Technology Research for Developing Regions
240 views · Published 21 March 2013 · 1:06:23 · Indexed 27 October 2026
Channel: uwaterloo · 2013 · Education
Eric Brewer, Distinguished Lecture Series, Cheriton School of Computer Science, University of Waterloo - September 17, 2008 The historic focus of development has rightfully been on macroeconomics and good governance, but technology has an increasingly large role to play. In this talk, we review several novel technologies that we have deployed in India and Africa, and discuss the challenges and opportunities of this new subfield of EECS research. Our flagship project has been the development of long-distance WiFi for rural connectivity and its use for telemedicine in rural India. Working with the Aravind Eye Hospital, we are currently supporting doctor/patient videoconferencing in 25 rural villages at the rate of roughly 3600 patient exams per month and over 50,000 to date. More than 3000 people have had their blindness cured due to these exams.
