Blind boy in Britain masters echo location to "see"

From The Daily Mail in the UK:

A blind boy has learnt how 'to see' again - after being taught a language used by dolphin.

Young Jamie Aspland (pictured) utters tiny high-pitch clicks to rebound the sound off surfaces - and guide him round obstacles.

The four-year-old - who was born without his sight - was taught the 'echo location' technique as part of an exciting technique pioneered in the U.S to help the blind.

His mother Deborah hailed the treatment after her son was able to walk unaided to the park for the first time and even steered himself around a fence.

She said: 'It's changed our lives. The therapy has been a revelation.

'Since learning the skill we can walk to the park and Jamie no longer has to hold my hand.

'He even clicks to find out where the handrails are on our staircase before walking down unaided - it's amazing.'

His mother, 39, added she watched nervously after tiny Jamie's first session when he approached a fence - but was able to round it.

She said: 'We thought he was going to go straight into it. But he just went round it - I didn't think it would be possible.

'He was born blind but this therapy has given him a new lease of life.'

Jamie, from Ashford in Kent, has just completed his third session with echo location guru Daniel Kish - who lost his sight when he was just 13 months old.

As president of World Access for the Blind, Kish has developed bio-acoustics based on animal sonar to help humans form 'mental maps' of their surroundings.

He copied the technique dolphins used to navigate their way through the murky depths - using high pitch clicks to penetrate objects and reflect off their internal structure.
Jamie is able to mirror that behaviour - which complements his use of a cane - by flicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth to mimic the porpoises' underwater tones

He is among just a handful of children in the world being offered the treatment by globetrotting therapist Mr Kish, who is based in California.

He said: 'Working with Jamie and his family was a terrific experience, and he was very responsive.'

He explained that echolocation, or FlashSonar as he terms it, will eventually enable Jamie to detect buildings from a distance of 100 metres.

He said: 'FlashSonar provides one with information of a fair amount of detail at distances of dozens of metres, depending on the circumstances.

'A tree may be detectable and recognized at 10 metres, while a large building may be detectable at 100 metres or more.

'It is literally like "seeing" with dim flashes of light. In fact, neural scientists believe that the same parts of the brain used in visual processing are also being deployed for FlashSonar.'

The mother of three gave up her job as a tour operator to care for Jamie and his autistic brother Kane full time.

Jamie's twin sister Rosie also has developmental and learning difficulties.
She added: 'Jamie has had three days of intensive training and Daniel will be working with us over the next 12 months.

'It's been a huge help to me and obviously means Jamie is a lot more independent now.

'Knowing that Jamie can be safe and will understand what is happening, where the traffic is and what's around him will really help.'

The money for Jamie's £2,500 treatment was raised by well-wishers in his hometown - by carrying out a range of blindfolded activities to understand what life for Jamie is like.

They hosted a special "blind golf" where friends and family were challenged to wear a blindfold and hit balls from a tee - seeing who could get the longest drive.