Senior Janie Martin attended Rice University’s 7th annual Hackathon this past weekend in Houston with the goal of trying to solve some of the biggest problems in health care today. The Hackathon competitors were in a 36 hour race against each other to develop new software and hardware to solve challenges identified by doctors at Texas Children’s Hospital. About 400 hackers competed for various prizes.
For Janie, the competition provided an opportunity to solve a medical problem that she herself once suffered from, encephalitis. Janie and her teammates developed a product called Memory Eyes which is a device that uses image detection and facial recognition software to assist with cognitive disorders. Cognitive impairment is a major component of encephalitis. As Janie explains it, with encephalitis, “You could be standing in a grocery store talking to someone when suddenly you have no idea where you are or who they are.” “With a press of a button, Memory Eyes will tell you who you’re talking to, where you are and remind you what you were there to get.”
Click on the link below to read more about Janie’s accomplishments and other cutting edge health care successes of Hackathon!
