NEWSLETTER No. 369
The Share The Vision newsletter highlights how speech-to-text tools are revolutionizing book creation by allowing authors to bridge the gap between spoken ideas and written manuscripts. Medical breakthroughs are also featured, including a pioneering eye injection at Moorfields Hospital that successfully restored sight in patients with the rare condition hypotony. New research from Johns Hopkins University challenges long-held beliefs in neuroscience by demonstrating how the visual system adapts and recovers after traumatic brain injury. Regarding accessibility, the RNIB is responding to new UK government proposals on pavement parking, urging for a nationwide ban to ensure safe streets for blind and partially sighted pedestrians. Finally, the organization Fight For Sight emphasizes the importance of funding research across the entire patient pathway to better understand and treat rare eye diseases.
From Audiobooks to Manuscripts: How New Speech-to-Text Tools Support Book Creation
The way books are created is evolving rapidly, especially as audio formats and digital workflows become more closely connected. Writers are no longer limited to typing every draft from scratch or treating audiobooks as a final, separate format. Many creators now use modern voice technologies to create an audiobook early in the process, then repurpose spoken content into written manuscripts, outlines, or revised editions. This shift is reshaping how authors approach drafting, editing, and publishing in both fiction and non-fiction. Rather than replacing writing, speech-to-text tools are expanding how stories and ideas move from concept to finished work.
For many authors, speaking feels more natural than typing. Ideas flow faster when they are spoken aloud, especially during early drafting or brainstorming. Speech-to-text tools allow writers to capture that natural rhythm and convert it into editable text, creating a rough manuscript that reflects authentic voice and pacing.
Read the full article here: https://goodereader.com/blog/audiobooks/from-audiobooks-tomanuscripts-how-new-speech-to-text-tools-support-book-creation
Revolutionary eye injection saved my sight, says first-ever patient - BBC News
Doctors say they have achieved the previously impossible – restoring sight and preventing blindness in people with a rare but dangerous eye condition called hypotony.
Moorfields hospital in London is the world’s first dedicated clinic for the disorder and seven out of eight patients given the pioneering treatment have responded to the therapy, a pilot study shows.
One of them – the first-ever – is Nicki Guy, 47, who shared her story exclusively with the BBC. She says the results are incredible: “It’s life-changing. It’s given me everything back. I can see my child grow up… I’ve gone from counting fingers and everything being really blurry to being able to see.”
Read the full story here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c89qyv98lzdo
Neurons aren’t supposed to regrow but these ones brought back vision - Science Daily
For decades, neuroscientists have taught that neurons do not regenerate once they are damaged or destroyed. This belief has shaped how brain injuries are understood and treated. Yet people often regain at least some lost abilities after trauma, raising an important question: if neurons do not grow back, how does recovery happen?
A new JNeurosci paper offers insight into this puzzle. Athanasios Alexandris and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University used mice to study what happens inside the visual system after traumatic brain injury. The visual system includes cells in the eye that send information to the brain, allowing animals and humans to see. Damage to this system can disrupt communication between the eye and the brain, leading to vision problems. After injury, the researchers closely tracked the connections between cells in the eye and neurons in the brain. Instead of finding widespread regrowth of new cells, they observed something different. The cells that survived the injury began to adapt.
Read the full story here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251219030500.htm
New plans from the UK Government to tackle pavement parking in England | RNIB63
RNIB has welcomed the announcement of new powers for councils to tackle pavement parking in England, the biggest barrier for blind and partially sighted pedestrians, but are urging government to go further. A new proposal announced recently stops short of a full ban, but instead would give local powers to councils to stop parking in specific areas more easily. The much-awaited policy change comes more than five years after a public consultation on pavement parking in England held under the previous UK government.
While RNIB welcomes the announcement as a positive step towards addressing the hazards of pavement parking after years of delays, they are disappointed that it won’t provide the consistent approach that we believe is needed. RNIB Policy lead Erik Matthies said: “Blind and partially sighted people deserve safe, accessible streets just like everyone else. We urge the Government to deliver a clear, nationwide ban on pavement parking, like that which has existed in London since 1974.”
Read the full story here: https://www.rnib.org.uk/news/new-plans-from-government-to-tackle-pavement-parking-in-england/
How can we advance our understanding of rare eye conditions asks Fight For Sight
A rare condition is one that affects fewer than 1 in 2,000 people, according to Genomics England. In the UK, one in 17 people will be affected by a rare disease at some point in their life. Fight For Sight are an organisation working to improve understanding of these rare conditions: “Our approach to researching eye disease is to conduct research across the patient pathway. Specifically, we fund research to better understand, diagnose, prevent, and treat vision loss.
We’re disease agnostic, so we fund the most promising research and research that will inform our understanding of eye diseases.” The article embedded below covers various ways in which they are seeking to help advance our understanding of ‘all’ eye diseases.
Read the full story here: https://www.fightforsight.org.uk/news-and-insights/news/research-blog/how-can-we-advance-our-understanding-of-rare-eye-conditions/