Author: Garry Foran
Affiliation: Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing / Swinburne University of Technology
Country: Australia
Title: Astrophysics in the Dark: Challenges and Solutions from a BVI Perspective
As a blind researcher, I am confronted on a daily basis with the challenges of
conducting a research program in a field where visual interfaces to
information are all pervasive,, and within which the interrogation and
presentation of results are dominated by visual tools. From basic activities
such as finding and reading a research paper, through the manipulation and
interrogation of data, to the ‘visualisation’ and presentation of results, the
barriers to equitable access for a BVI person are significant and, for many,
unsurpassable. In this talk I will describe some of the barriers that I have
encountered in my own research activities, the range of solutions that I am
applying, and areas that could do with more attention?