Suggestions for Those With Visual Impairments

[csobod]

I will pass this on to her and see if that's the route she wants to take. It impacts no other aspect of her life, and and neither of us have insurance, so this visit could cost us hundreds, if not thousands.

This might be a good time to check out whether you can qualify for Medicaid. If this is an early sign of glaucoma, you want her to be treated appropriately before she loses her vision. If it's a neurological problem, you don't want her to suddenly develop tunnel vision and panic attacks on the highway in the middle of the night.

I can guarantee it only happens while playing, but I will certainly pass this on.

This is not an eye problem, IMHO. It sounds like a neurological problem. If money were no issue, I'd recommend seeing a neuro-opthamologist.

Due to some recent health problems of my own, I've been forced to become an amateur student of neuro-opthamology.

@Csobod:If you don't mind, I'd like to ask some questions.

1) How old is she?
2) Does she have any other neurological symptoms? ( Numbness? Tingling? Headaches? Ringing ears? Flashes of light in the corner of her eyes upon sudden head movement? etc )
3) Is she a vegetarian?
4) Has she at least seen an optometrist? ( They are relatively cheap and common. You can even find them in Sears and Costco )
5) What does she see when she looks at an Amsler grid?

This is an amsler grid. Ask her cover one eye, and to stare at the dot in the middle. Then switch eyes. What does she see?
Any grey areas? Blank areas? Wiggley lines? Broken lines?

Wow! Thanks for your help. I will answer as best I can:
1. 23.
2. No other medical problems, but some leg pain from a sciatic nerve strain during Christmas.
3. No.
4. Yes, she has myopia and wears glasses like me.
5. I will ask her tomorrow and post back on this.

It never ceases to amaze me the kinds of things we can learn on a Go forum.

and there is a $700 down payment on the appointment, just to make it.

What is up with the $700 appointment ??? (Which currency, btw? )

Just out of curiosity, approx. where are you located (maybe within 500 miles is good enough? ) ?

US dollars. Its a boutique custom eyewear shop that mainly caters to the super rich and celebrities. I live in Michigan.

Maybe you can try playing with dimes vs pennies

Guess I'll have to break open a couple rolls, Lol.

[schwartzseer]

Yes, it is nice to see a knowledgeable and helpful go community in action! Of course, identifying a root cause for any unusual impairment is preferrable to just finding ways to compensate, and I wish your friend much success in uncovering its genesis.

Returning to the original premise of the thread, for a board and stones suggestion to offset a possible "trigger" for the visual strain your friend experiences I think this is the "lowest contrast" combination using traditional go gear: a bamboo board with jade-colored single convex Yunzi stones from YMI. You mentioned that "overlapping" stones cause difficulty for her, and in this regard Chinese single convex stones are preferrable to double convex stones as single convex come in different width sizes (i.e. size 3 ~ 20mm, size 4 ~22mm, and size 5 ~24mm), so selecting the size 3 will help in this regard. Similarly, selecting a board that uses the Chinese standard will give you the biggest grid size (Chinese > Korean > Japanese). I have this combo (with size 5 stones) and it works well, especially in well-lit/bright environments, as the bamboo board has a matte surface and the yunzi stones are completely non-reflective. Just don't polish the board with anything more than a damp cloth, and take the time to clean the Yunzi and treat both the light and dark stones with mineral oil (other options, like sewing machine oil, are potentially toxic) for a velvety finish that is both pleasant to the touch, and easy on the eyes.

Let us know how it works out!

[Joaz Banbeck]

Some thoughts about contrast...

We tend to think that we see all colors equally well, but in fact we do not. We see mid-spectrum colors like yellow and green better. Our perception degrades at the ends of the spectrum: where blue fades into ultraviolet it is mediocre, and where red fades into infrared it is terrible.

See graph of how we see the 'visible' spectrum:

cone absorbtion.gif (40.31 KiB) Viewed 12034 times

In the graph above, the curves represent the absorbtion of three types of color sensors ( aka 'cones' ) in the eye. We have one that detects blue, one that detects green, and one that detects orangish-yellow. The most remarkable thing about this graph is the irregular spacing: we are much more capable of detecting light in the yellow and green range.

