Many invention ideas are created with the intention to help others. An example of this is Stephen Hawking’s speech synthesizer, which is a whole lot more complicated and intricate than one might think. When he first started using the synthesizer, Stephen would have to choose the word he wanted using a hand-clicker that highlighted words on a screen row by row column by column. With this technology Stephen was able to speak 15 words in one minute. Unfortunately, over time Stephen’s hand-function and mobility continued to degrade and new invention ideas had to be formulated for him. This brought the development of his “cheek switch”, which detected slight movements in his cheek to determine when he was selecting a word. This too, was only a temporary fix, as the input system for his speech synthesizer was very slow and would set him back every time he selected a wrong word or letter, by 2011 he was only managing one or two words per minute. Which lead to more enhancements to his software and speech technology. Stephen now uses a software interface, which allows him to select a word right after typing a letter, instead of having to scroll down to the bottom of the page and find a word suggestion. This version also includes added features such as extra menus that allow shortcuts for Stephen to speak, email or search. To conclude, inventions that help others like Stephen Hawking are the types of inventions that are important to society. Can you think of any invention ideas or recent discoveries that can help society?
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