Guest Post: let’s talk tips March 4, 2019, a Donna Jodhan Publication

March 04 2019

My let’s talk tips free monthly newsletter

 

Hi there!  It’s Donna and thank you for allowing me to come into your inbox.

Today, I’d like to introduce you to my free monthly newsletter.

Tips on technology, media, business, nutrition, and advocacy.

Enjoy!

 

Let’s Talk Tips For

Tuesday, January 1st 2019 – Volume 4

An Author Donna Jodhan Publication

 

About | Let’s Talk Tips is your monthly resource for the most current and reliable informational tips available in the areas of Technology, Nutrition, Media, Business, and Advocacy. Find out more at: http://bit.ly/ADJLTT

 

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Greetings,

 

Happy New Year! This month in Let’s Talk Tips:

 

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#Technology

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1.) Netflix is Testing an Instant Scene-Replay Feature

Did that scene in “Black Panther” or “Stranger Things” wow you so much that you wanted to stop everything and instantly rewatch it? A new feature being tested by Netflix could give viewers the ability to do exactly that.

https://lat.ms/2ReaZbU

 

2.) SMS to RCS. A New Messaging Standard. What it is and why you might want it.

A lot of people have become bored with SMS messaging, and the tech industry is very aware of it. While services such as Apple’s iMessage, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp allow you to add photos, GIFs and videos to your messages, they are not universal solutions.

http://bit.ly/2rYUgex

 

3.) The AI boom is happening all over the world, and it’s accelerating quickly.

The second annual AI Index report pulls together data and expert findings on the field’s progress and acceleration.

http://bit.ly/2GC9W1f

 

4.) The Worst Passwords of 2018. Is yours on this list?

Making it into the Top 25 for bad passwords this year are “donald,” “princess,” and “sunshine.” If you’re guilty of using one of the offending passwords on SplashData’s 100 Top Worst Passwords List of 2018, it’s time to get more creative.

http://bit.ly/2QIFkjt

 

5.) CNET Gives Us The Top Tech Stories of 2018

From Google’s scary Duplex AI to Fortnite mania, this year showed the good, bad and uncomfortable ways that tech is changing our lives.

https://cnet.co/2Reb2EC

 

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#Nutrition

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1.) Arjun Kapoor’s Weight Loss Diet Plan & Workout Routine. Before & After Pics

Bollywood actor Arjun Kapoor’s incredible weight loss story is indeed an inspiration for many people struggling to get fit. Read on to learn his diet plan and workout routine.

http://bit.ly/2PVVjFl

 

2.) How to Lose Belly Fat and Build Muscle Fast. 5 Workout and Diet Secrets Every Man Should Know

Building muscle is tricky in itself, doing that while losing the unwanted belly fat is perhaps, trickier. Here are some things that you need to incorporate in your workout routines to meet your goals.

http://bit.ly/2QItHJ7

 

3.) What is the Fast Metabolism Diet and How Does it Help with Weight Loss?

Essentially, the Fast Metabolism Diet is a 28-day eating plan that aims to speed up your metabolism by consuming specific foods in a certain time, resulting in weight loss. The diet, developed by a celebrity nutritionist and wellness consultant Haylie Pomroy, claims that eating the certain foods at the right time can ‘trick’ your metabolism into speeding up, helping you lose up to up to 20 pounds (9 kilos) in just 28 days.

http://bit.ly/2CsB7aN

 

4.) Why Relaxing is More Important for Weight Loss Than You Think. And How Often You Need to Chill Out

More and more gyms are investing in relaxation areas and luxury saunas, but you can reap the same benefits at home.

http://bit.ly/2V6sKcn

 

5.) 7 Tips for Exactly How to Eat Before and After a Workout

Nutrition pros break down the guidelines for pre and post workout eating, so you can maximize the benefits of your sweat session.

http://bit.ly/2PUZNfi

 

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#Media

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1.) All of Facebook’s Ad Targeting Options in One Infographic

Facebook’s Ad Targeting Options got you dizzy? Well you’re not alone. Check out this awesome infographic for a complete visual represenation of your options, fully categorized and illustrated.

http://bit.ly/2Lwa8y2

 

2.) The Verge Gives Us 22 Predictions for Social Media in 2019

What to expect from Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and more.

http://bit.ly/2EJ2nUQ

 

3.) For the first year ever, Pew Research Study reveals more people now turn to social media for news than actual newspapers.

It’s a sign of the times. Pew also found that other sources of news, including television, radio and news websites still outrank social media. You can take a look at Pew’s data distribution here.

https://cnet.co/2CthNu4

 

4.) Why businesses are relying on Facebook Groups to build engaged audiences.