An off-topic discussion of computer monitors:

If you want a color that only the blue cones will respond to, blue is the obvious choice. If you want a color that only the green cones will respond to, the best choice is a dark green, slightly away from the maximum sensitivity of the green cone, but away from the peak of the neighboring yellow cone. If you want a color that only the yellow cones will detect, you use red, because it is far away from the green.
Thus, even though there are three peaks of maximum sensitivity at blue, green, and orangish yellow, monitor manufacturers use RGB for maximun contrast. RGB allows them to target discrete sensors.

RGB absorbtion.gif (40.1 KiB) Viewed 12033 times

An off-topic discussion of how color blindness works:

color blind.gif (40.43 KiB) Viewed 12034 times

In the graph above, the two dots represent colors that cannot be distinguished by a person with red-green color blindness. That particular condition is caused by the absence of the green ( aka mid-range ) sensors.
If all you have is the yellow and blue cones ( aka the short wavelength and long wavelength sensors ), the red and green colors indicated by the dots both appear as a dull shade of yellow. They both generate the same signal from the yellow sensor. The only way to distingush between them is to poll the green sensor. If the green sensor can see something, the color must be green; if it can see nothing or very little, the color must be red.
If you don't have a green sensor to consult, you can't tell the difference.

Chess players figured this out long ago. Twenty years ago, when I last played serious tournament chess, the standard was a board with green and light yellow squares, and dark brown and tan pieces.
The idea of using colors like this is to get not only contrast of intensity between black and white, but contrast between colors. A quick check on the net reveals that the boards now are green with almost white squares, and the brown pieces have gotten reddish, almost maroon.

See a pic of standard tournament chess set:

chess set.jpg (124.82 KiB) Viewed 12034 times

So my recommendation for minimizing eye strain is to get green and yellow pieces on a dark reddish-tan board. You can get colored construction paper at an arts and crafts store cheaply.

[Joaz Banbeck]

For yellow and green stones with good contrast and small size, you could get a couple bags of M&Ms. Save the yellow and greens, maybe the oranges because they are seen as a dark yellow.

Make sure that your girlfriend eats the other colors. That's no joke. I'd like to know what effect a sugar rush has on her tunnel vision.

[palapiku]

Green go boards rock.

[csobod]

Thank you Joaz for the amazing suggestion; it's really exactly what I've been looking for. That being said, something alarming has happened over the past two days.

My girlfriend was stricken with severe pain in her joints and sciatic nerve, to the point where she felt she should either be hospitalized or, at least, see a doctor. The MD she saw ran tests and they believe she has rheumatoid arthritis, coupled with other autoimmune problems that are causing sporadic chronic pain. They will be running more tests to find out more, but at least she is able to get some painkillers.

While I am taking all this information in (and doubt how related it is to her current problems), if I seem to go dark on this thread it's because I'm trying my best to attend to her health. Thank you all for the help you've given, and I hope this thread will serve to aid others with the same problems.

[Joaz Banbeck]

I hope your gf gets better.

[csobod]

Thanks, they just put her on Celebrex and she's already doing much, much better. Looks like either rheumatism or some degenerative joint disorder is the root cause. Either way, we're just happy to have any positive results. The last week has been a bit of a roller coaster; kind of coincidental that I'd post here just as she's about to have a health meltdown.

[csobod]

This is not an eye problem, IMHO. It sounds like a neurological problem. If money were no issue, I'd recommend seeing a neuro-opthamologist.

Due to some recent health problems of my own, I've been forced to become an amateur student of neuro-opthamology.

@Csobod:If you don't mind, I'd like to ask some questions.

1) How old is she?
2) Does she have any other neurological symptoms? ( Numbness? Tingling? Headaches? Ringing ears? Flashes of light in the corner of her eyes upon sudden head movement? etc )
3) Is she a vegetarian?
4) Has she at least seen an optometrist? ( They are relatively cheap and common. You can even find them in Sears and Costco )
5) What does she see when she looks at an Amsler grid?

This is an amsler grid. Ask her cover one eye, and to stare at the dot in the middle. Then switch eyes. What does she see?
Any grey areas? Blank areas? Wiggley lines? Broken lines?

