(April 11) is World Parkinson's Disease Day, and many people will think of Muhammad Ali, the boxing champion, on this day.
At the age of 42, Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, and by the time he died at the age of 74, he had been battling it for a full 32 years. Ali, who once rocked the world with his fists and shouted "I am the king of the world" in the ring, faced Parkinson's disease and got a taste of being dominated by fear.
"I studied my opponents and I knew how to beat them; but with the doctors, I didn't know what they would do to me."
Parkinson's disease, a neurodegenerative disease that occurs in middle-aged and elderly people, is known as the "third killer" of middle-aged and elderly people. Common symptoms are hand tremors, slurred speech, muscle stiffness, slow movement, and easy to fall.
Currently, there are more than 3 million people with Parkinson's disease in China and more than 10 million worldwide. We often see people flirting with the symptoms of Parkinson's disease on the Internet, or expressing dislike for elderly people with shaky hands and mobility problems, but few people really pay attention to and understand this "evil" that is ravaging China's huge aging population, and what it's really like. What does it look like and what can we do for the more than 10 million people?
Flirting and fear are useless, only action can change the status quo, as we know many companies are using "black technology" to improve the lives of Parkinson's patients. The following C sister will introduce you to a few "black technology" up posture ~
Apple: the use of smart apps to collect real-time data
In 2015 Apple released a medical application - ResearchKit, hoping to collect data on Parkinson's patients' voices, trembling frequency and balance by using the iPhone's microphone, touchscreen, vibration, and utilizing walking balance, respectively, and then analyze their health and give them professional medical advice.
But many Parkinson's patients' symptoms are not dominated by tremors, and whether it's self-testing or accessing data in real time, Apple's research is now more of a complementary medical tool: it can play a guiding role for patients before their follow-up appointments with their doctors.
Google, Gyenno: Designing smart anti-fibrillation tableware
Liftware, a tableware made by Life Labs, a biotech company owned by Google, specifically for people with Parkinson's, was launched in 2013.
Liftware's smart grip matches forks, spoons, keys, and other items that often need to be held, making it a versatile and versatile piece!
It's also equipped with special sensors capable of automatically reacting when a patient's limbs shake, counteracting their own shaking with its own special vibration mechanism, making it easier for them to get food into their mouths or screw the locks on their doors.
Parkinson's sufferers actually struggle with every detail of their lives, and the consequences of having trouble taking care of themselves are much more serious than we realize, such as a woman who may refuse to leave the house ever again if she can no longer do her own makeup.
Many people don't know that there's actually a domestic company that researches Parkinson's disease, Gyenno. in 2016 they launched a set of smart meal spoons similar to Liftware, called Rui Meal.
This device also feeds back to doctors and researchers after collecting data about tremors, which is used to develop smarter algorithms to improve its performance at a later stage.
Gyenno's CEO said that the tremor reduction rate of the RuiDin has already surpassed that of Liftware, and that the anti-shake effect in the vertical direction has reached 80%.
Congratulations to the domestic research and enterprises for having this kind of research!
I really hope that in the future, not only cutlery and keys, but also people with Parkinson's disease can enjoy using makeup brushes, nail clippers and other daily life tools!
Global Kinetics: designing medically smart wristbands
Australian tech company Global Kinetics has designed a smartwatch, the Kinetigraph, which also collects data on a patient's signs and then, through a unique algorithm, transforms the data into readable information, making it easy for doctors to fine-tune therapeutic medications. In addition, the wristband reminds the patient when to take the specified medication and keeps a record of this.
In addition to these C sister also heard that MIT has a study is to use the reaction time of people using the keyboard when inputting actions for the early diagnosis of Parkinson's disease, does it mean that by tapping the keyboard can determine whether they have Parkinson's disease ...... Seems pretty impressive! The "keyboard warriors" eyes flashed a glimmer of joy ......
Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing our lives, and even our destinies, in a way that's disruptive to our imaginations, and we're seeing more and more companies, like Apple and Goole, start to pay attention to the interests of minorities, in addition to the market share of the general public. The economic benefits brought by minorities are naturally not very high, and the risks are never less than those of the mass market. C has reason to believe that it is the appeal of social responsibility that has greatly inspired companies to do so.
The boxing champion has passed away, C sister really hope that the power of science and technology is more powerful, the research and development of "black science and technology" companies more, Parkinson's patients life can be easier. In addition, society treats them more tolerant, after all, their present is likely to be our future.