When something is not attended to by a person, even when it is right before them, they won't perceive it. This is known as inattentional blindness (Mack & Rock, 1998). Sometimes information missed due to inattentional blindness is trivial but inattentional blindness can become a problem when it hinders people from responding to something appropriately when a response is needed. When a visual cue is missed there can be an impact on decision-making. Variations in color luminance may also be a factor in one's ability to attend to something. For example, if a person is attending to a number of objects that are one color shade (for instance, dark green), it may be possible that this person might not see an additional object appear in their field of view (FOV) if it is the same color and shade. Conversely, the opposite might be true that a person is more likely to attend to the additional object if it is the same dark green color, opposed to an object that is colored a lighter green. This research investigated whether some variations of luminance of the same color (for example, dark green to light green) can affect one's ability to attend an additional object entering one's FOV. A scenario was presented to tank gunners that required them to observe objects of one color (dark green) while an additional object was briefly presented to them colored either dark green or light green. In this between-subjects study, 48 participants observed four dark green and four light green enemy tanks moving about the battlefield. Each was given a task that involved monitoring the dark green tanks only. During their monitoring, an additional vehicle (M981A3 FIST-V) briefly entered and exited their FOV. The additional vehicle was presented to 24 participants colored dark green. For the other 24, it was presented colored light green. This research addressed whether there was an association between color luminance, FOV, or focused attention and detection of the FIST-V. The results did not indicate an association between FOV and detection of the FIST-V [÷2(1, N = 48) = 0.08, p = 1.0]. Nor was there an association between focused attention and detection of the FIST-V using the following self-reporting questionnaires for determining levels of focused attention: ETAS [÷2(1, N = 48) = 2.06, p = 0.20], the CFQ [÷2(1, N = 48) = 0.75, p = 0.56], and the DAPI [÷2(1, N = 47) = 1.39, p = 0.75]. In the same manner, there was also no association between field dependence and detection of the FIST-V [÷2(1, N = 43) = 0.34, p = 0.75]. There was, however, an association between color luminance and detection of the FIST-V [÷2(1, N = 48) = 36.80, p < 1.0e-8]. / Master of Science

Glaucoma is a degenerative disease that contributes greatly to vision loss and blindness worldwide. There are several treatments that focus on alleviating its symptoms, but few address the underlying pathophysiology, the blockage of aqueous outflow, and the onset of neuroretinal damage. Novel drugs under investigation have aimed to address this deficiency. Two of these Rho kinase inhibitors have been approved by national health agencies, and several are in clinical trials. This work investigates the promise of inhibitors of the Rho kinase signaling pathway to treat primary open-angle glaucoma.

Recent studies have offered an abundance of evidence which indicates that night blindness is caused by vitamin A deficiency. Both adults and children have been used to investigate the relationship between vitamin A deficiency and night blindness.

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in early intervention (EI) referral and service frequency for children with blindness or visual impairment (BVI) and gather information about the practices and experiences of vision professionals across the United States. The study focused on obtaining data from certified teachers of students with visual impairment (CTVI) and certified orientation and mobility specialists (COMS) in the United States. Information collected included descriptive statistics and professional information about EI for children with BVI, and information about the referral process and service frequency for children with BVI during EI. Thirty-three states were represented in the collected data. Of these states, 26 had responses from four or more professionals, the criteria for inclusion in the analyses. Participants provided information based on a researcher-developed survey requesting information related to the procedures used to provide EI services for children with BVI. Questions were adapted from established instruments where possible. Across states, there were some statistically significant differences in CTVIs and COMS reports of procedures regarding the role of professional collaboration, parent/caregiver participation in IFSP meetings, strengths/resources utilized by vision professionals, and challenges parents/families encountered when accessing EI services for their child with BVI. No statistically significant differences were identified across states for type of referral method, most commonly initiated by health care professionals, or method by which service frequency was determined. Results will be used to inform future research to further examine EI for children with BVI in the United States.

