All the Alter Boy songs performed in Auslan

The Australian pop band Alter Boy includes three deaf members. All their songs performed in Auslan (Australian sign language). Lead singer Molly says:

We use lots of sub and bass tones so that deaf folks can feel the beat, as well as visual performance and Australian sign language (Auslan). Another common misconception is that deaf people can't play instruments or sing. We are just as talented and as untalented as the rest of you.

Read the full interview here. Below is one of their videos:

Research on better hearing with implants in noisy environments

An Australian researcher says he has developed a new way to predict how to tweak cochlear implants for recipients in order to more quickly improve their hearing in noisy situations. Greg Watkins, who holds a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering, believes the result of his findings might lead to personalized implants. Watkins himself has two cochlear implants. He says:

credit: University of Sydney 

Despite their successes, there remain areas such as the cochlear implant's performance in noisy environments where a personalised approach in taking the sound from the environment and translating that into electrical stimulation could conceivably make a world of difference.

His findings are published in the Ear and Hearing journal. Read more about the research from the University of Sydney here.

What inspires an Australian deaf-blind artist to paint

Australia deaf-blind Artist Joseph Formosa uses a camera and large computer screen to sketch sea creatures he finds along the Port Stephens beach. The Australian Broadcasting Company has a video report on what inspires Formosa's creativity.

The connection between Monks & Sign Language

National Geographic Australia explores the connection between the vow of silence taken by monks some 500 years ago helped in the development of sign language. National Geographic Australia has more here.

Growing Up With Deaf Parents

"Many CODAs act as interpreters for their parents from a young age, and this can mean taking on responsibilities generally reserved for adults.. In sign language, there are ways you can express or say things that seem better or more appropriate in English.. We sometimes sign something because it really captures what we're thinking." Read more in a VICE Austrailia here.

No Terps at Aussie Disney On Ice

The Disney On Ice Facebook page "has been besieged by upset comments from deaf families" for a decision by Disney Australia not to providing sign language interpreters at its shows. One mother is quoted as saying, "We have to fight for everything. We have to fight for equal access and equal opportunities for our children, from education to after-school care." Read more in The Sydney Morning Herald here.

Implant Maker reports profitable year

The largest company making coclear implants says profits are up almost a third higher than last year at this time. Cochlear, based in Austrailia, now looks for its profits to increase as much as 30% over the previous year. The comapny reports making $67 million during the last six months of 2015. Cochlear's current best-seller is the Nucleus 6 and it expects sales of the device to remain strong for the next few years. Read the full company statement here.

Murder Plot Caught on Video say prosecutors

Three deaf people are facing murder charges in Australia. Prosecutors say the trio was caught on CCTV trying to decide whether to strangle another deaf man or push him off a balcony. Robert Wright fell from his apartment balcony in Melbourne and died in January. 9News has a video report. No captions but you can read the story in the Independent here.

Implant company gets new CEO

There's a new CEO at Cochlear Limited. The Australian company is trading Chris Smith for Chris Roberts in August. What does it mean for the world's largest cochlear implant company? An article in Money Morning explains here.

Hearing aid ad sparks outrage

An advertising campaign for hearing aids outraged the Deaf community in Australia. 7-News in Melbourne explains in this video report the counter campaign launched by activities.

North Korea's deaf soccer team

Did you know North Korea has a deaf soccer team? Not only does the isolated nation have one, the team is in Australia to play it's "first international friendly game" in Syndey this weekend. The coach gives orders using sign language and the referee uses a flag instead of a whistle, according to the Australia's ABC news. striker Ri Kuk Jin is quoted as saying, "We are people with disability. We are all deaf but we will work hard to improve our football skills through this opportunity so that we can repay our government's policy for protection of people with disabilities." Read more details here.

