(Press-News.org) The Speech Accessibility Project has two new partners — The Matthew Foundation and the Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress — as it continues to recruit adults with Down syndrome who live in the United States and Canada. The project also allows residents of Puerto Rico to participate.
The project is also recruiting those with ALS, cerebral palsy and Parkinson’s disease, as well as individuals who have had a stroke.
“The research team has learned that connecting with trusted partners is key to showing the credibility of our work and how much it could improve the lives of people with disabilities,” said Mark Hasegawa-Johnson, the project’s leader and a professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “We are so thrilled that The Matthew Foundation and Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress have joined us, and we are grateful for their long history of service to the Down syndrome community.”
The Matthew Foundation’s mission is to improve the lives of persons with intellectual disabilities by supporting research, inclusion and employment.
“This project is relevant to all those dimensions,” said Jessamy Tang, The Matthew Foundation’s co-founder. “The Speech Accessibility research project will enable this population to benefit from voice command devices such as television remote controls, home appliances, transportation and cell phones. The applications for speech technology will lead to better prospects for inclusion in schools and increased employment opportunities.”
Tang believes devices that use voice commands are the future.
"Many of us already use them,” Tang said, “and it is important that those with Down syndrome can benefit from the next generation of voice-enabled devices. These devices can be life changing.”
For the last 40-plus years, the Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress has worked to ensure individuals with Down syndrome are valued, included and given the opportunities to pursue fulfilling lives.
“We aim to provide information about and access to the latest research, networking opportunities and advocacy for people with Down syndrome, their families, educators, health care professionals and the broader community,” said Executive Director Maureen Gallagher. “As speech technology plays an increasingly vital role in daily life, we believe that the Down syndrome community would benefit significantly from improved accessibility.”
Gallagher said her organization is proud to be working on the project, as it aligns with MDSC’s commitment to ensure the organization’s community has up to date and accurate information regarding the latest medical and scientific advances and research opportunities.
“Our community, and every community, deserves to be included and we have so many self-advocates who we are confident will thrive and also be appreciative of this study and the recognition it will bring,” she said.
END
Speech Accessibility Project partners with The Matthew Foundation, Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress
As it continues to recruit Canadian, U.S. and Puerto Rican adults, the Speech Accessibility Project is working with two partners already serving individuals with Down syndrome.
2024-11-15
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Mass General Brigham researchers find too much sitting hurts the heart
2024-11-15
Fitting in a workout after a long day of sitting at a desk might not be enough to compensate for the impacts of sedentary behavior on the heart. Investigators from Mass General Brigham, found that excessive sedentary behavior (waking activity with low energy expenditure while sitting, reclining, or lying down and not including hours spent sleeping at night) was linked to increased risk of heart disease, especially heart failure and cardiovascular death, and that these risks could be significantly reduced by substituting sedentary time for other activities. They also found that meeting guideline levels of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity may be insufficient on its own to reduce cardiovascular ...
New study shows how salmonella tricks gut defenses to cause infection
2024-11-15
A new UC Davis Health study has uncovered how Salmonella bacteria, a major cause of food poisoning, can invade the gut even when protective bacteria are present. The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, explains how the pathogen tricks the gut environment to escape the body's natural defenses.
The digestive system is home to trillions of bacteria, many of which produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) that help fight harmful pathogens. But Salmonella manages to grow and spread in the gut, even though ...
Study challenges assumptions about how tuberculosis bacteria grow
2024-11-15
The rod-shaped tuberculosis (TB) bacterium, which the World Health Organization has once again ranked as the top infectious disease killer globally, is the first single-celled organism ever observed to maintain a consistent growth rate throughout its life cycle. These findings, reported by Tufts University School of Medicine researchers on November 15 in the journal Nature Microbiology, overturn core beliefs of bacterial cell biology and hint at why the deadly pathogen so readily outmaneuvers our immune system and antibiotics.
"The ...
NASA Goddard Lidar team receives Center Innovation Award for Advancements
2024-11-15
NASA researchers Guan Yang, Jeff Chen, and their team received the 2024 Innovator of The Year Award at the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for their exemplary work on a lidar system enhanced with artificial intelligence and other technologies.
Like a laser-based version of sonar, lidar and its use in space exploration is not new. But the lidar system Yang and Chen’s team have developed — formally the Concurrent Artificially-intelligent Spectrometry and Adaptive Lidar System (CASALS) — can produce higher resolution data within a smaller space, significantly increasing efficiency compared to current models.
The ...
Can AI improve plant-based meats?
2024-11-15
Cutting back on animal protein in our diets can save on resources and greenhouse gas emissions. But convincing meat-loving consumers to switch up their menu is a challenge. Looking at this problem from a mechanical engineering angle, Stanford engineers are pioneering a new approach to food texture testing that could pave the way for faux filets that fool even committed carnivores.
In a new paper in Science of Food, the team demonstrated that a combination of mechanical testing and machine learning can describe food texture with striking similarity to human taste testers. Such a method could speed up the development of new and better plant-based meats. The team also found that ...
