Ben Affleck as Daredevil in the 2003 film

If you have ever read the comic book or seen the movie Daredevil you know about Matt Murdock who was blinded by radioactive material at a young age but quickly learned he could see the sounds that bounce off objects, this technique is similar to a bats sonar based navigation. It all seems like comic book fiction, but in reality this happens in the real world (minus radioactivity). The first known case of a human utilizing Echolocation is of James Holman also known as “the blind traveler” Born in 1786. He would get around by the sound of tapping his cane on the ground just as Matt Murdock did while he wasn’t dressed in his red leather costume fighting evil doers.

The pure brain power of these individuals who can use echolocation is unimaginable. But it is amazing to see how they have found a way to turn their lack of sight into an asset.

Vision and hearing are very similar in the fashion they process waves of information. Vision processes light waves as they travel from their source, bounce off surfaces throughout the environment and enter the eyes. Similarly, the auditory system processes sound waves as they travel from their source, bounce off surfaces and enter the ears. Both systems can extract a great deal of information about the environment by interpreting the complex patterns of reflected energy that they receive. In the case of sound, these waves of reflected energy are called “echoes”.

If you don’t believe it take a look at this episode of Extraordinary People: