THINGS YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT BLINDNESS

GUIDE DOGS (FOR BLIND OR VISUALLY IMPAIRED

PEOPLE) LEARN TO POOP ON COMMAND. THIS IS

SO THAT THE OWNER CAN CLEAN IT UP

THE US MILITARY ONCE USED COLOUR-BLIND PEOPLE

TO IDENTIFY CAMOUFLAGED COLOURS THAT WOULD

HAVE BEEN HARD FOR PEOPLE WITH REGULAR

VISION TO IDENTIFY

SOME BLIND PEOPLE HAVE LEARNED TO NAVIGATE

USING ECHOLOCATION BY CLICKING THEIR TONGUES.

THE WHO ESTIMATES THAT THAT ARE ABOUT

280 MILLION VISUALLY IMPAIRED PEOPLE IN

THE WORLD. ROUGHLY 40 MILLION OF THEM ARE BLIND

PRESIDENT THEODORE ROOSEVELT WENT BLIND IN

ONE EYE FROM A BOXING INJURY WHILE HE WAS

STILL SERVING AS PRESIDENT

IN THE UNITED KINGDOM, BLIND PEOPLE GET A

50% DISCOUNT ON TV LICENCES (FOR NON

EUROPEANS – IN EUROPE YOU OFTEN HAVE TO PAY

AN EXTRA FEE IN ORDER TO OWN A TELEVISION

THAT FUNDS PUBLIC BROADCASTING)

ORIGINALLY, BRAILLE WAS A TECHNIQUE USED BY

NAPOLEON'S SPIES SO THAT THEY COULD READ

MESSAGES IN THE DARK

ACCORDING TO THE WHO, 80% OF VISUAL IMPAIRMENT

CASES WORLDWIDE ARE TREATABLE, BUT 90% OF

PEOPLE WITH IMPAIRED VISION LIVE IN LOW-INCOME

COUNTRIES WITH LIMITED MEDICAL CARE ACCESS

THE REASON THAT THE POPULAR REDWALL SERIES

OF BOOKS FOR CHILDREN IS KNOWN FOR ITS

DESCRIPTIVE IMAGERY IS THAT THE AUTHOR,

BRIAN JACQUES, ORIGINALLY WROTE THE BOOKS

FOR BLIND CHILDREN