Turning Images Into Sensations to Assist the Blind
12 October 2010
Italian Andrea Bocelli is just one of the great singers and musicians who happen to be blind
This is the VOA Special English Health Report.
Years ago, scientists began to learn that certain parts of the brain had certain duties. For example, one part was responsible for breathing; another dealt with the sense of smell.
Scientists thought our brains could not change. But then they discovered that the brain could sometimes reorganize itself when conditions required.
Josef Rauschecker is a professor of physiology and biophysics at Georgetown University in Washington. He wondered if this ability to change could explain the idea that other senses in blind people improve to balance their lack of vision.
JOSEF RAUSCHECKER: "The stories about [the] disproportionate number of blind musicians, for example. Just think of Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, so many. Andrea Bocelli, if you prefer classical music."
The visual cortex is the part of the brain that processes sight. But earlier research by Professor Rauschecker and other scientists found that it can also do other jobs. The research showed that the brains of blind people can use the visual cortex to process sound and touch.
But the visual cortex is divided into separate parts, or modules. Each module normally performs different jobs related to vision.
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