Gardner–Salinas braille codes
The Gardner–Salinas braille codes are a method of encoding mathematical and scientific notation linearly using braille cells for tactile reading by the visually impaired. The most common form of Gardner–Salinas braille is the 8-cell variety, commonly called GS8. There is also a corresponding 6-cell form called GS6.[1]
The codes were developed as a replacement for Nemeth Braille by John A. Gardner, a physicist at Oregon State University, and Norberto Salinas, an Argentinian mathematician.
The Gardner–Salinas braille codes are an example of a compact human-readable markup language. The syntax is based on the LaTeX system for scientific typesetting.
Table of Gardner–Salinas 8-dot (GS8) braille
The set of lower-case letters, the period, comma, semicolon, colon, exclamation mark, apostrophe, and opening and closing double quotes are the same as in Grade-2 English Braille.[1]
Digits
Symbol | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille |
Apart from 0, this is the same as the Antoine notation used in French and Luxembourgish Braille.
Upper-case letters
GS8 upper-case letters are indicated by the same cell as standard English braille (and GS8) lower-case letters, with dot #7 added.
Symbol | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille | |||||||||||||
Symbol | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z |
Braille |
Compare Luxembourgish Braille.
Greek letters
Dot 8 is added to the letter forms of International Greek Braille to derive Greek letters:
Symbol | α | β | γ | δ | ε | ζ | η | θ | ι | κ | λ | μ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille | ||||||||||||
Symbol | ν | ξ | ο | π | ρ | σ | τ | υ | φ | χ | ψ | ω |
Braille | ||||||||||||
Symbol | Γ | Δ | Θ | Λ | Ξ | Π | Σ | Υ | Φ | Ψ | Ω | |
Braille |
Characters differing from English Braille
Symbol | Parentheses | Brackets | single quote | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
open | close | open | close | open | close | ? | |
Braille |
Text symbols
Symbol | • | © | † | ‡ | £ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille |
Math and science symbols
Symbol | ∼ | ≈ | ≡ | ∝ | |x| (abs. value) | ∞ | ∫ | line ∫ | closed ∫ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille |
Symbol | 〈 | 〉 | ∇ | ∂ | ... | → | ← | ○ | ℵ | ∈ | ⇌ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille |
Markup
Symbol | Superscript | Subscript | Left-superscript | Left-subscript | Begin fraction | Denominator | End fraction | Over * |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille |
* Encodes the fraction-slash for the single adjacent digits/letters as numerator and denominator.
Symbol | √ | complex radicand * | displayed equation ** | math expressions ** | hyperlink ** | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Open | Close | Open | Close | Open | Close | Open | Close | ||
Braille |
* Used for any > 1 digit radicand.
** Used for markup to represent inkprint text.
Symbol | Array | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Begin | End | End element | End line | vert. stack | horiz. combo | superposition | |
Braille |
Symbol | Misc. Symbol * | Modifiers | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Begin | End | Quantity | Markup indicator | Inverted | Stroke/Not | Variant | Large | |
Braille |
Typeface indicators
Symbol | Script | Bold | Italic | Underline | Definable font 1 | Fractur | Roman | Underline |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille |
Shape symbols
Symbol | ⊥ | ∥ | ∠ | Open Square | ⊿ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Braille |
Set theory
Symbol | ∪ | ∩ | ⊂ | ⊃ |
---|---|---|---|---|
Braille |
References
- "Index of Topics in Braille Section". Oregon State University Science Access Project Braille topics. Archived from the original on 2012-04-20. Retrieved 2012-04-29.
- Blind physicist creates better Braille — a CNN news item, November 9, 1995
- The world of blind mathematicians — article in Notices of the AMS, November 2002