At the beginning of 2018, Facebook switched up its algorithm in an attempt to “fix” the News Feed by promoting more posts from family and friends and demoting content from businesses, brands and media. The move actively distanced brands from their followers on the platform by limiting exposure to organic content posted by businesses. At first glance, the only solution for brands was to invest more in their Facebook ad campaigns, but some businesses have found an alternative to connect with their audience by building vibrant Facebook Group communities.

https://mklnd.com/2QJB1nS

 

5.) Instagram Strips Out Fake ‘Likes’ Tied to 3rd-Party Apps

Instagram has begun to remove inauthentic engagement with accounts that used third-party apps to grow their follower count and engagement on the platform — a practice that violates the app’s community guidelines and terms of use.

https://mklnd.com/2Cs5mym

 

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#Business

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1.) Barriers to Working Longer are Coming Down

Whether by choice or necessity, more adults are working past retirement age.

https://dpo.st/2BEA2uG

 

2.) Long Term Care and Nursing Home Information Systems Market Report

The Long Term Care and Nursing Home Information Systems Market Report provides an overview of the Long Term Care and Nursing Home Information Systems Industry, including industry characteristics, manufacturing technology, industry chain analysis and the latest market trends & dynamics.

http://bit.ly/2LtlaUJ

 

3.) Hunger Among Senior Citizens is Serious Problem

The period of life known as “the golden years” is often more bleak than bright for a lot of senior citizens in the United States. Nearly 5 million seniors citizens currently deal with hunger in the U.S., according to Feeding America, a nonprofit organization that focuses its efforts on hunger relief.

http://bit.ly/2BDkZlg

 

4.) Perennials, Not Millennials, Will Trigger the Next Wave of Talent Retention Efforts

Headlines in recent years have trumpeted workplace changes demanded by millennials, from nap pods to flexible scheduling to student-loan repayment. But there is another fundamental shift in workforce demographics. Older workers — or “perennials,” as this cohort has sometimes been called — are now the fastest-growing population of workers, with twice as many seniors as teenagers currently employed in the US.

http://bit.ly/2rQznln

 

5.) LinkedIn’s 50 Big Ideas for 2019: What to Watch in the Year Ahead

The business leaders, authors, journalists and academics who gave us their 2019 predictions foresee a shaky economy, a troubled world order and continued anxiety — but also a renewed focus on caring for ourselves, for each other and for doing the right thing. Here’s our annual look at the year ahead.

http://bit.ly/2CtFS3C

 

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#Advocacy

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1.) Accessibility at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan

Tokyo, Japan is hosting the 2020 Summer Olympics. As usual, the Paralympics will follow. It is expected that forty million people will travel to Japan to watch the Olympics and Paralympics. As a result, Japan is examining accessibility at the 2020 Summer Olympics. While Japan is accessible in some places already, the country will be making improvements between now and 2020.

http://bit.ly/2V1XFWW

 

2.) People With Disabilities Face Significant Barriers in Education System, Commission Finds

Ontario’s education system needs to modernize its approach to supporting disabled students at every age level and do more to eliminate persistent barriers they face in school, the province’s human rights commission said in a statement.

http://bit.ly/2EEjWoc

 

3.) Research Shows 1 in 5 Museums Do Not Provide Online Access Information and are Inadvertently Contributing to a “Disability Engagement Gap”

Museum websites are key tools for providing visitor access information, and the absence of this contributes to the ‘disability engagement gap’; where people with a disability are less likely to be regular or frequent visitors of museums than those who are not disabled.

http://bit.ly/2Sd3D5y

 

4.) Equal Access in Air Travel for the Blind. Raising Expectations from the United States Department of Transportation

Air travel and the treatment of blind passengers by the airlines are not new topics for the NFB and in the Braille Monitor. But recent events have the topics squarely on the NFB Agenda as you will read in this article.

http://bit.ly/2rOYpkU

 

5.) What would a truly disabled-accessible city look like?

Most cities are utterly unfriendly to people with disabilities, but with almost one billion estimated to be urban-dwellers by 2050, a few cities are undergoing a remarkable shift.

http://bit.ly/2PVpNYi

 

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#Subscription Information:

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Each month we aggregate all of the very best tips we can find in the areas of Technology, Nutrition, Media, Business, and Advocacy. If you are a writer, author, blogger or podcaster of informational tips in any of these areas, and you would like for your content to be considered for publication within this newsletter, you may send any information for future issues to our editor, Donna Jodhan, at: LetsTalkTips@DonnaJodhan.com.

 

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That’s it from me for this week.

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Have yourselves a great day and see you next week.

Donna

 

 

Works of art reimagined by Francine Kopun The Toronto Star

Works of art reimagined

OCAD University students rework a selection of AGO paintings into hands-on art the visually impaired can appreciate

 

Francine Kopun

The Toronto Star, Jan. 4, 2019

 

Peter Coppin remembers the discussion with a visually impaired student that helped him understand how much can be misunderstood when a person has to depend on words to understand what someone else can see.

 

They were talking about Italy and the student knew that Italy is shaped like a boot. But when Coppin described it as a boot with a high heel like the Three Muskateers would wear, the student laughed out loud. He had been envisioning Italy as an entirely different kind of boot shape and the idea of Italy as a Muskateer boot was comical to him.

 

It’s these chasms in understanding that Coppin and the Art Gallery of Ontario are trying to bridge with a program that brings multisensory projects, based on works of visual art, to AGO museum tours for people in the blind and low vision community.

 

While in the past museums have relied heavily on audio recordings and guides to bridge that gap, new practices are being brought on board, including multisensory aids designed by graduate students at OCAD University.

