In India, we have these huge families. I bet a lot of you all must have heard about it. Which means that there are a lot of family events. So as a child, my parents used to drag me to these family events.
Na India temos familias enormes -aposto a que moitos de vostedes teñen oído falar diso- o que implica que hai moitas xuntanzas familiares. E de nena, os meus pais adoitaban arrastrarme a estas xuntanzas.
But the one thing that I always looked forward to was playing around with my cousins. And there was always this one uncle who used to be there, always ready, jumping around with us, having games for us, making us kids have the time of our lives. This man was extremely successful: he was confident and powerful. But then I saw this hale and hearty person deteriorate in health. He was diagnosed with Parkinson's.
Pero polo único que eu sempre devecía era xogar cos meus primos. E sempre estaba este tío meu que acostumaba estar aí sempre disposto a brincar con nós, a facernos xogos, para que os rapaces o pasásemos en grande. Este home tiña un éxito tremendo: era moi seguro de si e forte. Pero vin como se lle deterioraba a saúde a esta persoa sa e robusta. Diagnosticáronlle párkinson.
Parkinson's is a disease that causes degeneration of the nervous system, which means that this person who used to be independent suddenly finds tasks like drinking coffee, because of tremors, much more difficult. My uncle started using a walker to walk, and to take a turn, he literally had to take one step at a time, like this, and it took forever. So this person, who used to be the center of attention in every family gathering, was suddenly hiding behind people. He was hiding from the pitiful look in people's eyes.
A enfermidade de párkinson causa a dexeneración do sistema nervioso, o que implica que para esta persoa noutrora independente de súbito tarefas coma tomar café, por mor dos tremores, son dificilísimas. O meu tío comezou a usar un andador para camiñar, e para virarse, literalmente tiña que dar un paso de cada vez, así, e leváballe unha eternidade. Así a todo, esta persoa afeita a ser o centro de atención en todas as reunións familiares, repentinamente agachábase detrás da xente. Agochábase da mirada compasiva dos ollos da xente.
And he's not the only one in the world. Every year, 60,000 people are newly diagnosed with Parkinson's, and this number is only rising. As designers, we dream that our designs solve these multifaceted problems, one solution that solves it all, but it need not always be like that. You can also target simple problems and create small solutions for them and eventually make a big impact. So my aim here was to not cure Parkinson's, but to make their everyday tasks much more simple, and then make an impact.
E el non é o único do mundo. Cada ano, diagnostícanse unhas 60.000 persoas máis con párkinson, e esta cantidade vai en aumento. Os deseñadores soñamos con arranxar estes problemas poliédricos, cunha solución que o resolva todo, pero non ten que ser sempre así. Podemos centrarnos en problemas simples e crearlles unha pequena solución e acadar á fin unha mellora de impacto. Por iso o meu obxectivo non era curar o párkinson, senón facer as súas tarefas cotiás moito máis doadas, para logo acadar unha mellora.
Well, the first thing I targeted was tremors, right? My uncle told me that he had stopped drinking coffee or tea in public just out of embarrassment, so, well, I designed the no-spill cup. It works just purely on its form. The curve on top deflects the liquid back inside every time they have tremors, and this keeps the liquid inside compared to a normal cup. But the key here is that it is not tagged as a Parkinson's patient product. It looks like a cup that could be used by you, me, any clumsy person, and that makes it much more comforting for them to use, to blend in. So, well, one problem solved, many more to go.
Ben, o primeiro que acoutei foron os tremores, non é? O meu tío díxome que deixara de tomar café ou té en público só pola vergoña que pasaba, así é que eu deseñei a cunca antiderrame. É simplemente a súa forma a que a fai funcionar. A curva do bordo desvía o líquido cara dentro cando hai tremores e mantén o líquido dentro, ao revés dunha cunca normal. Pero o importante aquí é non etiquetala para o párkinson. Parece unha cunca para ser usada por ti, por min, por calquera torpe, e iso fai moito máis reconfortante o seu uso, a integración. Moi ben, un problema resolto, aínda queda moito que facer.
All this while, I was interviewing him, questioning him, and then I realized that I was getting very superficial information, or just answers to my questions. But I really needed to dig deeper to get a new perspective. So I thought, well, let's observe him in his daily tasks, while he's eating, while he's watching TV. And then, when I was actually observing him walking to his dining table, it struck me, this man who finds it so difficult to walk on flat land, how does he climb a staircase? Because in India we do not have a fancy rail that takes you up a staircase like in the developed countries. One actually has to climb the stairs. So he told me, "Well, let me show you how I do it." Let's take a look at what I saw.
