Guide to feeling for Minifigs Series 11

akunthita · September 2013

William wrote another awesome guide to feeling for the LEGO minifigure packets - this time covering Series 11. As you might now already, William is legally blind and has mad tactile skills to identify minifigures very fast and with 100% accuracy. He is the guy who picks out all the minifigs for his local LUG members, and his guides have helped many LEGO fans to identify what's inside the packages and improve their own skills. Here is the link: http://thebrickblogger.com/2013/09/guide-to-feeling-for-lego-minifigs-series-11/

Enjoy! :)

indigobox · September 2013

That is awesome.

I love the fact he gets 100% yet he is legally blind. Pretty amazing really.
He probably does it a lot quicker than people like me who are not visually impaired in anyway.

Thanks for sharing.

akunthita · September 2013

@indigobox, yes, it is because he is legally blind that he is so accurate. We rely so much on our eyes to identify something, not so much our tactile sense.

When I first started to learn from William and follow his guides, I became very much aware how little I depend on touch alone to identify something. It actually became a really fun game to go through a box of minifigs and depend on touch alone to figure out what's inside.

The first time I tried I couldn't identify anything, I was so confused. But after a full box, I started to get much faster. So it is a skill we can all improve on...(c:

indigobox · September 2013

@akunthita I agree. When I feel though, and many others can probably agree, I am able to check the box just for confirmation of the part that is in place in the figure.

If you can't see then it must make it even harder to at least get the confirmation that you have the right figure.

Today was 100% for the people that required what was collected, as it almost always is. :) Occasionally things go wrong, but hey ho thats the fun of CMF collecting.

LegoMom1 · September 2013

@akunthita- I often close my eyes when I am trying to identify a scent or taste, or to hear something that is being said in a whisper. This helps with concentration. Someone with limited or no sight does tend to develop the other senses of course, but the concentration gained by limiting another sense also contributes. You say he is legally blind. Is he able to distinguish the figures printed on the leaflet? Just curious.

akunthita · September 2013

@LegoMom1 so sorry, I didn't get a notification on your comment, but I wanted to get back to you as your suggestion is excellent! Yes, by limiting some of the senses and focusing all attention on one can really enhance the experience. BTW, this works the other way too; NEVER close your eyes when you are at the dentist!...(c;

As far as William's sight, he has some very limited vision, but he does have trouble with images. Even for his articles it is always his wife who takes pictures and sends images for articles as William can't manage them alone. For identifying the minifigs he is using his fingers alone.

There is a college student (a young woman) at my martial arts school who has similar lack of vision. She can see some light and make out blurry forms up to about 3 feet on one eye, and is completely bling on the other eye. She can't make out people's faces or identify objects by sight alone. She pretty much relies on her other senses (especially hearing) to get around (and yes, she practices martial arts, is working on her doctorate in molecular biology, refuses to use a cane, and in general completely independend).

Modern devices like computers and smartphones have apps available to make life a bit easier for those lacking sight. She showed me all the cool apps she had on her phone to help her in her daily life, and the apps on her computer to help with her study and research projects.

I so much respect people like that! They remind me that I have nothing to complain about...(c:

TheLoneTensor · September 2013

akunthita said:
For identifying the minifigs he is using his fingers alone.

Aren't we all at that point though? I mean, once you are aware of the accessories and general description (whether by looking at a picture or being told), it's all about the fingers. At least, I hope it's only all about the fingers - ew.

LegoMom1 · September 2013

@akunthita- I'm sure the martial arts contributes greatly to enhance her proprioception. Good for her.

Pitfall69 · September 2013

Oh man. Let us hope so. Although, I just saw in another thread someone wants to get out their "spooky parts".

akunthita · September 2013

@tensor, yes, but those of us who can see tend to use touch and immediately match it up with an image in our mind. When I go through a box I have a picture in front of me of all the minifigs and as I feel through the packets it helps me identify what it is that I'm feeling.

When you depend on sight alone (I have tried that too when I didn't have a picture) it is much harder to identify parts. At least that has been my experience...(c:

Pitfall69 · September 2013

My 2 cousins are legally blind. They will never be able to drive a car. Unless it is a bright sunny day, they can't see anything.

TheLoneTensor · September 2013

akunthita said:
@tensor, yes, but those of us who can see tend to use touch and immediately match it up with an image in our mind. When I go through a box I have a picture in front of me of all the minifigs and as I feel through the packets it helps me identify what it is that I'm feeling.

When you depend on sight alone (I have tried that too when I didn't have a picture) it is much harder to identify parts. At least that has been my experience...(c:

But, what is "in our mind" is simply an interpretation. If it's a blind person, it's likely because they've eaten a pretzel sometime, so they know the shape. Or they know what the shape of a tiki-man bone is because they probably felt a dog bone somewhere before. Of course, if they've lost their sight, then they likely saw these things prior to that. Beyond all this, if they are immersed in Lego, they really likely have encountered these things before, especially in the unique lego form these things take.

I think it's great that blind people are into Lego, because they should be. It's a wonderful way for them to experience creating something. I'm just saying that side by side, a blind person and a sighted person are 100% equal when feeling for minifigs, and neither would ramp up quicker (at least not as a result of being sighted/non-sighted).

akunthita · September 2013

@tensor, yes, LEGO is an awesome hobby, no matter what is your primary sense of perception. And it is also interesting when you "discover" that you can actually develop your senses by interacting with it in a different way. Since most of us appreciate LEGO through our eyes, it is quite fun to learn that you can also feel it and identify it with your hands.

One of the interesting things I learned from William is that it is not necessarily the biggest pieces that are the easiest to identify. As a visual person I tended to go for the big parts, because big should be more visible. But in terms of sensing LEGO through our fingers what is easiest and most sure way to identify something is not necessarily the biggest item. For me this one tip speeded up my time to identify minifigs tremendously.

I just pick up the baggies, shake it so that all the small pieces fall in the same corner, then feel through them to identify the accessories. There are some exceptions when larger pieces make a minifig more obvious, but in most cases William's strategy is what makes the most sense...(c:

And I still believe that William does have an advantage when it comes to touch. His fingers are much more developed as a sensory organ than for most of us. Of course we can develop them too, but at least in my experience it does take some practice....(c;

LegoMom1 · September 2013

@tensor makes a good point here. Someone who is blind or legally blind, usually does have more honed skills at touch and feeling than a sighted person. But in the case of feeling up minifigs, I think with a bit of practice, most sighted people are just as able to identify each figure with 100% accuracy. This is not to take anything away from William and his abilities, I just agree with tensor that the sighted are also able to identify CMFs with great accuracy. And from the point that @akunthita makes, we the sighted may even be at a disadvantage due to our reliance on the visual and that we are unable to see the figs.

Pitfall69 · September 2013

There should be competitions held. Competitors have 5 min to feel and confirm as many minifigures as they can.

akunthita · September 2013

Pitfall69 said:
There should be competitions held. Competitors have 5 min to feel and confirm as many minifigures as they can.

That would be SO MUCH FUN!!!...:D

Guide to feeling for Minifigs Series 11

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