How microbes create the most toxic form of mercury
2024-11-15
Mercury is extraordinarily toxic, but it becomes especially dangerous when transformed into methylmercury – a form so harmful that just a few billionths of a gram can cause severe and lasting neurological damage to a developing fetus. Unfortunately, methylmercury often makes its way into our bodies through seafood – but once it’s in our food and the environment, there’s no easy way to get rid of it.
Now, leveraging high-energy X-rays at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL) at the U.S. Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, ...
‘Walk this Way’: FSU researchers’ model explains how ants create trails to multiple food sources
2024-11-15
It’s a common sight — ants marching in an orderly line over and around obstacles from their nest to a food source, guided by scent trails left by scouts marking the find. But what happens when those scouts find a comestible motherlode?
A team of Florida State University researchers led by Assistant Professor of Mathematics Bhargav Karamched has discovered that in a foraging ant’s search for food, it will leave pheromone trails connecting its colony to multiple food sources when they’re available, ...
A new CNIC study describes a mechanism whereby cells respond to mechanical signals from their surroundings
2024-11-15
To the casual eye, a memory foam mattress would appear to have no relationship to the behavior of cells and tissues. But an innovative study carried out at the Centro de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC) in Madrid shows that viscoelasticity—the capacity of a material to be compressed and then recover its original form, like memory foam—is a little-explored property of biological tissues that is essential for correct cell function.
Study leader Dr. Jorge Alegre-Cebollada, who heads the Molecular Mechanics of the Cardiovascular System laboratory at the CNIC, explained that proper cell function requires ...
Study uncovers earliest evidence of humans using fire to shape the landscape of Tasmania
2024-11-15
Some of the first human beings to arrive in Tasmania, over 41,000 years ago, used fire to shape and manage the landscape, about 2,000 years earlier than previously thought.
A team of researchers from the UK and Australia analysed charcoal and pollen contained in ancient mud to determine how Aboriginal Tasmanians shaped their surroundings. This is the earliest record of humans using fire to shape the Tasmanian environment.
Early human migrations from Africa to the southern part of the globe were well underway during the early part of the last ice age – humans reached northern ...
Researchers uncover Achilles heel of antibiotic-resistant bacteria
2024-11-15
Recent estimates indicate that deadly antibiotic-resistant infections will rapidly escalate over the next quarter century. More than 1 million people died from drug-resistant infections each year from 1990 to 2021, a recent study reported, with new projections surging to nearly 2 million deaths each year by 2050.
In an effort to counteract this public health crisis, scientists are looking for new solutions inside the intricate mechanics of bacterial infection. A study led by researchers at the University of California San Diego has discovered a vulnerability within strains of bacteria that are antibiotic resistant.
Working with labs at Arizona State University and the Universitat ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Better digital memories with the help of noble gases
Smarter memory paves the way for EU independence in computer manufacturing
Future of UK peatlands under threat due to climate change
‘Sleep hygiene’: How FIFO workers can get a better night's sleep
AI-based pregnancy analysis discovers previously unknown warning signs for stillbirth and newborn complications
Antidepressants reduce anxiety, but long-term impact remains unclear
Childhood trauma strongly linked to mental health problems in Brazilian adolescents, new study finds
Researchers leverage large-scale data to uncover new insights into rare diseases and COVID-19
Fresh embryo transfer may be better for women with low chance of IVF success
First-of-its-kind research identifies beneficial prenatal vitamins to reduce risk of infant death
Durham University scientists unveil breakthrough in predicting and engineering protein metalation
The benefits of speaking multiple languages
Topical mupirocin lowers lupus inflammation
New atom-based thermometer measures temperature more accurately
COVID lockdowns disrupted a crucial social skill among preschoolers, trailblazing study finds
Otago scientists discover Antarctic fast ice secrets
Study finds three new safe, effective ways to treat drug-resistant tuberculosis
A weekly injection could replace painful daily treatment for rare fat disorder
More Americans than ever are confident about providing lifesaving CPR, new survey suggests
Uber, Lyft or transit? The answer appears to align with how people value their time
Researchers uncover key insights into how the body protects against neuron damage
Diagnostic stewardship optimizes detection of appendicitis
Optical fiber sensor provides simple and sensitive detection of arsenic in drinking water
Oceanic plate between Arabian and Eurasian continental plates is breaking away
Hebrew SeniorLife and Healthworks Community Fitness collaborate to offer fitness curriculum in senior affordable housing communities
A less ‘clumpy,’ more complex universe?
New ways to modulate cell activity remotely
Changing cholesterol over time tied to risk of dementia
New training approach could help AI agents perform better in uncertain conditions
A window into the future of Amazonia
[Press-News.org] Speech Accessibility Project partners with The Matthew Foundation, Massachusetts Down Syndrome CongressAs it continues to recruit Canadian, U.S. and Puerto Rican adults, the Speech Accessibility Project is working with two partners already serving individuals with Down syndrome.