1997 Discover Awards for Technological Innovation Discover Magazine - July, 1997 page 76 Finalist - Computer Hardware and Electronics THE ENABLER Stanford University's Total Access System Innovator: Neil Scott It's easy to see how computers can he so helpful to the disabled: among other things, they can synthesize speech, open doors, and answer phones. Unfortunately, not everyone has the dexterity required to use a mouse or keyboard. And devices designed to get around these problems - those that track the movement of the eyeball or head, or understand speech-usually must be customized to the individual and to the particular computer, which makes them expensive. "I knew there had to be a better way," says Neil Scott. "I felt these sorts of aids should become a part of everyday life." Scott, an engineer at Stanford's Center for the Study of Language and Information, and his colleagues have developed what they call a "total access system," which acts as a universal interpreter between the computer and the person using it. It consists of one tool that attaches to an input device, such as a head tracker or speech recognizer, and converts the device's electronic signals into the interface's own standard signal. Another tool attaches to the computer and converts the standard signal into those the computer can understand. Scott thinks the dual interface can eventually be made inexpensively and small enough so a user could carry it in his or her pocket and he able to approach any computer and start using it right away - in most cases with greater efficiency than with a mouse or keyboard. And disabled people might not be the only beneficiaries - Scott believes the dual interface could be especially useful for preventing repetitive strain injury. "I get furious when I see people whose lives have been devastated by RSI and who have been out of work for years," he says. "It doesn't have to happen."