Contact: Sammy McDavid
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Technologies that support the memory needs of older adults will be discussed in detail during an Oct. 5 public program at Mississippi State.
"Supporting Older Adults' Memory Needs with Aware Home Technology: Improving Quality of Life through Science" is the title of scheduled remarks by researcher Wendy Rogers of the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Her presentation begins at 7 p.m. in the Tully Auditorium of Thompson Hall on Stone Boulevard. The university's psychology department and its applied cognitive science doctoral program are sponsors. A reception in the lobby immediately follows the hour-long event.
Deborah Eakin, organizer and assistant professor, said Rogers is the inaugural speaker for the doctoral program's recently created Distinguished Cognitive Science Colloquium Series.
"Dr. Rogers is internationally known for her work in cognitive aging and the use of technology to provide older adults with increased self-sufficiency and improved quality of life," Eakin said. "We are inviting all interested members of the community to hear her discussion of how memory changes with age and how technology can support 'aging-in-place.'"
Rogers has worked with a team of Georgia Tech researchers to design an "Aware Home" on the Atlanta campus. The structure is described as "rich in technology," all designed to help with a memory loss and a variety of other issues relevant to people who are growing older.
"Dr. Rogers asks us to imagine a home that is 'aware' of our activities," Eakin explained. "A home that might help 'remember' what you went into the kitchen for, whether a visitor at the front door is someone you know or what the proper procedure is for performing a recently learned home medical procedure."
She added: "We feel this program can be of immediate benefit both to older adults and to children or loved ones who may be helping them through the aging process."
For additional information, contact Eakin at 662-325-7949 or de115@msstate.edu.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.