Dyslexia is a neurological disorder in which the brain seems to be unable to properly interpret the signals it processes from the eyes and sometimes ears. Dyslexia usually shows itself as problems with reading, spelling and converting common words into sounds. The condition is quite widespread with perhaps 10% exhibiting symptoms of some form of dyslexia.

In the last 25 years we have learned a great deal about dyslexia, especially in the last 15 years or so. Dyslexia in children is now routinely screened for and detected in elementary school and before. We now know that children with dyslexia learn differently and need special training to overcome the difficulties they might otherwise experience.

Those of us who finished grade school more than 15 years ago were not so lucky as to have been correctly diagnosed. Most dyslexics got branded as "slow learners" or "underachievers" and were stygmatized by this type of label. They felt shame and embarrassment and developed elaborate defense mechanisms to hide the fact that they were different.

It is estimated that up to 95% of adult dyslexics are still unaware of their condition. A simple readily available dyslexia test could identify them and change their lives for the better almost immediately.

Dyslexia symptoms in adults include problems with reading, a reluctance to read anything aloud, difficulties in transcribing messages received by phone and being employed in positions below what their intelligence and experience would seem to warrant, these, among a longish list of other related symptoms.

Most of what has been learned about dyslexia comes from clinical studies, focussing on the problems of dyslexia. However, there is also a positive side to dyslexia. Dyslexic people seem to learn to think in different ways from non-dyslexics. They learn to visualize the whole picture rather than the details of the parts. Many excel in fields where this is important, fields such as architecture, graphic arts, acting and business.

This happening is so common and the trend is so pronounced that such people are said to be "blessed with dyslexia"! There are many, many famous people with dyslexia. Famous dyslexics include Whoopi Goldberg, actress and comedienne, Cher, singer and actress, and her daughter, Chastity Bono, Jackie Stewart, racing driver and entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson.

If you, or anyone you know, has any symptoms that might indicate dyslexia, by all means get tested at once. A competent, detailed test is available online, takes half an hour, can be taken from anywhere you have an Internet connection and costs less than dinner for two at a medium-priced restaurant!

Disclaimer: The information given here is taken from public information printed and distributed in medical and educational journals and articles in newspapers. This is not and there is nothing here that is intended to be, pretends to be or should be taken as any type of medical advice. The reader is referred to his or her physician or other qualified medical specialist for any medical opinion or advice needed or sought after.

By - Horace Houseman

LCD displays utilize two sheets of polarizing material with a liquid crystal solution between them. An electric current passed through the liquid causes the crystals to align so that light cannot pass through them as seen with medical grade monitors. LCD display utilizes electric charges to twist and untwist liquid crystals which cause them to block light and therefore emit blacks.

Note that LCD's use maximum power while displaying a very dark or black image. LCD displays should NOT be used to confirm contrast, color, exposure, or any other critical factors.

LCD displays have been used in a wide variety of electronic devices and best viewed in a Planar LCD displays. LCD displays consist primarily of two sheets of polarized glass plates with some liquid crystal solution trapped between them. The type of liquid crystals used in LCD panels have got very specific properties that enable them to serve as effective 'shutters' that close or open to block or otherwise, the passage of light.

Liquid crystal molecules respond faster to the high voltage that's needed for black-white transitions than to the low voltage that's needed for transitions between gray areas as in monochrome monitors. Therefore, even though going from one grayscale level to another is less of a jump than going from black to white, the gray-to-gray transition time can actually take longer. Liquid crystal displays are formed by integrating a number of such cells, or more usually, by using a single liquid crystal plate and a pattern of electrodes.