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• The Vision Thing
• Places & Culture
• Weekly Digest

The subhead I recommended for the online version of Virginia Stem Owens' essay "Led by the Blind" in the May/June issue of B&C was "Visionary writing despite the loss of sight." I have a history of arguable use of the word "despite," and after another reading I realized this "despite," while defensible (as far as it challenged the assumption that the loss of vision is necessarily limiting), may have been contrary to the conclusion of the piece, which is that the loss of sight can make one's other senses and conceptions of reality more acute. This was echoed in Oliver Sacks' latest New Yorker piece in July on the vision of the blind (unavailable online but summarized by this blogger; version of an earlier piece here). Sacks, a neurologist, relayed some of his correspondence from people who had lost their sight or been born blind. Some said they retained a truly visual conception of the world, essentially picturing things in their brain (which in some ways is what everyone does—the eyes don't "see," but merely send messages to the brain, which then composes an image), while others have formed a mostly tactile or auditory relationship to their environment. The piece will truly change the way you see the world.

• As I reflected on the writing of Owens and Sacks, and the role of the eyes in how we perceive our surroundings, I remembered my interview with a police sergeant who specializes in organizing high–stress simulations to train officers for armed conflict. He explained why raising trainees' blood pressure is as important a part of preparation as a classroom lecture on procedure:

"Tunnel Vision and Auditory Exclusion are the two most common physiological effects that kick in under sudden and intense stress. Tunnel Vision causes the officer to focus on the particular threat and reduces the information he or she would normally be able to process; the officer may not be able to see the sights of his or her own weapon because he or she is focused on the suspect's weapon. It reduces the peripheral vision that might sometimes alert the officer to an additional threat, such as another suspect or a moving vehicle.  Auditory Exclusion is not quite as common but is also reported after stressful encounters. It can cause weapons close by to sound like a cork gun. High–stress, scenario–based training tries to replicate these effects by exposing officers to stressful encounters. If they experience these natural reactions, they will be inoculated to them when they enter a real confrontation.

• Finally, I couldn't believe my own eyes when I received this e–mail forward this week:

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh?

• Related:

Review of Sacks-inspired movie At First Sight from this New York University film database

Slackjaw, a bitter memoir about going blind by Jim Knipfel

From the Washington Post:

HANGZHOU, China—Like many of the thousands of other graduates here, Lai Chuanlong, 24, was the first in his family to attend college, the son of illiterate villagers who borrowed heavily to pay for his education. It seemed a no–risk investment in a brighter future. Two months after his graduation, however, prospects remain bleak. Other than a brief stint as a factory laborer and a job offer at a supermarket for about $2 per day, Lai has found no work. … Throughout the world's most populous country, a dramatic surge in the number of college graduates has created fierce competition for the relatively high–paying office jobs that were once conveyed almost by right to anyone with a university degree. Where once college graduation ensured passage into the ranks of a privileged elite, this year it became a gateway to worry, diminished hopes and the prospect of unemployment—the result not only of larger class sizes but also of lowered educational standards at newer institutions. Full story

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