Physiologie de la Lecture and de L'Ecriture (1905) was Emile Javal's seventh book. Initially trained as an engineer, Javal turned to medicine and to ophthalmology when he saw his sister suffering from defects of vision. He became a renowned ophthalmologist, developing the Javal-Schiotz ophthalmometer, treating strabismus, and founding the Sorbonne's ophthalmology lab. Tragically, Javal developed glaucoma and was blind by 1900. His work investigates the 'physiology of reading and writing', undertaking historical, theoretical, and practical approaches to his subject. Javal's work first examines the history behind reading and writing; he discusses epigraphy, writing, typography, stenography, musical notation, and 'ecriture en relief', a writing system for the blind, before turning to theoretical considerations and concluding with practical deductions. Physiologie represents Javal's interest in advancing a writing system for the blind by studying how the eye reads; his was one of the first works to do so.

Table of Contents

Introduction; Part I. Notions historiques: 1. Evolution de l'epigraphie; 2. Evolution de l'ecriture; 3. Evolution de la typographie; 4. Evolution de la stenographie; 5. Evolution de l'ecriture musicale; 6. Evolution de l'ecriture en relief; Part II. 7. Optique de l'oeil; 8. De l'acuite visuelle independamment de l'eclairage; 9. Influence de l'eclairage sur l'acuite visuelle; 10. Les pleins et les delies en typographie; 11. Acuite tactile; 12. Mechanisme de l'ecriture; 14. Rapidite de l'ecriture et de la lecture; Part III. Deductions pratiques: 15. L'eclairage public et prive; 16. Les livres et la myopie; 17. Typographie compacte; 18 Propagation de l'ecriture droite; 19. Enseignement de l'ecriture; 20. La lecture enseignee par l'ecriture; 21. Planchette ... ecrire des aveugles; 22. Dechiffrement des mauvaises ecritures; 23. Graphologie; 24. Expertises en ecritures; 25. Moyen d'accelerer la lecture des aveugles; Conclusion ... l'usage des pedagogues.