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Dear IEEE Fellow Members, Senior Members, Members and Graduate Student Members,
Greetings.
About Gerontechnology Symposium:
Gerontechnology refers to “designing technology and environment for independent living and social participation of older persons in good health, comfort and safety” (International Society for Gerontechnology, ISG). The term Gerontechnology is a marriage of the field of Gerontology, which is the scientific study of aging, and technology, which is the development and implementation of technological products, services and physical environments.
The first Gerontechnology Symposium was held at Monash University Malaysia in November 2017. This year, once again Petrosains has teamed up with Monash University Malaysia Gerontechnology Lab and IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society (TEMS) in organising Gerontehcnology Symposium 2018, in conjunction with the Petrosains Science Festival 2018. Find out more about Petrosains Science Festival here (http://www.sciencefestival.my
The Second Gerontechnology Symposium 2018 will be held on 14th September 2018, in Petrosains The Discovery Centre, Level 4, Suria KLCC. Admission is FREE. Pre-registration is required:
https://gerontech2018-1.peatix
https://gerontech2018-2.peatix
https://gerontech2018-3.peatix
Programme:
Concourse Stage, 12pm – 12:30pm:
Opening Remarks by Professor Pervaiz K. Ahmed, Deputy Head of School (Research), Director of the Global Asia in the 21st Century (G21) and also Director of the Enterprise and Innovation Hub (eiHub), of the Business School, Monash University Malaysia.
Keynote 2: Technology-Enhanced Learning Environments for Older Adults, Professor Shin’Ichi Konomi, Director of Learning Analytics Center at the Faculty of Arts and Science, Kyushu University
Abstract: As smart technologies pervade our everyday environments, they change what people should learn to live and work meaningfully as indispensable participants of our society. For instance, ubiquitous availability of smart devices and communication networks may reduce the burden for people to remember factual information. At the same time, it may increase the importance of the skills and knowledge to live, work, collaborate, and create effectively in the technology-pervaded world. In the midst of such a social and technological shift, we have initiated our major efforts to develop technological support environments for older learners in the rapidly aging society of Japan. This talk will introduce the ideas and initial experiences of the efforts in the context of a JST (Japan Science and Technology Agency) project, and discuss general opportunities and challenges of future learning technologies for older adults.
Keynote 3: Leveraging Technology to Encourage Social Interaction Among Older Adults, Professor Tsai-Hsuan Tsai, Associate Professor, Director of the Design Centre at the Department of Industrial Design, Chang Gung University
Abstract: In the face of an aging population, many researchers have recently begun to pay attention to the psychological well-being and social needs of older people. As they age, older people are more willing to spend time maintaining connections with family members and close friends. Emotional connection and closeness with family members and loved ones make older people feel happy, and social interaction with friends helps older people achieve a sense of happiness and intimacy, moderate their self-disclosure and emotional support, and maintain their self-worth. The use of the Internet and social applications has many benefits for older people, but numerous investigations have shown that older people do not perceive the current social technologies as a friendly social environment. Therefore, in this talk, some social applications specifically designed for older people, will be introduced, and the opportunities and challenges of future social technologies for older adults will be also discussed.
Gerontechnology Symposium: Workshop 1 – Future Technology or Technology Today, 2pm-3pm, Delta Room, Petrosains The Discovery Centre, Level 4, Suria KLCC
This workshop is an information-sharing session about the advent of cutting-edge modern technologies, e.g. self-driving cars, smart home technologies, exoskeletons and etc. The workshop will be conducted in the form of a ‘Kahoot!’ quiz game with prizes, together with videos and mini lectures of the topics covered.
Speakers:
Dr. Teh Pei Lee is an Associate Professor at the School of Business, Monash University Malaysia.
Mr. Jeffery Yeow Teh Thiry is currently working as Research Assistant in Monash University Malaysia’s Gerontechnology Lab.
Mr. Poh Zhuo is currently working as Research Assistant in Monash University Malaysia’s Gerontechnology Lab.
