfaction you feel from that. It's the freedom I've been looking for for the last 15 years that I've been injured."

For more videos on people testing the limits and living their lives, check out the Sports & Recreation section on the Reeve Foundation's website:

http://www.christopherreeve.org/site/c.ddJFKRNoFiG/b.5848659/k.5E06/Reeve_Foundation_Videos.htm

Reeve Health Minutes - Video Tips for Individuals Living with Paralysis

The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation is an organization “dedicated to curing spinal cord injury by funding innovative research, and improving the quality of life for people living with paralysis through grants, information, and advocacy.” In addition to their numerous initiatives and resources is a video series called Reeve Health Minutes. As the website describes, these videos provide “actionable tips for individuals living with paralysis to help them improve their health and wellness.” To check out what this site has to offer, click here: Reeve Health Minutes. Also, to learn more about the Reeve Foundation and how it helps, follow this link to the website’s home page: The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation.

O.J. Brigance: A Man of Inspiration

As the Baltimore Ravens prepare to take on the San Francisco 49ers tomorrow in Super Bowl XLVII, they’ll find their inspiration in one member of the organization you may not have heard too much about. O.J. Brigance, the Ravens’ Senior Adviser to Player Development, is currently suffering from ALS—also known as Lou Gherig’s disease—but he’s not letting the disease prevent him from making those around him into “better men.” O.J., pictured above with his wife Chanda, can no longer speak and only has movement of his eyes and lips. With the help of a specialized computer that translates his eye movements into words, O.J. is able to communicate with others and continues to work full time with the team.

According to O.J., better known to his teammates as “Juice,” “When people say I inspire them, it encourages me to continue to persevere through this light and momentary trouble. I realize that what I am enduring now is not only for my development but to also be able to help those dealing with the same issues.” Despite the daily challenges he has to overcome, O.J. still feels “…blessed to have the opportunity to serve God in this current state.” On top of his job helping players with whatever issues their dealing with, O.J. strives to help others living with ALS.  Not long after his diagnosis, he founded the Brigance Brigade to provide resources for those with ALS to purchase the expensive equipment they need.

In Coach John Harbhaugh’s words, “[O.J’s] a shining light in the building, and we all definitely are energized by that.” No matter who you want to win tomorrow’s game, we can all root for Brigance and be inspired by his determination to make a difference.

Check out Bob Glauber’s “Newsday” article on Brigance here: “O.J. Brigance inspires Ravens as he battles Lou Gherig’s disease.”