<p>Advertising is something that we get in touch with on a daily basis and more or less everywhere. Advertising is used in different mediums, such as magazines, television, radio, internet, cellphones et.c. The aim of the present study is to find out if there are any recurrent dissimilarities how advertising is constructed among the mediums regarding rhetorical and semiotical theories. Two different mediums have been chosen for a comparison, printed advertisments versus internetbanners. The study has been based on a total of ten qualitative image analyses. To get a spread among the input material regarding the adverts, five different types of businesses have been chosen from a set of criteria that has been decided for this specific study. From every type of business, one advertisment from magazines or newspapers and one type of internetbanner have been chosen and have resulted in a total of five pair of matches which has been analyzed with an image analysis model. The result of this study clearly showed that there are recurrent dissimilarities among the two analyzed mediums. Adverts in magazines or newspapers contained generally more text than the internetbanners did, the adverts in papers also used more arguments than the internetbanners. The result also showed that the adverts in the papers contained more rhetorical figures than the internetbanners did. One potential reason why there were less text in the internet banners may be due to the phenomena called Banner blindness and the differences of the mediums.</p> / <p>Reklam är något vi kommer i kontakt med dagligen mer eller mindre överallt. Den återfinns i olika medier, såsom tidningar, TV, radio, internet, mobiltelefoner etc. Målet med denna undersökning är ett ta reda på om det finns några återkommande skillnader i hur reklam utformas i olika medier, utifrån retoriska och semiotiska teorier. Två skilda medier har valts ut för en jämförelse, tidningsannonser och internetbanners. Undersökningen har baserats på totalt tio kvalitativa bildanalyser. För att få en spridning på analysmaterialet har fem olika branscher valts ut efter uppsatta urvalskriterier. Från varje bransch har en utvald annons från tidningar respektive internet bildat fem parmatchningar som har analyserats med hjälp av en bildanalysmodell. Resultatet av undersökningen visade konkret att det finns återkommande skillnader eftersom tidningsannonserna innehåller mer text och fler argument än internetbanners. Vidare finns det också en skillnad mellan medierna då tidningsannonser har en tendens till att innehålla fler retoriska figurer än vad internetbanners gör. En möjlig anledning till att det var mindre text i internetbanners skulle kunna härledas till fenomenet Banner blindness likaså skillnaderna som finns mellan medierna.</p>

Conhecer o processo de aquisição e desenvolvimento da linguagem de uma criança cega é de fundamental importância, tal qual o das demais crianças. Constata-se que é necessário o emprego de algumas ferramentas para que este sujeito não seja impactado em seu caminho, devido, principalmente, ao acúmulo de dificuldades que se interpõem na fase inicial da sua vida. São indispensáveis vários estímulos, para que cada ser humano constitua-se como os outros, descobrindo talentos e qualidades, além de buscar continuamente as possibilidades para exercer a sua cidadania e jamais sentir-se deficiente. É por acreditar neste conceito que realizamos esta pesquisa, sendo a amostra constituída por três crianças cegas que freqüentam escolas da rede pública de Pernambuco com idade variando entre cinco e seis anos. O objetivo desse estudo foi verificar os efeitos do emprego dos contos de fadas na ampliação da comunicação de crianças cegas. Os estímulos oferecidos foram às narrativas dos contos de fadas dos Irmãos Grimm. Após ser concluída esta atividade, foram observadas as expressões orais, bem como as trocas comunicativas manifestadas por tais crianças. Os encontros foram gravados, transcritos e posteriormente analisados. As análises foram feitas tendo como parâmetro as sugestões da abordagem qualitativa por melhor adequar-se a esse tipo de estudo. Tais análises comprovaram que a utilização das narrativas dos contos de fadas podem se constituir uma ferramenta importante para estimular o processo de aquisição e desenvolvimento da linguagem em crianças cegas, trazendo-lhes um desempenho mais expressivo, no que se refere, especialmente, a comunicação oral, além de se constituir um recurso que promove a interação social no espaço escolar. Uma das aspirações deste trabalho é apontar caminhos alternativos que possam trazer melhor qualidade ao período de escolaridade destas crianças, bem como reforçar a busca de novas pesquisas nesta área de conhecimento / It is of fundamental importance to know the process of acquisition and development of language in blind children as that in other children. It is also necessary to use some advisable tolls so as not to impact those children on their way, mainly due to the accumulation of difficulties that interferes in the early stages of their lives. Several stimuli are essential, the most diverse as possible, so that each human being is just like the other, discovering talents and qualities and continually seeking opportunities to exercise the citizenship and nerve feeling different form the others. This research will be submitted with the main purpose of verifying the importance of fairy tales as a facilitator in the process of acquisition and development of language in blind children. The sample will be constituted by blind children who attend public schools in the state of Pernambuco, and are five to six years of age. The stimuli appear in the narrative (or reading) of the fairy tales of the Grimm Brothers. After having completed such activity the uterrance and the communicative exchanges expressed by these children will be observed. Finally the results will be analyzed from a qualitative approach to better match the type of study. The respective investigation may contribute to the science and the social inclusion process, specifically to include school, bringing a more expressive performance of blind children especially with reference to oral communication

