Karen Beljan, BS '05, Environmental Engineering
Beljan, of Eden, New York, evaluated remediation alternatives to improve the water quality of Onondaga Lake, ultimately helping to develop a method to aerate the lake that would improve the water and ecosystem.
(Photo: KC Kratt, MFA '84)
This hardware and software system provides a programmable light and sound station for therapists and teachers to use to enhance choice-making and cause-and-effect-related physical, speech, and occupational therapy sessions with physically and developmentally impaired children. Utilizing light and sound (including music and spoken-word), the station helps therapists and teachers create a choice-making, positive feedback, or a calming environment for students who react positively to enhanced sensory experiences. The DISCO system includes a wireless Tablet PC to present "puzzles" or choice-making opportunities to the students. Therapists use a second Tablet PC to take notes, view progress, and customize the system's reaction to the student's attempts at selection. Tablet PCs are essential, in that keyboards are inappropriate for both students and therapist during the sessions. An array of output devices, such as lights, bubble machines, fog machines, music, sound, and video serve as the rewards for students upon successful completion of puzzles. When successful choices are made, the system reacts with a light show catered to that student. The results of each session are saved as an accumulation of right and wrong choices, time to answer, and whether verbal/physical assist was required, so that teachers can chart the student’s progress over many weeks and months.
Children can not progress to the use of augmentative communications devices until the concepts of choice-making, cause and effect, and menus-to-sound (or speech) is solidified. This DISCO station will be a staple in early intervention and education for those who will eventually depend upon technology to speak and make their needs known.
Date Open: Jan 21, 2008 to Jan 1, 2009
Professor(s): Mike Buckley (mikeb@cse.buffalo.edu)
Department: Computer Science and Engineering