My father was diagnosed with Alzheimer's last month. He's had symptoms for a couple of years, but as an engineer with a pretty high cognitive reserve he compensated with systems, rituals, and routines, but, mostly, paper systems.
In the 30 years since my grandmother died from Alzheimer's, we haven't made much progress on treatment. I'm now looking ahead about 30 years to the age when my father and his mother both experienced the onset of symptoms and I'm thinking about how I might compensate, keep myself aware of my condition, and remain functional for longer. As a software developer who already relies heavily on software systems to keep life organized, I expect software will play a large role for me.
I believe there's already a market for technology widgets for cognitively impaired people. Dad still likes to surf the internet to read the news and do research about his condition. It would be handy if I could sandbox him a little. Is there a way to rig a browser so a user can't buy anything online? That would be handy.
As wearable tech -- and in 30 years perhaps implantable tech -- advances, I can envision many devices and software aids for those with cognitive decline.
Would be nice, though, if I didn't need any of that because the next 30 years yields an effective treatment or cure.
In the 30 years since my grandmother died from Alzheimer's, we haven't made much progress on treatment. I'm now looking ahead about 30 years to the age when my father and his mother both experienced the onset of symptoms and I'm thinking about how I might compensate, keep myself aware of my condition, and remain functional for longer. As a software developer who already relies heavily on software systems to keep life organized, I expect software will play a large role for me.
I believe there's already a market for technology widgets for cognitively impaired people. Dad still likes to surf the internet to read the news and do research about his condition. It would be handy if I could sandbox him a little. Is there a way to rig a browser so a user can't buy anything online? That would be handy.
As wearable tech -- and in 30 years perhaps implantable tech -- advances, I can envision many devices and software aids for those with cognitive decline.
Would be nice, though, if I didn't need any of that because the next 30 years yields an effective treatment or cure.