NeuroNote #2: Small, Simple, Life-Changing

After watching a TedTalk by Mileha Soneji, Simple hacks for life with Parkinson's,
I felt refreshed by her sweet simplicity and ingenuity. After her uncle was diagnosed with 
Parkinson's, she wanted to help him feel independent and enjoy simple pleasures of his life from 
before. She designed a coffee cup that would allow him to drink without spilling, due to tremors. 
He had stopped drinking in public due to fear of embarrassment. The coffee cup was not only 
usable for those with Parkinson's, but could be used by everyone. Universal design.  
She also designed a way for him to walk on flat ground with the same smoothness he had 
when he walked up and down stairs. Constant motion gave him smoothness that he did not have 
in normal walking with his walker. So, she designed an illusion. 
A rug like pathway that can go from room to room throughout the house that gives the illusion 
of walking on stairs. When he walked this illusion, his walking was smooth and fluent. 
She mentioned that her vision was to take complex problems and break them down. 
She could have went much more high-tech and advanced in her 
designs, but instead she kept them simplistic and basic in technology, purposively. 
I love seeing how life-changing assistive technology design can be. 
I also loved that this was something un-intimidating
and feasible for just about anyone. 
Universal, simple, effective, encouraging, empowering. 




Soneji, Mileha. (2015, February). Simple hacks for life with Parkinson's. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/mileha_soneji_simple_hacks_for_life_with_parkinson_s#t-404440