Annas Smile Begins a Journey: UMass Lowell's assistive technology program

Senior Capstone Project Gives Power to Paralyzed Girls Voice
For Senior Michael Darish, it was her picture that sucked him in.
Little 3-year-old Annas expressive eyes and heart-melting smile spoke to Darish, inspiring him to perfect a senior project to improve
the quality of life for this tiny stranger from Italy.

He heard the story of how she was paralyzed from the neck down in a car accident at the age of two, and how she must use a ventilator to
breathe. He read e-mails from her father, who stumbled upon UMass Lowell's assistive technology program through the Internet after scouring the world for help. Darish considered the fathers request: create a device that would let Anna click and drag a cursor on her computer, using only her voice.

Category:

Science & Technology

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• UMass
• Lowell's
• assistive
• technology
• program