The interface that changed the lives of Hawking
09
Dec
The physicist Stephen Hawking, developer of the Big Bang theory, is quadriplegic and collaborated with Intel founder
Gordon Moore to develop a more efficient technology to control the computer interface for people without the tactile control and now the interface code will be made available in January 2015.
The environment is called Context Aware Assistive Toolkit (ACAT) which has three basic components: a cheek movement of the input sensor to the item selection screen, an interface that chooses the letters to make words and software for interaction communication with the Web browser that anticipates what Hawking want to type when choosing letters.
The engineer Intel Lama Nachman Intel explains that Hawking wanted something “to the look and feel interface options made, but something more effective and fast to operate.”
In Tech Republic magazine article, Hawking says the software, which will now be open source, has changed their lives and allowed to continue his work in the development of physics.
Hawking said to the magazine that “as technology has more specialized it opens up possibilities that I could not even predict. The technology being developed to support people with disabilities is leading the way to break the communication barriers that once stood in the way, “he said.
“This new system is a lifestyle change for me and I hope it will serve me well for the next 20 years.”, And we hope that with open source there are more developers supporting persons with disabilities.
