Abstract :
As an experiment in student-directed group research activity in an area of social relevance, a small interdisciplinary group of undergraduates engaged in a ten-week research seminar concerned with technical aids to the blind. The instructor played only a minimal role. Several projects were undertaken and many have been pursued, at the students´ initiative, beyond the end of the seminar. Although the extreme freedom experienced by the students led to some frustrations, most enrollees felt the experience to have been very valuable.