Daniel Kish: The Real "Batman" Who Uses Echolocation

The first letters Daniel Kish received in his life were not good news. Diagnosed with retinoblastoma, he lost both eyes at 13 months of age. However, from the beginning he showed extraordinary adaptability, and developed a style of human echolocation that helps him locate and navigate all kinds of environments. Combining a series of clicks made with his tongue and a traditional cane, Kish can move with surprising ease, and even ride a bicycle.

We open our eyes and the whole world is there, at our disposal. The possibility (however remote) of losing our vision sends chills down our spine, and at the same time reminds us that we are privileged. But Daniel Kish says that the fear and ignorance related to blindness are products of the mind, and the mind can adapt. Imagine for a moment that you lose both eyes at one year of age due to retinal cancer. Many people shared with Kish that they would rather be dead than blind. But Kish lives alone, works, pays taxes, and moves almost as well as a sighted person. Part of the equation lies in his cane, longer than normal, and the other part in the small clicks he makes with his tongue.

Echolocation in Humans

Nicknamed "Batman" on more than one occasion, Daniel Kish uses human echolocation. In relaxed terms, he uses sound the way we use light. Those clicks (officially palatal clicks) hit the surface of objects surrounding Kish, and return to him with different patterns that activate the visual functions of his brain, optimizing spatial and depth parameters. In other words, they allow him to form a three-dimensional image in his mind.

Now, Kish does not consider himself a superman or anything like that. Human echolocation is not new, it is well documented, and the most interesting thing is that it is not a resource that only the blind can access. With enough training, we can all learn to "visualize" our surroundings with sound alone.

Despite everything, Kish faces several challenges. One of them is... people. Beyond his ability, he still feels that airport officials want to seat him in a wheelchair just for safety. Social impressions and constructions about blindness tend to be more dangerous than blindness itself. Another challenge comes from those who defend more traditional teaching methods for the blind, and argue that echolocation is not as effective as Kish says, but so far he has only responded by example, and by teaching others to be echolocators.

Sources: The Guardian, BBC