 

“Visuals are dominant in our culture. If you are a part of society and you don’t have access to visual items, then you don’t have access to a lot of  stuff about the culture that people who have vision have access to,” says Coppin, associate professor of the inclusive design graduate program and director of the perceptual artifacts lab at OCAD University.

 

In Coppin’s graduate class, students select a work of art at the AGO to interpret for people living with vision loss.

 

This year – the second year of the program – the works included four paintings: Tom Thomson’s The West Wind, Otto Dix’s Portrait of Dr. Heinrich Stadelmann; La Demoiselle de magasin by James Tissot and Jar of Apricots by Jean-Siméon Chardin.

 

In a way, it’s about getting back to the roots of what museums used to be, said Melissa Smith, co-ordinator of the gallery guide, adult education officer and access to art programs for the AGO.

 

Early museums began as private collections, typically belonging to the wealthy, who would share art and artifacts they had purchased or collected on their travels. They were displayed in “wonder rooms.” People were allowed to touch the items as part of the experience.

 

The AGO already offers multisensory tours for people living with vision loss, which include some works that can be touched – including the museum’s large Rodin sculptures – under supervision, but providing 3-D support for works of visual arts offers the possibility of evoking more than just the sense of touch.

 

For months, Coppin’s students grappled with the idea of how to render the terrifying look on Dr. Stadelmann’s face into a tactile experience and how to communicate the cold of the water in The West Wind.

 

“We were totally drawn to this portrait; the eerie atmosphere,” said student Shannon Kupfer, speaking of the Dix portrait. “I was dying to interpret it.”

 

Dix layered paint on the doctor’s eyes – they appear to bulge. He seems haunted. His hands are in fists by his sides. Kupfer and her partner, Tyson Moll, wanted viewers to feel that tension, and also feel the deep wrinkles in his face.

 

They made a 3-D replica of the doctor’s head in polymer clay that felt cold and a bit yielding, but still firm to the touch. The eyes bulge like they do in the painting.

 

They sewed hair onto his head in little batches, to mimic the strokes of the paintbrush in the painting. They made the body boxy and rigid, to communicate the physical tension in the painting. They gave him a rigid collar, backed by cardboard. His fists were made of polymer clay coated in silicone.

 

They also made it out of products that were easy to care for – the clothes are fastened with Velcro to make it easier for curators to remove them and wash them if necessary.

 

They recorded an audio component – a fluent German speaker reading a passage from one of Dr. Stadelmann’s writings, concerning avant-garde art in relation to what was then considered psychiatric wisdom. They included the hissing noise that used to accompany recordings played on records.

 

“It’s not just engaging for the low-sight community, it’s engaging for everyone. It’s such a cool way to get kids – or anyone – more engaged with art,” Kupfer said.

 

The problem of communicating the coldness of the water in Tom Thomson’s piece was solved more simply, with a bag of blue slime. To convey the feeling of wind, the students invested in a $20 miniature fan from Amazon.com.

 

“When you stand in front of this painting you can feel the strong wind because of the shape of the tree and the waves on the lake,” said student Norbert Zhao.

 

John Rae, who lost his eyesight in his 20s and is now blind, has been on the AGO multisensory tours and experienced the works made by this year’s OCAD students. While he liked the Otto Dix sculpture, some things didn’t communicate as planned. For example, without knowing anything about the painting, when Rae touched the sculpture, he thought the doctor was a boxer wearing gloves, because of the way the hands felt. “That comes from me as a sports fan,” said Rae, a retired public servant and a board member of the Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians.

 

Rae liked the multisensory adaptation of Jar of Apricots, by students Nikkie To and Grace Mendez. The painting is a still life that includes a jar of apricots, a glass of wine, bread and a cup of tea.

 

Their model included dried apricots for tasting, jarred scents including a cork soaked in wine and apricot jam with added artificial apricot scent; 3-D printed objects including a tea cup and wine glass to handle, background music from the period and others sounds – touching the wine glass triggered the sound of a liquid being poured.

 

While Rae believes the multisensory aids provide another tool, he thinks museums in general need to consider making more objects available for handling by the blind and vision impaired. He cited as an example ancient pottery – while a museum may have perfect examples on display, it may also have imperfect examples in storage. What would be the harm, asks Rae, in making those available to people with limited eyesight, especially since the tours happen infrequently, involve about six to 12 items, and small numbers of people?

 

“One can learn a fair amount from the expertise that the people who run these tours bring to the table, but there is no substitute for being able to touch,” Rae said.

 

The challenge at the AGO, Smith said, is that in an art gallery the works tend to be flat and one-of-a-kind.

 

“Our conservators and curators do their utmost to ensure the objects, like sculptures, which make the most interesting objects to touch, are cared for and exhibited to support this program,” Smith said.

 

Ian White, president of a local Toronto chapter of the Canadian Council of the Blind called the CCB Toronto Visionaries, said that while AGO tour leaders excel at describing art in a way that triggers the imagination, the multisensory tours are evocative.

 

“It starts a conversation about the piece, about the artist, about the history,” White said.

 

“It really allows people to engage with works that are part of our collective culture.”