Advertising is something that we get in touch with on a daily basis and more or less everywhere. Advertising is used in different mediums, such as magazines, television, radio, internet, cellphones et.c. The aim of the present study is to find out if there are any recurrent dissimilarities how advertising is constructed among the mediums regarding rhetorical and semiotical theories. Two different mediums have been chosen for a comparison, printed advertisments versus internetbanners. The study has been based on a total of ten qualitative image analyses. To get a spread among the input material regarding the adverts, five different types of businesses have been chosen from a set of criteria that has been decided for this specific study. From every type of business, one advertisment from magazines or newspapers and one type of internetbanner have been chosen and have resulted in a total of five pair of matches which has been analyzed with an image analysis model. The result of this study clearly showed that there are recurrent dissimilarities among the two analyzed mediums. Adverts in magazines or newspapers contained generally more text than the internetbanners did, the adverts in papers also used more arguments than the internetbanners. The result also showed that the adverts in the papers contained more rhetorical figures than the internetbanners did. One potential reason why there were less text in the internet banners may be due to the phenomena called Banner blindness and the differences of the mediums. / Reklam är något vi kommer i kontakt med dagligen mer eller mindre överallt. Den återfinns i olika medier, såsom tidningar, TV, radio, internet, mobiltelefoner etc. Målet med denna undersökning är ett ta reda på om det finns några återkommande skillnader i hur reklam utformas i olika medier, utifrån retoriska och semiotiska teorier. Två skilda medier har valts ut för en jämförelse, tidningsannonser och internetbanners. Undersökningen har baserats på totalt tio kvalitativa bildanalyser. För att få en spridning på analysmaterialet har fem olika branscher valts ut efter uppsatta urvalskriterier. Från varje bransch har en utvald annons från tidningar respektive internet bildat fem parmatchningar som har analyserats med hjälp av en bildanalysmodell. Resultatet av undersökningen visade konkret att det finns återkommande skillnader eftersom tidningsannonserna innehåller mer text och fler argument än internetbanners. Vidare finns det också en skillnad mellan medierna då tidningsannonser har en tendens till att innehålla fler retoriska figurer än vad internetbanners gör. En möjlig anledning till att det var mindre text i internetbanners skulle kunna härledas till fenomenet Banner blindness likaså skillnaderna som finns mellan medierna.

The aim of this study is to investigate whether blind individuals display cognitive advantages over sighted individuals with regard to second language acquisition. Previous studies from neuropsychology have indicated that this is the case. It has been found that blind L1 speakers can compensate for loss of vision by developing better perceptual and cognitive skills compared to sighted individuals, skills that are highly relevant to language acquisition. These studies do not, however, investigate blind L2 speakers, for whom it is not clear whether these advantages are also found.  In all, 80 adults participated in the study: 40 L2 speakers of Swedish (11 early blind, 9 late blind, 20 sighted, AO&lt;18) and a matching group and subgroups of L1 speakers. These speakers underwent tests on speech perception in noise, accentedness in an L2 and memory functions. The results revealed that L2 speakers are at a great disadvantage perceiving speech in noise compared to L1 speakers, and that there was no advantage associated with blindness. In the L1 speakers group, however, the results revealed that the early blind had advantages compared to the late blind and sighted in white noise, but that both blind groups were more negatively affected by babble noise than the sighted. The results in relation to accentedness in an L2 revealed that there were no advantages associated with blindness. The results further revealed there were no advantages associated with blindness on the episodic memory test. The results did, however, reveal that the early blind performed significantly better than the late blind and sighted on all phonological short-term memory tests and that both the early and late blind were significantly better than the sighted on recognition memory for new words, irrespective of language background. The conclusion is that blindness is associated with advantages in, for example, ability to learn new words and syntax, acquisition rate, ultimate L2 attainment, and language aptitude.

