Challenging the Idealization of Technology for Disability

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The chapter discusses the author's experience with technology for disability and challenges the idealization of such technology. They highlight that while better materials and incremental changes are helpful, they may not be life-changing. The chapter also emphasizes the issues of maintenance, negotiation, and repair that disabled people often face with these technologies.

Over 34 million disabled Americans, but despite the commonality of having a disability, there's still a social tendency to want to "solve" disability out of view with technology. As useful as robotic limbs or exoskeletons for walking might seem on paper, they don't always consider the practicalities of living with a disability. In this episode, Adam speaks with Ashley Shew, author of "Against Technoableism," about how technology is best suited to make an impact for the disabled and when it's only used to hide disability to make the abled more comfortable.

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