As often seems to happen, our program last week intended to cover

two topics but only got to one. That left the accessibility of large appliances as essentially undiscussed. On the last day of February, then, that will be our topic. Where are we with this issue? Historically, how did we handle access. How has the "internet of things" changed our situation. Does having an appliance that connects with the lady a or Google home or siri assure accessibility? What steps can we take when buying new appliances to be certain we can use all or most of their features? Where does braille fit into this mosaic? Are there still overlays? Do we seem to be moving forward or backward in terms of access to the internet of things? What can we do to assure that we are heard? We need to hear your experiences with new appliances. Have you had to pay more to get what you need? Have you been able to get what you need? Join us as we explore how stoves and refrigerators and air conditioners and washers and dryers and furnaces and security systems all stack up in today's economy.

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Last week we discussed new devices that are expected this year and, after that, barely scratched the surface

with a discussion of phones. As a result, we will begin this edition with a discussion of the three main groups of phones used by people who are blind or have low vision. We will talk about the iPhone and will explore how it has morphed into so much more than just a device for making calls. We will look at Android phones and explore who uses them and, with your help, maybe come to understand why people like them. The third group of phones are beginning to have a renaissance of sorts. These are phones which are specifically designed for people who are blind or have low vision. They are push button cell phones that have an overlay of features that are built on top of the operating system specifically aimed at people who are blind or have low vision. Whereas, in the past, many features that were available on iPhones and androids were not available on this group of phones, that has changed. Who likes these phones and why? What can these phones now do? Are there shortcomings that should be considered? We hope that people who have android phones as well as phones from the third group will call in and tell us about their experiences.

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Once more Tuesday Topics will depend on you for our success. We are once more going to try for a double feature. Those of you who have been a part of Tuesday

Topics for a while know that this means we are going to choose two topics which we will discuss. The idea is that we will find one that encourages folks to call in and participate. We are competing with Valentine's Day so we probably have no way of knowing whether folks will be billing and cooing rather than coming.

One of our two topics concerns technology for people who are blind. What trends can we identify? Are these "hybrid" devices becoming the norm? Is there a role for braille note takers an more? If so, what is that role? What has happened with low vision devices? What do we know about new devices that are likely to happen this year? What is missing? By that I mean, what do we know of that we can't easily do using current hardware and software? Our second topic is also technological but it focuses on one particular device, the cell phone. There are basically three main cell phone categories. First and probably the most popular is the iPhone. Second, of course, are android phones. Third and, oddly en, the most recent in a way is the blind shell phone. We thought it might be interesting to see what people are doing with their phones. Are we using them mostly as phones or do we do other things than call most of the time? Are there new apps we have found that we want to share? Why has the Blind Shell phone garnered such interest? There will perhaps be more issues we explore as we examine devices that are, potentially, much more than phones to see how you, our listeners, are using them!

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February is a month full of significant events. The Grammies will happen before our next Tuesday Topics. The Superbowl, number 57, is on February 12. Valentine's

Day is on February 14. Later in the month are the birthdays of Washington and Lincoln. We will look at all of these elements and other February phenomena. What do the two Presidents represent and what should we be celebrating with both? What kinds of memories do we have of valentines? Tell us about your experiences! Do you have predictions about the Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles? Are there elements of February we have missed? There is Ground Hog Day! It will happen tomorrow so we will know how winter will fare by the time of our next appearance! Do you have thoughts about the efficacy of forecasting weather this way?

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Though it may seem a long time ago to some, we looked at a lot of the advantages of the newly emerging artificial intelligence (AI) capacity that we can

access today. We also looked ahead at developments that we believed were inevitable and, potentially, beneficial. We certainly talked about some of the pitfalls that the new technology might involve but, at the end of our first show, we decided it would be good to spend a whole show on the down side of the future both for our society as a whole and for people who are blind in particular. Will the new technology affect jobs? Will an absolutely smaller number of jobs be available? How will this affect income distribution? Will the underclass that many see as existing now continue to grow? Should we be worried about computers taking over the world? When all is said and done, how should we feel about the future?

