A Descriptive Analysis of Language and Cognition in Congenitally Blind Children Ages 3 Through 9

Purpose This study was designed as an investigation of the semantic and cognitive functioning of congenitally blind children within the age range of 3 through 9 years, to help fill the gap in the existing research concerning the early development of the visually handicapped. Delays in cognitive development among school age congenitally blind children have been attributed to the limitations imposed by blindness on mobility and interaction with objects and events in the environment. It has been assumed that blind children must rely on less efficient sensory perception and discrimination processes resulting in a conceptualization of the world which may be inconsistent, incomplete, or significantly different from that of sighted children. If the object concept differs for blind children, the meaning of words used to refer to those objects could be expected to differ from the meanings assigned by sighted children. Problems in word meaning and concept development—and hence, in communication—are an important consideration in mainstreaming efforts in the public schools. Consequently, the present study sought to explore linguistic and cognitive representation of common objects among blind children, along with their understanding and use of dimensional concepts in dealing with those objects. Procedure Ten totally and congenitally blind children and ten sighted children of matching age, sex, and socioeconomic status were interviewed individually following a prescribed format. By means of these structured interviews, information was gathered concerning the cognitive functioning of each child, and responses were secured to the lexical semantic tasks. These tasks focused on verbally and tactually derived attributions for selected objects defined as more tangible and less tangible, as well as measures of receptive and expressive use of comparative adjectives of dimension. Conclusions 1. This analysis suggested that the information gained through tactual means does not differ significantly from that gained through vision. The meaning of common words, and the underlying object concept reflected through the children\u27s attributions, did not appear to be significantly altered by the absence of vision. The younger blind children were found to have an accurate, albeit shallow conception of the less tangible objects, probably as a result of reduced opportunity for meaningful interaction/exploration with those objects. 2. The total number of attributions by the sighted children was not significantly larger than that of the blind children. Much similarity in the kind of attributes used was noted between vision groups. The number of visually oriented attributes mentioned by the blind children was extremely small compared to the total number of attributes used. It was concluded, therefore, that the language of the blind children was based on the object concept they had developed through tactual experience, rather than being a reflection of the language of sighted children. 3. Cognitive delay was evident among the older blind children, leading to the observation that the entire group was functioning at a preoperational level of cognitive development. The blind children\u27s attributions revealed a tactually based conceptualization of the world that was related to their personal experience, but which was not found to differ significantly from the visually based conceptualization of the sighted children. In fact, the mental image/object concepts for both vision groups appeared to draw heavily on egocentric and functional characteristics of the objects. 4. Communication between blind and sighted children regarding the objects used in this study did not appear to be seriously disrupted by the absence of vision. However, the importance of assisting blind children to develop effective and systematic methods for gathering and organizing information through tactual means was underscored. The results of this study emphasize the need for blind children to experience objects and events first hand

Ononono

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On Contending with Unruly Neighbors in the Global Village: Viewing Information Systems as Both Weapon and Target

While information technologies we employ in business, government, and society have dramatically enhanced our ability to conduct commerce, the vulnerabilities of these systems create potential dangers not often fully apprehended. As an example, criminal and terrorist groups have demonstrated a sophisticated understanding of how to adapt organizational forms and information technologies to advance their agendas, regardless of how contemptible these may be. In this article, we consider how these groups may view information technology and systems both as means by which they may more effectively organize themselves and as potential targets as they subvert the underlying societal assumptions regarding the technology itself. Topics such as these have implications for both IS research and practice because the changing nature of warfare means entities that may have until recently been seen as “non-combatant” are no longer viewed as such; any organization’s online resources may be regarded and serviced as legitimate targets. This fact, coupled with the interconnectedness of the global economy, makes it imperative to understand the potential threat—whether this is acted on by criminals, terrorists, or even by hostile nation states—and place greater emphasis on defending vital systems against such attacks

The Limits of Information: Measuring Differences Between Local and Distance Group Attitudes Toward Distance Learning

Because of the imperative of attaining advanced education in the emerging global service economy, and the difficulties involved in traveling to distant classrooms, universities are investing heavily in interactive video and other types of distance learning. While we admit the necessity to investigate these modes of instructional delivery, we also call for a fair but critical investigation of what these technologies take away from the classroom experience. We performed a quasi-experimental study to investigate just that. Students in a local and distance class taught simultaneously by one instructor were asked for their perceptions about the experience. In the main, the perceptions of students in the Distance setting were generally less favorable than their Local setting counterparts. Implications of our findings are discussed

Miniature, low-power X-ray tube using a microchannel electron generator electron source

Embodiments of the invention provide a novel, low-power X-ray tube and X-ray generating system. Embodiments of the invention use a multichannel electron generator as the electron source, thereby increasing reliability and decreasing power consumption of the X-ray tube. Unlike tubes using a conventional filament that must be heated by a current power source, embodiments of the invention require only a voltage power source, use very little current, and have no cooling requirements. The microchannel electron generator comprises one or more microchannel plates (MCPs), Each MCP comprises a honeycomb assembly of a plurality of annular components, which may be stacked to increase electron intensity. The multichannel electron generator used enables directional control of electron flow. In addition, the multichannel electron generator used is more robust than conventional filaments, making the resulting X-ray tube very shock and vibration resistant

The AMCIS 2003 Panels on IS Education-I: Let Us Not Throw Out the Baby with the Bath Water: Information, Technology, and Systems All Matter in the Core IS Course

Recent discussion about MIS centers on its role as an academic discipline and the utility of the core IS course in undergraduate business programs. This article presents a summary of a panel discussion at the AMCIS 2003 meeting about these issues. In includes the results of a survey on what elements of the IS 2002.1 Introduction to MIS course are being used that was presented. It also presents the discussions among panel participants and the audience and the panelists emerging perspective on the topic. Some advocate a reduction in the focus on systems and technology in the core IS course. However, we believe that this view is an over-reaction to concerns about the course, and suggest (as did many before us) that systems theory is a central organizing them of the core IS course. We believe that the response by the field should not be to water down our core course, but to identify our contribution and highlight it. To this end, we offer a concise statement of what we believe is the heart of the core IS course

Robbing Peter to Pay Paul: The OtherSide of Group Support Systems

That Group Support Systems (GSS) can enhance group performance appears to be the case. However, GSS research has drawn heavily from a rational perspective, one that may not be able to comprehend the full range of phenomena at play in group meetings. Although a social perspective may provide greater explanatory power, little has been done to investigate GSS phenomena from this viewpoint. This paper considers more fully the social impacts of GSS by varying levels of GSS restrictiveness and assessing the effect that this may have on group cohesiveness. We find that groups in the more restrictive treatment experienced lower perceived cohesiveness than did those in the non-restrictive treatmen