We finally got aruond to doing the Amsler test. In answer to your questions:

1) 23
2) She experiences numbness, tingling, ringing ears (tinitus), no flashes.
2) Not by any means.
4) Last time she saw an optometrist was 3 or 4 years ago. She has to see another one soon because her family doctor believes there could be inflammation in her eyes.
5) When looking at an Amsler grid, she sees a flashing ring.

[Annihilist]

I'd be surprised if no one has yet suggested these:

http://www.ymimports.com/p-1619-jade-color-glass-go-stones-nano-silver-jangstone-80mm-size-30.aspx#.UR-EN6WkRSU

[csobod]

I'd be surprised if no one has yet suggested these:

http://www.ymimports.com/p-1619-jade-color-glass-go-stones-nano-silver-jangstone-80mm-size-30.aspx#.UR-EN6WkRSU

I've looked into the jade colored stones offered at YMI (both the tinted single convex stones and the "green apple" biconvex stones), but I'm not sure which would help the most. I feel that the single convex stones would be the better investment, because I could mark positions on the board during our teaching games. Honestly, I just don't want to spend a lot of money on something that won't help.

First post. But yeah, I'm considering getting them. YMI is gonna send me a sample of like four stones of each and we'll base our decision on that. I just got a reverse-contrast rosewood goban and it seems to be helping her.

[Joaz Banbeck]

...
4) Last time she saw an optometrist was 3 or 4 years ago. She has to see another one soon because her family doctor believes there could be inflammation in her eyes.
5) When looking at an Amsler grid, she sees a flashing ring.

Yes. See one SOON.

[csobod]

...
4) Last time she saw an optometrist was 3 or 4 years ago. She has to see another one soon because her family doctor believes there could be inflammation in her eyes.
5) When looking at an Amsler grid, she sees a flashing ring.

Yes. See one SOON.

Okay, we'll schedule an appointment this week. I just don't see how it could be something as serious as macular degeneration, especially with how young she is.

[Annihilist]

I'd be surprised if no one has yet suggested these:

http://www.ymimports.com/p-1619-jade-color-glass-go-stones-nano-silver-jangstone-80mm-size-30.aspx#.UR-EN6WkRSU

I've looked into the jade colored stones offered at YMI (both the tinted single convex stones and the "green apple" biconvex stones), but I'm not sure which would help the most. I feel that the single convex stones would be the better investment, because I could mark positions on the board during our teaching games. Honestly, I just don't want to spend a lot of money on something that won't help.

First post. But yeah, I'm considering getting them. YMI is gonna send me a sample of like four stones of each and we'll base our decision on that. I just got a reverse-contrast rosewood goban and it seems to be helping her.

I'd say get the biconvex glass ones, namely because they are designed specifically to reduce visual strain. With a yellowish shin-kaya board it would look quite nice and be quite tolerable for your girlfriend.

Best of luck.

[csobod]

I'd be surprised if no one has yet suggested these:

http://www.ymimports.com/p-1619-jade-color-glass-go-stones-nano-silver-jangstone-80mm-size-30.aspx#.UR-EN6WkRSU

I've looked into the jade colored stones offered at YMI (both the tinted single convex stones and the "green apple" biconvex stones), but I'm not sure which would help the most. I feel that the single convex stones would be the better investment, because I could mark positions on the board during our teaching games. Honestly, I just don't want to spend a lot of money on something that won't help.

First post. But yeah, I'm considering getting them. YMI is gonna send me a sample of like four stones of each and we'll base our decision on that. I just got a reverse-contrast rosewood goban and it seems to be helping her.

I'd say get the biconvex glass ones, namely because they are designed specifically to reduce visual strain. With a yellowish shin-kaya board it would look quite nice and be quite tolerable for your girlfriend.
Best of luck.

Well, for the reasons mentioned by Joaz in this post, contrasting yellowish and dark green stones with a yellow board wouldn't really be advisable. It makes sense to give it something dark to stand out against, like a marroon board. I ended up getting her the board being sold in the Trading Post by Corazon. She says that the board helps, and it came with some single convex Yunzi to at least get her started. I gave it to her for Valentine's Day.