A World Without Words

Leading his readers on a voyage through the visual shorthand of modern life, the author argues that we are relying less on words for navigating the world than on images and graphic devices. This sourcebook shows the attempts of designers to condense words and data down to their simplest equivalents. It illustrates the familiar, the peculiar and the confusing visual language that we are asked to interpret (symbols, graphs and charts, maps) mixed up with the more graphic examples of data storage and identification that are read not by humans but by machines (barcodes, magnetic strips, holograms). Featuring airport signs, road markings, pictograms, maps, diagrams, packaging, logos and symbols, this compendium of visuals shows not only the norms of wordless graphic communication but also how these vary around the world when interpreted by local individuals for different cultures

For more than a quarter of a century, Ildefonso, a Mexican Indian, lived in total isolation, set apart from the rest of the world. He wasn't a political prisoner or a social recluse, he was simply born deaf and had never been taught even the most basic language. Susan Schaller, then a twenty-four-year-old graduate student, encountered him in a class for the deaf where she had been sent as an interpreter and where he sat isolated, since he knew no sign language. She found him obviously intelligent and sharply observant but unable to communicate, and she felt compelled to bring him to a comprehension of words. The book vividly conveys the challenge, the frustrations, and the exhilaration of opening the mind of a congenitally deaf person to the concept of language. This second edition includes a new chapter and afterword.

Much has been written about the profoundly deaf, but the lives of the nearly 30 million partially deaf people in the United States today remain hidden. Song without Words tells the astonishing story of a man who, at the age of thirty-four, discovered that he had been deaf since childhood, yet somehow managed to navigate his way through Andover, Yale, and Columbia Law School, and to establish a prestigious international legal career. Gerald Shea's witty and candid memoir of how he compensated for his deafness -- through sheer determination and an amazing ability to translate the melody of vowels. His experience gives fascinating new insight into the nature and significance of language, the meaning of deafness, the fierce controversy between advocates of signing and of oral education, and the longing for full communication that unites us all. /DIV

Exploring communication with children born deaf-blind.

Having tried for years to unlock the secrets of the magical Book Without Words, old man Thorston dies in failure and the book is passed on to his servant, Sybil, and her magical raven who eagerly begin the process of breaking the code.

How many words do you use in a day? Are you a little chatterbox with lots to say? Or do you speak less and use a quiet voice? There are some children who don't have a choice. Some children can't speak any words at all or very few, Can you imagine if that were you? Step into the life of a little boy with non-verbal autism and try to imagine a world without words...

First Oxford University Press pbk edition.

With this illustrated guide, discover what hand gestures can offend others around the world—and whether you avoid making them or not is up to you. A hand gesture is arguably the most effective form of expression, whether you’re defaming a friend’s mother or telling a perfect stranger to get lost. Learn how to go beyond just flipping the bird with this illustrated guide to rude hand gestures all around the world, from asking for sex in the Middle East to calling someone crazy in Italy. Detailed photographs of hand models and subtle tips for proper usage make Rude Hand Gestures of the World the perfect companion for globe-trotters looking to offend. “If you’ve resolved to make the most of your travels, a copy of Rude Hand Gestures of the World to know what gestures you should avoid while abroad. Better safe than sorry!” —Buzzfeed