Palestinian girls invent laser cane
Cane uses sensors to detect obstacles for the blind
Last Updated: Tuesday, April 27, 2010 | 1:53 PM ET
CBC News
Three Palestinian girls have developed a walking cane that utilizes infrared technology to alert blind people of obstacles and drop-offs, winning the girls a trip to a prestigious science fair in California.
Asil Abu Lil, 14, watched her blind aunt and uncle struggle to navigate the steep slopes and sidewalks of Nablus, a city in the northern part of the West Bank.
She and two classmates designed a beeping walking stick as a science project at their UN-funded girls' school.
They gathered spare parts from electronics stores around the West Bank, and patched together a cane that uses two infrared sensors, one front-facing and one in the tip of the cane, to detect obstacles and drop-offs.
The cane beeps when it passes over a hole or steps going downward.
Although various types of "laser canes" have existed since the early 1970s, the girls' design resolves a fundamental flaw in previous models by detecting holes in the ground, said Mark Uslan, director of the American Federation of the Blind's technology division.
A UN agency spokesperson described the girls as "the Albert Einsteins of tomorrow."
The invention beat dozens of other West Bank contestants and won them a trip to Intel Corp.'s youth science fair, to be held in San Jose, Calif., in May.
The three girls are the first Palestinians to participate in the prominent event, where students from more than 50 countries will compete, vying for the grand prize of $75,000.
"Of course, I want to go to America, but this project is important for the blind and we want it to help them," Asil said.
Despite being a key member of the winning team, Asil was almost left out of the trip. There was only money to send two girls to California.
After drawing lots, Asil was to stay behind.
UN workers heard this and pooled money last week to purchase an additional ticket. When Asil heard the news on Monday, she broke into tears, leaping up from the table to embrace her classmates.
"Even when I'll be old, I will remember this time forever," she said.
With files from The Associated PressShare Tools
Top News Headlines
- Dozens of children die in Syria massacre, activists say
- More than 90 people have been killed by regime forces in a district of central Syria, activists say, and as many as half the victims may have been children. more »
- Aylmer triple stabbing leads to first-degree murder charges
- The estranged partner of a young mother who was stabbed to death along with her parents at their home in Aylmer, Que., has been charged with first-degree murder Friday. more »
- Severe storm in Quebec leaves damage in its wake
- Trees were uprooted, roofs damaged and windows shattered as severe thunderstorms, and possibly a tornado, rattled through southwestern Quebec Friday night. more »
- The risks and responsibilities of taking on Mt. Everest
- The deaths of five climbers last weekend on Mt. Everest, with more summits underway this weekend, fuels the debate about the risks and responsibilities of high altitude climbing. more »
Latest Technology & Science News Headlines
- Unloading of docked SpaceX capsule to start Saturday
- The privately bankrolled SpaceX Dragon capsule made a historic arrival at the International Space Station on Friday, and astronauts will begin unloading some of the 544 kilograms of food, water, clothing and other supplies its carrying starting Saturday. more »
- South Africa, Australia to share world's largest telescope
- South Africa and Australia will jointly host the Square Kilometre Array, which promises to be the world's largest telescope, the international consortium in charge of the project said Friday. more »
- Bonavista, N.L., 'coyote' was really wolf, tests confirm
- Wolves have not been seen in Newfoundland since around 1930 and were believed to have been hunted to extinction on the island, but genetic tests have confirmed that an 82-pound animal shot on the Bonavista Peninsula in March was, in fact, a wolf. more »
- Once-rare argus butterfly thriving thanks to climate change
- Global warming is threatening the existence of many species, such as the giant polar bear, but in the case of Britain's brown argus butterfly, it took a species in trouble and made it thrive. more »
- Yahoo scraps digital magazine designed for iPad
- Yahoo has killed Livestand, a tablet magazine, just six months after its debut on the iPad. more »
Bob McDonald's Blog
Government to shut down unique fresh water research area May. 25, 2012 12:31 PM The Experimental Lakes Area research facility in Northern Ontario is being closed down after 44 years of providing invaluable data to scientists in Canada and internationally, a decision that has stunned researchers and environmental groups.
Quirks & Quarks
- May 26: Before the Lights Go Out May. 25, 2012 4:15 PM A new book, "Before the Lights Go Out: Conquering the Energy Crisis Before It Conquers Us", suggests that the unpredictable, unplanned, ad-hoc way our energy use developed in the past will shape our energy future.
Latest Features
- Aylmer triple stabbing leads to first-degree murder charges
- Pope's butler arrested in Vatican leaks scandal
- B.C. premier unhappy with disgraced Mountie's transfer
- Everest victim's husband says family not seeking government help
- The risks and responsibilities of taking on Mt. Everest
- Severe storm in Quebec leaves damage in its wake
- Canada ending 'Buffalo shuffle' for visas, closing consulate
- Ottawa man in hospital after lightning strike
- What a Greek euro exit could mean for Canada