En todo este tempo estiven a entrevistalo, a preguntarlle, e decateime de que obtiña información moi superficial ou só respostas ás miñas preguntas. Pero eu necesitaba certamente afondar ata unha nova perspectiva. Por iso pensei, ben, observemos as súas tarefas cotiás, mentres come, mentres mira a televisión. E entón, cando estaba a observar como ía cara á mesa de xantar dixen: como este home, que ten dificultades co piso chairo, pode subir polas escaleiras? Posto que na India non temos cadeiras elevadoras para subir coma nos países desenvolvidos, un ten que ascender de feito polas escaleiras. E nisto díxome el: “Ben, vouche ensinar como o fago.” Vexamos o que vin.
So he took really long to reach this position, and then all this while, I'm thinking, "Oh my God, is he really going to do it? Is he really, really going to do it without his walker?" And then ...
Levoulle moito tempo adoptar esta posición e no entanto, eu estaba a pensar “Meu deus, vaino facer realmente? Vaino facer realmente sen o andador?” E logo...
(Laughter)
(Risas)
And the turns, he took them so easily.
el vírase, e súbeas moi facilmente.
So -- shocked? Well, I was too. So this person who could not walk on flat land was suddenly a pro at climbing stairs.
Así é que... abraiados? Ben, eu tamén. Ou sexa que esta persoa que non camiñaba polo chairo de súpeto podía subir as escaleiras.
On researching this, I realized that it's because it's a continuous motion. There's this other man who also suffers from the same symptoms and uses a walker, but the moment he's put on a cycle, all his symptoms vanish, because it is a continuous motion. So the key for me was to translate this feeling of walking on a staircase back to flat land. And a lot of ideas were tested and tried on him, but the one that finally worked was this one. Let's take a look.
Durante a investigación vin que era polo movemento continuo. Tamén temos este outro home que sofre os mesmos síntomas e emprega un andador pero cando senta nunha bicicleta esfúmanse tódolos síntomas porque é un movemento continuo. Así que eu só tiña de trasladar a sensación de andar polas escaleiras ao piso chairo. E probamos e puxemos en práctica moitas ideas con el, pero a que funcionou ao final foi esta. Botémoslle unha ollada!
(Laughter)
(Risas)
(Applause)
(Aplausos)
He walked faster, right?
Andou máis rápido, non si?
(Applause)
(Aplausos)
I call this the staircase illusion, and actually when the staircase illusion abruptly ended, he froze, and this is called freezing of gait. So it happens a lot, so why not have a staircase illusion flowing through all their rooms, making them feel much more confident? You know, technology is not always it. What we need are human-centered solutions. I could have easily made it into a projection, or a Google Glass, or something like that. But I stuck to simple print on the floor. This print could be taken into hospitals to make them feel much more welcome.
Eu chámolle a isto "ilusión das escaleiras" e de feito, cando a ilusión das escaleiras acabou de súpeto, el paralizouse e isto chámase "conxelación da marcha". Como isto acontece moito, por que non ter a ilusión das escaleiras ao longo de tódolos seus cuartos, para facer que se sintan máis seguros? Saben? A tecnoloxía non o é todo. O que nós precisamos son solucións centradas no ser humano. Eu ben puiden crear unha proxección, ou unhas gafas Google ou algo parecido. Pero fiquei cun simple debuxo no chan. Este debuxo podería levarse aos hospitais para facelos sentir máis benvidos.
What I wish to do is make every Parkinson's patient feel like my uncle felt that day. He told me that I made him feel like his old self again.
A min o que me gustaría acadar para os pacientes de párkinson é que se sentisen coma o meu tío hoxe. Díxome que eu lle permitira sentirse el mesmo outra vez.
"Smart" in today's world has become synonymous to high tech, and the world is only getting smarter and smarter day by day. But why can't smart be something that's simple and yet effective? All we need is a little bit of empathy and some curiosity, to go out there, observe. But let's not stop at that. Let's find these complex problems. Don't be scared of them. Break them, boil them down into much smaller problems, and then find simple solutions for them. Test these solutions, fail if needed, but with newer insights to make it better. Imagine what we all could do if we all came up with simple solutions. What would the world be like if we combined all our simple solutions? Let's make a smarter world, but with simplicity.
“Intelixente” no mundo de hoxe en día é sinónimo de última tecnoloxía, e o mundo é máis e máis intelixente día a día. Pero por que non pode ser intelixente algo tan sinxelo e tamén efectivo? O que precisamos é algunha empatía e algo de curiosidade. para saír aí, para observar. Mais non o deixemos aí! Atopemos estes problemas complexos. Non lles teñamos medo. Quebrémolos, reduzámolos a problemas máis pequenos e logo atopémoslles solucións simples. Comprobemos estas solucións, erremos se é preciso, pero con novos coñecementos para mellorar. Imaxinen o que poderiamos acadar con todas as nosas solucións simples. Como sería o mundo se combinásemos todas as nosas solucións simples? Fagamos un mundo máis intelixente, pero con simplicidade.
Thank you.
Grazas.
(Applause)
(Aplausos)