Dimensional Literacy November 13, 2009

(No, this is not a typo!  What can you make out of it?)

I cnduo’t bvleiee taht I culod aulaclty uesdtannrd waht I was rdnaieg. Unisg the icndeblire pweor of the hmuan mnid, aocdcrnig to rseecrah at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno’t mttaer in waht oderr the lterets in a wrod are, the olny irpoamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rhgit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whoutit a pboerlm. Tihs is bucseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey ltteer by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Aaznmig, huh? Yaeh and I awlyas tghhuot slelinpg was ipmorantt! See if yuor fdreins can raed tihs too.

 This is certainly an amazing little trick.  Not only can you’re brain decipher these letters, but it can be considered as a form of literacy.  Despite all the jumbled letters and first glance shock, an individual is actually capable of being able to read it.  Talk about a headache.  But the important thing to realize is that literacy comes in variety of shapes, styles, expressions, and forms. Literacy has multiple dimensions and is a host to various skewed perceptions.  It is altered and created by the individual with inspiration from a wide range of possibilities. The world is created through, and of, literacy, from words used to name objects, such as trees or chairs or air, to structured prose that flows from the ingenious inner-workings of an individual.  Whether it is created on paper or other form of writing space, literacy is an art form, an invention, an illusion, a piece of the earth, an expression, a trait, and is most definitely unique. 

*Special thanks to Julian Beever for his amazing 3-Dimensional Sidewalk Art