Gerontechnology Symposium: Workshop 2 – Future Tech for Learners of All Ages, 3pm-4pm, Delta Room, Petrosains The Discovery Centre, Level 4, Suria KLCC
In this workshop, participants will engage in individual and group activities to develop and sketch out ideas of future technologies for them, their family members, relatives, friends, colleagues, acquaintances, and/or even strangers of all ages including older adults. It will provide opportunities for the participants to be aware of the diverse landscapes of future learning technologies and gain clearer understanding of their commonalities, differences, opportunities and challenges. The experiences and outcomes of the workshop will be documented and shared among participants, and potentially with others who are interested in the learning technologies of the future involving older and younger adults living, learning, and working in harmony.
Speaker:
Professor Shin’Ichi Konomi, Director of Learning Analytics Center, Faculty of Arts and Science, Kyushu University
Biodata: Shin’ichi Konomi is a Professor and Director of Learning Analytics Center at the Faculty of Arts and Science, Kyushu University. He received his Ph.D. degree in Computer Science from Kyoto University in 1996. Before joining Kyushu University in 2017, he was an associate professor at the University of Tokyo, a senior research associate at the University of Colorado at Boulder, and a postdoctoral research scientist at GMD (German National Research Centre for Information Technology with eight institutes in three different cities; since 2001 merged with Fraunhofer Society). He leads a JST (Japan Science and Technology Agency) Project for developing support environments for learners of all ages in super-aging societies, and recently organized a symposium on Learning Analytics and Adaptive Aids for Active Adults at All Ages (LA9) that involve international and national experts.
Gerontechnology Symposium: Workshop 3 – A Foresight Design to Help the Health Promotion of Older Adults, 4pm-5pm, Delta Room, Petrosains The Discovery Centre, Level 4, Suria KLCC
As “prevention is better than cure,” a medical care system which is capable of determining a patient’s level of physical fitness (PF) is necessary. An assisted system is urgently required not only to inform older people of their own performance on physical activities but also to help doctors optimize treatment for further therapy. However, the instruments for PF evaluation are so many that it is almost impossible to have standard criteria for the components of PF assessment in different countries. Furthermore, most studies have focused on a specific instrument that performs one functional task. What is really needed is equipment that assesses PF without the assistance of a medical professional. Hence, in this talk, an integrated PF testing system that provides a platform for older adults and medical professionals not only to record and manage the assessment results via wireless sensor networks but also to give personalized suggestions for further training, will be introduced. In addition, the opportunities and challenges of future healthcare technologies for older adults will be also discussed.
Speaker:
Professor Tsai-Hsuan Tsai, Associate Professor, Director of the Design Centre, Department of Industrial Design, Chang Gung University
Biodata: Tsai-Hsuan Tsai received her Ph.D in Design Theory & Innovation/ Multimedia Design from De Montfort University in the UK in 2006. She is currently an associate professor of Department of Industrial Design at Chang Gung University, Taiwan (http://id.cgu.edu.tw/). She is also a director of the Design Center, Chang Gung University, Taiwan; an adjunct researcher of the Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan; and an adjunct associate professor of Department of Visual Communication Design, Ming Chi University of Technology, Taiwan. In addition, She was the chief of Exhibition Division At the Formosa Plastics Group Museum in Taiwan (from 2008/08～2015/08, http://www.fpgmuseum.com.tw/bi
Her research interests include the design of human-computer interaction (HCI) with mobile devices and services for people with special needs, and the development of theoretical usability model for assistive technology assessments and usability evaluation methods, particularly for the user interface and interaction technologies. Her current research focuses on the design and use of mobile social technologies for older people, the development of virtual and augmented reality and its applications to healthcare and medicine, the analysis of users’ behavior in social networks, mobile usability and user experience testing. Dr. Tsai has more than 50 publications and more than 10 patents in the field of healthcare and medical related systems, social media platforms, the innovative rehabilitation systems and product design. Some novel designs have been adopted by the industry. Currently, she has a number of ongoing multidisciplinary projects of which many are related to social networking platforms for seniors, interactive technologies in health promotion, and AI voice-based virtual health assistants; moreover, she has consulted with more over 10 Taiwan companies or institutions in the area of digital marketing strategies and applications.