Articles by Steven Gilchrist

I n recognition of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon delivered a statement about working towards a more inclusive society.   On December 3, 2013, Ki-moon announced the new Accessibility Centre at UN Headquarters in New York.   According to Ki-moon there are currently more than one billion people living with disabilities worldwide. Researchers from Georgia Tech have developed a new wireless device that gives people who use motorized wheelchairs more independence.   The new device known as the Tongue Drive System is considered to be more efficient than the “sip-and-puff” wheelchair model.   The tongue-directed wheelchair uses a headset that translates the movements from a magnet that is embedded in a user’s tongue.   The magnet sends information to a program on a cell phone or computer which operates the movement of the wheelchair. By moving their tongues to the left or right, paralyzed patients...

I nformation-technology departments at college campuses nationwide have struggled to maintain and upgrade their wireless-network capacities.  With the substantial increase of wireless device ownership particularly for traditional college-age students, chief information officers at colleges and universities have grappled with how to increase wireless capacity. Bruce Maas, the CIO at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, estimates there are 100,000 mobile devices being carried by students at the university. Bring-your-own-device (BYOD) has created a unique environment at institutions of higher education.  At a number of college campuses, student and faculty usage of personal, internet-capable wireless devices has strained campus networks.  Network capacity is even more strained in large lecture halls and athletic venues.  “An increase in the number of devices is only part of the problem.  As the devices get more advanced, they eat up more bandwidth.  ...