The Federal Drug Administration recently approved cochlear implants for children as early as one year old.
The video below is making the rounds on the internet this week, as this two year old hears her mother’s voice for the first time after his implant. It is a truly remarkable thing to see.
There are more than 400,000 deaf people in the United States alone, with millions more around the world. Yet less than 200,000 worldwide have cochlear implants though the rate of adoption is increasing worldwide. This is in part due to affordability, improvements in delivery and expertise, and also policy.
I’m writing this post to highlight the important role of policy.
In the US, the FDA just recently approved implants in children as early as one year old. This policy change has paved the road for this child to get his implants in a safe and affordable manner. This ia a great example how a small change in thinking can have a drastic impact on the lives of people.
I mention this because I am appalled by some of our current policies in not only Healthcare, but also in Energy, Education, Immigration, Alternative Lifestyles, and countless more.
A great deal has already been said on Education policy in U.S. and I won’t repeat them here. For a great primer on the mid-to-long term effects of current education trends in America, I suggest reading Tom Friedman’s The World Is Flat. I do want to caution, however, that our current level of math and science competency amongst our youth is extremely alarming. That, coupled with our inadequate immigration policies – where we deny work visas to foreign students to remain here in the US after completing their education at our universities and/or denying work visas to foreign scientist who want to migrate to the US – amounts simply to national disaster in the mid-to-long term.
The policies we implement today are making our schools and workforce embarrassingly and dangerously inadequate for competing in an ever developing world. With roughly three billion people entering the globalized middle-class in just the past decade, we owe it to our very own survival to demand better policies from our lawmakers. As our economy struggles to reinvent itself today, it behooves us to think critically about the America we wish to live in a decade or two from now. The policies we set today, in this time of change and renewing ourselves and our economy, will serve us for years to come. I sincerely hope that we demand – and ultimately receive – better than what we’re getting today.
Countless smiles of deaf two year olds depend on it.
Baby Hears Mother’s Voice for the First Time After Cochlear Implant (video)
June 25th, 2010The Federal Drug Administration recently approved cochlear implants for children as early as one year old.
The video below is making the rounds on the internet this week, as this two year old hears her mother’s voice for the first time after his implant. It is a truly remarkable thing to see.
There are more than 400,000 deaf people in the United States alone, with millions more around the world. Yet less than 200,000 worldwide have cochlear implants though the rate of adoption is increasing worldwide. This is in part due to affordability, improvements in delivery and expertise, and also policy.
I’m writing this post to highlight the important role of policy.
In the US, the FDA just recently approved implants in children as early as one year old. This policy change has paved the road for this child to get his implants in a safe and affordable manner. This ia a great example how a small change in thinking can have a drastic impact on the lives of people.
I mention this because I am appalled by some of our current policies in not only Healthcare, but also in Energy, Education, Immigration, Alternative Lifestyles, and countless more.
A great deal has already been said on Education policy in U.S. and I won’t repeat them here. For a great primer on the mid-to-long term effects of current education trends in America, I suggest reading Tom Friedman’s The World Is Flat. I do want to caution, however, that our current level of math and science competency amongst our youth is extremely alarming. That, coupled with our inadequate immigration policies – where we deny work visas to foreign students to remain here in the US after completing their education at our universities and/or denying work visas to foreign scientist who want to migrate to the US – amounts simply to national disaster in the mid-to-long term.
The policies we implement today are making our schools and workforce embarrassingly and dangerously inadequate for competing in an ever developing world. With roughly three billion people entering the globalized middle-class in just the past decade, we owe it to our very own survival to demand better policies from our lawmakers. As our economy struggles to reinvent itself today, it behooves us to think critically about the America we wish to live in a decade or two from now. The policies we set today, in this time of change and renewing ourselves and our economy, will serve us for years to come. I sincerely hope that we demand – and ultimately receive – better than what we’re getting today.
Countless smiles of deaf two year olds depend on it.
***
Read about the importance of Robotics in developing youth interest in math and sciences on the White House website: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/01/08/educate-innovate-high-school-robotics
Tags: Cochlear Implants, Policy, Robotics Education, White House
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