Documentary: The Boy who Sees Without Eyes

Ben Underwood (47:08) Ben Underwood, who died at the age of 16 from cancer,  learned to "see" by employing a capability known as echolocation to navigate his world.  He taught himself echolocation techniques commonly used by bats and dolphins but rarely documented in humans. By making clicking noises with his tongue and listening to the sound waves he created, he learned to identify objects and get around safely.  Ben attended mainstream schools and engaged in all of the normal activities of childhood and youth. He refused to use a white cane identifying him as blind. He played basketball, danced, practiced karate, skated and rode a bike through his neighborhood. He mastered video games by memorizing scenarios and identifying sounds that characters made just before they changed positions. Source: Morrisvideos.com.

Related Video: Seeing With Sound (5:45) Daniel Kish is President of World Access for the Blind - a nonprofit organization which facilitates self directed achievement for blind people.