Submitted by Biblioteca Central (biblioteca@unicap.br) on 2017-10-16T21:59:16Z No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_ana_lucia_nascimento.pdf: 668189 bytes, checksum: 14ebd6278b31869f070005cf4b57c5c5 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-10-16T21:59:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_ana_lucia_nascimento.pdf: 668189 bytes, checksum: 14ebd6278b31869f070005cf4b57c5c5 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-07-06 / It is of fundamental importance to know the process of acquisition and development of language in blind children as that in other children. It is also necessary to use some advisable tolls so as not to impact those children on their way, mainly due to the accumulation of difficulties that interferes in the early stages of their lives. Several stimuli are essential, the most diverse as possible, so that each human being is just like the other, discovering talents and qualities and continually seeking opportunities to exercise the citizenship and nerve feeling different form the others. This research will be submitted with the main purpose of verifying the importance of fairy tales as a facilitator in the process of acquisition and development of language in blind children. The sample will be constituted by blind children who attend public schools in the state of Pernambuco, and are five to six years of age. The stimuli appear in the narrative (or reading) of the fairy tales of the Grimm Brothers. After having completed such activity the uterrance and the communicative exchanges expressed by these children will be observed. Finally the results will be analyzed from a qualitative approach to better match the type of study. The respective investigation may contribute to the science and the social inclusion process, specifically to include school, bringing a more expressive performance of blind children especially with reference to oral communication. / Conhecer o processo de aquisição e desenvolvimento da linguagem de uma criança cega é de fundamental importância, tal qual o das demais crianças. Constata-se que é necessário o emprego de algumas ferramentas para que este sujeito não seja impactado em seu caminho, devido, principalmente, ao acúmulo de dificuldades que se interpõem na fase inicial da sua vida. São indispensáveis vários estímulos, para que cada ser humano constitua-se como os outros, descobrindo talentos e qualidades, além de buscar continuamente as possibilidades para exercer a sua cidadania e jamais sentir-se ”deficiente”. É por acreditar neste conceito que realizamos esta pesquisa, sendo a amostra constituída por três crianças cegas que freqüentam escolas da rede pública de Pernambuco com idade variando entre cinco e seis anos. O objetivo desse estudo foi verificar os efeitos do emprego dos contos de fadas na ampliação da comunicação de crianças cegas. Os estímulos oferecidos foram às narrativas dos contos de fadas dos Irmãos Grimm. Após ser concluída esta atividade, foram observadas as expressões orais, bem como as trocas comunicativas manifestadas por tais crianças. Os encontros foram gravados, transcritos e posteriormente analisados. As análises foram feitas tendo como parâmetro as sugestões da abordagem qualitativa por melhor adequar-se a esse tipo de estudo. Tais análises comprovaram que a utilização das narrativas dos contos de fadas podem se constituir uma ferramenta importante para estimular o processo de aquisição e desenvolvimento da linguagem em crianças cegas, trazendo-lhes um desempenho mais expressivo, no que se refere, especialmente, a comunicação oral, além de se constituir um recurso que promove a interação social no espaço escolar. Uma das aspirações deste trabalho é apontar caminhos alternativos que possam trazer melhor qualidade ao período de escolaridade destas crianças, bem como reforçar a busca de novas pesquisas nesta área de conhecimento.