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During our program of January 3, Brian talked about a new app he has been looking at that allows him to make some requests that go a good deal beyond just

asking for information. A little while ago my daughter indicated that her new electric car had asked her whether she wanted it to park itself. In considering how life is likely to change this year, Brian indicated that artificial intelligence would, in his opinion, revolutionize our lives very soon. He sees this as a very positive development. I am not so sure. I thought it might be fun to do a first show on this subject that would aim at setting out the parameters of the intersection of artificial intelligence and the lives of people who are blind. At the same time that we are talking about the emergence of a i, we can also explore augmented reality. The latest version of Apple head phones offer some elements that would not have been considered ordinary even a year ago. Virtual reality is already revolutionizing gaming and sound. I recently saw my first movie in 3d, the new avatar movie. Those with whom I saw it suggested that the effects were considerably more impressive than earlier 3d efforts. What are the advantages of the new artificial intelligence options? What do they suggest for the future? Are there concerns that we need to at least consider? What are the specific concerns of this new frontier for people who are blind or have low vision? Are we in danger of being left behind? Might we be in danger of being fooled by people who can use the voices of friends and carry on conversations with us? Can the new a i be a tool that can significantly expand our ability to get the information we really want tailored to us as people who are blind? There are a i programs that can emulate people who have died so that we can use conversation with them as a part of the grieving process? Is this a good thing? We need some of you who have played with this technology to be a part of this show. Join us and share your experiences! None of us are experts in this field but we thought it might be good for a group of ordinary blind people to explore the new frontier of artificial intelligence to see what it holds for folks who are blind. Should we as ACB be doing anything about this brave new world? Can our input guide those who are developing new applications so that they can optimize their usefulness to us as people who are blind?

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Over the past few years Tuesday Topics generally uses our first meeting of the year to look ahead. What can we expect from 2023? Are there things we expect

in our world this year? Are there ACB issues? What about expectations about new books or new music or new movies? What can we expect from ACB or, perhaps, what should we expect? Are there things state affiliates and local chapters should think about? I don't think that we will end up using our whole two hours gazing into our crystal ball. Tell us about your new year's resolutions! Have you done anything that makes it more likely that you will keep them? Can you share suggestions about how we can maximize success with resolutions? I guess we can ask whether resolutions make sense since eighty percent of them cease to be operative by February according to statistics.

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It is something of a conundrum to try to predict how topics will be regarded by our listeners and participants. Topics we at Tuesday Topics think will

be popular do not attract much attention. Topics we are not confident about attract lots of people. Efforts to encourage our participants to come up with topics have, for the most part, been unsuccessful. And then there are other factors that impact how successful Tuesday Topics is likely to be. People will persist in celebrating Christmas and other holidays! ACB Media, committees and other groups have suddenly discovered that Tuesday is a very cool day to hold programs. For all these reasons, it is hard to predict what will turn out to be effective programming. We are going to try two topics this Tuesday and we need to turn up so that the production team doesn't have to talk among ourselves only! The first topic we want to discuss has to do with Christmas. We are pretty open about where this topic goes! Is giving better than receiving? Is there a particular present you are excited about? Are there Christmas traditions that you would like to share with us? Is Christmas a waste of money, time and effort? Does what we celebrate get lost with all the socializing? Our second topic concerns Christmas as well but is especially aimed to explore the experience of yule tide by people who are blind! How did you shop? Do you need help with Christmas more now or less than you did a few years ago? Are there some new gadgets, games or devices that you have heard about this year you would like to tell us about? ACB Radio will be providing some holiday programming. We hope to be able to tell you some about what is coming up and how you can participate!

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We typically, at the end of each year, look back at the last twelve months and explore what conclusions, if any, we can draw about the nature of 2022.

What kind of developments have there been in the field of blindness. Can we point to new elements of cooperation? Are there tangible things we can look at that have changed? What about technology? Should we care about Mastodon? We have seen a few new devices emerge. Braille keyboards, new Gps device, the promise of a new, old device and more! We don't only operate as people who are blind. We live in a world that has seen a huge, new war begin! Two hurricanes hit this country! What other trends can we point at? Has this been a good year, a bad year, a scary year? And then, of course, there is ACB. What has this year been like for our organization. Hybrid convention, voting for everyone possible, new resolutions, a changing Constitution. New staff arriving, old staff leaving! New initiatives and old issues! And, finally, our listeners, what has this year been like for you? Do you have celebrations you want to share? Are there issues that have gotten in your way this year? We need you to be there to provide the feedback we need to assess the world that soon will be over!

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I hope that everyone was able to attend the Gala on Tuesday. Now Topics is back and we are once again seeking your help to explore how blind people and

folks with partial vision do with holidays. When you go home, how are you treated? How do siblings feel about having a blind relative? Is it easy to help when you go home? How are things when you host Thanksgiving or Christmas events? What can we do to make things better? What techniques have you used? Our second issue is related to the first. Giving is certainly better than receiving, right? How do people feel about blind people giving? How are we seen when we offer assistance when the consensus is that blind people don't give, they take! How can we change this notion or should we want to change it!

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