SCI Life: April 2015


Welcome to Her Beautiful Life

Jordan Bone of Jordan’s Beautiful Life is no ordinary makeup blogger. With a YouTube following of over 14,000 fans, Bone, 25, is the preeminent blogger with a spinal cord injury, and as a blogger with a C6 SCI, her makeup videos are full of great dexterity tips.

Jordan Bone

At 15, however, makeup wasn’t full force in her life. While walking alongside the road in Norfolk, U.K., everything changed. She and a friend decided to catch a ride with a classmate, but he crashed the car, Jordan broke her neck, and at this already pivotal time in her life, she had to face paralysis with little help from her friends. “My classmates didn’t really talk to me, as I don’t think they knew what to say,” she says. “I would feel so anxious going into school.”

Bone eventually completed high school at home, and soon makeup and all things beauty-related became her life’s passion. “I’ve always loved makeup,” she says. “There are so many things I cannot do for myself, but because makeup is so personal, it makes me feel like I’m still me. I can show the world the Jordan I want people to see, and that’s a great thing!”

On Jordan’s channel you’ll find around 114 videos focused on beauty, fashion, lifestyle and positivity. From a video on how to apply liquid eyeliner with no finger movement to her travels to Miami for rehabilitation and shopping, insight into her world is absolutely fabulous.

“It’s been amazing and I feel so happy that I can share my tips with nondisabled and disabled women,” she says about her video blogging. “It can be nerve-wracking putting yourself out there on the Internet, but I want to succeed in inspiring others. I don’t think you ever stop learning,” she adds, “and you can only become better with practice.” You can visit her world at jordansbeautifullife.com.

Flying Jet Fighters With Her Mind

It’s been said there’s nothing you can’t do if you just set your mind to it. Jan Scheuermann, a 55-year-old quad from Pittsburgh, Pa., is proving this right in a rather startling way: She flies an F-35 fighter jet simulator with nothing but her thoughts … and, of course, the electrodes attached to her brain.

Jan Scheuermann has moved on from eating a chocolate bar with a robotic arm to flying fighter jets with her mind.
Jan Scheuermann has moved on from eating a chocolate bar with a robotic arm to flying fighter jets with her mind. Photo courtesy of UPMC

A few years back Scheuermann made the news by controlling Hector the Robotic Arm with her thoughts, successfully maneuvering a chocolate bar to her mouth. This impressed Arati Prabhakar, director of the Pentagon’s advanced research arm DARPA so much that he recruited Scheuermann for DARPA’s robotics program. But here’s the kicker: She’s not using her thoughts to control a robot or even a joystick. Instead, her thoughts are directly controlling the fighter jet simulator. “She’s flying that simulator directly from her neural signaling,” said Prabhakar to Gizmodo.com. Read the whole article at tinyurl.com/n6dl73d.

While this technology is still a ways off from human clinical trials, thanks to people like Scheuermann, the possibilities of mind-controlled technology is bright.

Adrenaline Air Time

Want to experience the thrill of getting into the air? Project Airtime is committed to helping people with disabilities experience flight via hang-gliding adventures. It is not only a top-notch nonprofit to check out, it’s a great opportunity for people with spinal cord injuries to get the assistance they need to experience fun outside of their wheelchairs. Check it out at projectairtime.org


Support New Mobility

Wait! Before you wander off to other parts of the internet, please consider supporting New Mobility. For more than three decades, New Mobility has published groundbreaking content for active wheelchair users. We share practical advice from wheelchair users across the country, review life-changing technology and demand equity in healthcare, travel and all facets of life. But none of this is cheap, easy or profitable. Your support helps us give wheelchair users the resources to build a fulfilling life.

donate today

Comments are closed.