Thesis (Ph. D. (Medical Sciences)) -- University of Limpopo, 2016. / The burden of visual impairment is a major health problem worldwide, especially in the rural and remote areas of developing countries. Visual impairment does not only affect the productivity of the individuals affected, but may also result in a loss of income for those caring for them, which is time consuming. Globally, the majority of instances of visual impairment can be avoided or treated, if detected early. Therefore, it was considered important to evaluate the burden and determinants of blindness and visual impairment in order to institute measures to prevent avoidable blindness. AIM OF THE STUDY The aim of this study was to investigate the burden and determinants of blindness and visual impairment among the elderly in the Dikgale Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS), Capricorn District, Limpopo Province, South Africa. METHODOLOGY A cross-sectional analytic and descriptive study design was used. The participants included males and females, 50 years and above, who were permanent residents in the Dikgale HDSS. Optometric procedures were performed and a questionnaire was administered to the people selected as study participants to collect data about the knowledge, need, utilisation of eyecare services and barriers to the use of eye-care services in the area. Optometric procedures performed included case history, presenting visual acuity, pin-hole visual acuity if the presenting visual acuity was less than 6/18, auto and subjective refraction, visual fields using a Novissphere and Amsler’s grid, tonometry, direct ophthalmoscopy through a dilated pupil, and light perception for cases of blindness. Prevalence rates of blindness and visual impairment were determined by the results obtained from the oculo-visual examinations, such as visual acuity xvii measurements. Data analysis was done using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 23. Overall prevalence was calculated, as well as prevalence within subgroups defined by gender. To determine the predictive values for the determinants of visual impairment, the Pearson’s Chi square (with a 0.05 significant level) was used in order to eliminate the possibility that the observed results happened by chance. The odds ratios were calculated and interpreted at a 95% confidence interval to determine the strength of association between visual impairment and risk factors. Binary and multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to describe the relationship between visual impairment and demographics, socioeconomic factors, ocular risk factors and chronic diseases. All reported p-values which were two-sided and p-values <0.05 were considered significant. Results are presented in narrative and tabular forms and as figures. The study used descriptive analytical methods to describe the outcome of the research. RESULTS Of the 1000 selected subjects for the study, a total of 704 participated (i.e. completed the questionnaire and had the clinical tests performed on them), in other words, a response rate of 70.4%. The participants included 508 females and 196 males. All participants were Black South Africans and their ages ranged from 50 to 105 years, with a mean age of 65.6±10.3. The prevalence of bilateral visual impairment meeting the criteria in the better eye was 26.4% (186) of the 704 observed respondents. The majority of the participants had moderate visual impairment, with a similar prevalence in males and females. Many participants used tobacco products (278 or 39.4%). Cataracts (46.2%) and refractive error (40.3%) continue to be the leading causes of visual impairment, followed by corneal disorders (4.9%) and glaucoma (4.3%). The prevalence of low vision increased with age (p<0.001), but there was no significant difference between females (62.0) and males (58.5). The odds ratio of having visual impairment increased significantly with age ranging from OR 1.2 (95% CI, 0.6-2.3) in the age group 60-69 to OR 3.8 xviii (95%CI, 1.6-9.0) in the age group 80+. The likelihood of having visual impairment increased with tobacco use OR 1.9 (95%CI, 1.1-3.3). Not using available eye-care services increased the risk of having visual impairment OR 1.3 (95%CI, 0.8-2.2). Refractive error and pathological disorders were significantly associated with all the different degrees of visual impairment. Tobacco use was only significantly associated with moderate visual impairment and not significantly associated with severe visual impairment. Unemployment and lack of education are likely to increase the burden of visual impairment among the participants when looking at p-values for trends. CONCLUSION There is a high prevalence of presenting visual impairment in the 50+ age group in the Dikgale HDSS. Most of the leading causes of visual impairment are preventable and/or treatable, which can be achieved by appropriate screening strategies. Therefore, there is a need to embark on eye care promotion and awareness campaigns; and to provide low-cost, quality spectacles and cataract surgeries. Better education about prevention of blindness and visual impairment will help to minimise this burden.