Prediction about the future of Deaf Culture

One of the contributors to the Auslan dictionary, Trevor Johnston, who is a Professor of Signed Language Linguistics at Sydney's Macquarie University says "There will be a time in the next 50 years where I feel comfortable to say the deaf community won't exist." Find out why he says this in an article published in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Getting to Know...The Big 3 Implant Makers

Cochlear implants are likely to become a lucrative market in the future as baby boomers grow older and the number of people suffering from hearing loss increases. There are three main companies making implants.

· Cochlear Limited – This Australian company got its start the early 1980s. Cochlear dominates the market with 70% of the market share and $700 million in sales each year. Cochlear makes the Nucleus cochlear implant, the Hybrid electro-acoustic implant and the Baha bone conduction implant. It  voluntarily recalled its Nucleaus 5 unit in the fall of 2011 because moisture caused a few of the implants to shut down.

· Advanced Bionics – Started in 1996 and acquired by Massachusetts-based Boston Scientific in 2004, Advanced regained its independence in 2007. A Swiss company, Sonova Holding, bought the Valencia, California-based cochlear-implant maker in 2009. With about one fifth of the market, Advanced is number two in the field, though a recall forced the company to make layoffs this year. Phonak is one of its brands. Advanced Bionics recalled the HiRes 90K implant in 2010 after two patients suffered from severe pain and overly loud sounds.

· Med-El – This Austrian company founded in 1989, the company received approval for distribution in Europe in 1994 and FDA approval in 2001. Its U.S. offices are located in Durham, North Carolina.

TV captioning facts

• TV stations and cable and satellite operators have been required to have closed-captioning since 1998.
• Stations much provide 1350 hours of captioned programming each quarter. That works out to about 16 hours a day.
• Captioning pre-recorded shows runs between $400 and $1000 per half-hour. Live programming can cost 5 times that amount.
• There are only about 400 people nationwide work as broadcast captioners.
• It’s a projected that 1,000 to 3,000 more captioners will be needed in the next few years
• Captioners earn about $50 to $75 an hour.

Deaf woman claims discrimination in job interview

A deaf Australian woman says she was denied a job interview because she was not able to "speak English." Miranda Reardon has filed a formal discrimination complaint against Darwin-based JebFab Catering Services, according to NT News. The owner claims she did not possess the necessary skills to fill the position. Read more here.

Kidnapping at Deaf Couple's Home a Hoax

Someone called the sheriff's dept. in Palmdale, Calif. to report a kidnapping this morning. It turned out to be a hoax, according to KABC-TV. Read the full story here.

Aussies debate whether to allow deaf jurors

Should Australian courts allow deaf citizens to serve on juries? That's what a professor at the University of New South Wales is hoping to find out during a mock trial that will take place in Sydney. The topic became a national issue when a Queensland judge ruled a deaf woman could not sit on a jury. You can read about that here. Two of the 15 jurors in the mock trial will be deaf. Read more details about the study in the Guardian here. The deaf started sitting on juries in the U.S. 24 years ago.

10k Down under

Australia has it's 10,0000th cochlear implant recipient: 45-year-old Christina Dougall of Runcorn in Brisbane got hers turned on yesterday. Here's a video about her.

First Brain scan for cochlear implants users

Macquarie University photo of the research team

For years, scientists have not been able to look at what a cochlear implant does while it's in the brain. The implant material and its signals interfere with brain scans. But researchers at Australia's Macquarie University say they've figured out how to get a clear view of what's going on with a brain scan. The world's first Cochlear Implant (CI) MEG scanner is a joint project between the ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition and its Disorders (CCD) and Hear and Say Queensland. Lead researcher Blake Johnson says, “This is the first study of its kind and will form the proof of concept for a larger scale studies investigating brain changes following cochlear implantation in preschool children, and the impact of an enriched auditory environment.” Read more here.

Judge: No to deaf juror

An Australian judge is refusing to allow a deaf woman to serve on a jury. Queensland judge James Douglas says his ruling is based on a law that bars sign language interpreters from sitting in jury rooms. According to ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) reports that a Deaf Services Queensland representative says this isn't the first time this has happened.