Toward Multimodal Notation for Mathematics: a first step - at @Science conference Making Science Accessible

Notation is a tool of thought in reasoning and communication [1]. However, to become an effective tool of thought, each notation expression must be properly
perceived. Blind and partially sighted persons run into difficulty in working with spatially represented mathematical expressions.
Our goal is to develop a new multimodal notation for mathematics such that visually
impaired people can:

• perceive and reflect on spatially represented mathematic concepts (e.g. graphs, diagrams, etc.);
• manipulate expressions in such notation;
• communicate, with sighted people as well as each other, their reasoning about and experience with mathematical notation.

The first step toward such a multimodal notation takes graphs into account. This talk introduces a software prototype which enables blind and partially
sighted to create, manipulate and explore graphs through speech visual and haptic interaction.
Furthermore, early usability results are presented.

[1] Iverson, K. E. 2007. Notation as a tool of thought. SIGAPL APL Quote Quad
35, 1-2 (Mar. 2007), 2-31.

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