Cognizant’s ‘Smart Solutions’ Stall a Big Draw at Maker Faire Singapore for Children, Families and Professionals

At Maker Faire Singapore, Cognizant’s
stall showcasing the impact of the Internet of Things (IOT) on healthcare drew
overwhelming response from technology professionals as well as home users. The stall had a remote blood pressure (BP) monitor on
display to demonstrate how a doctor can remotely measure a patient’s BP. This
was of interest to the public and particularly those affected by BP. An
innovative iPhone game that can tell the player his/her chances of getting
Parkinson’s disease elicited a lot of interest.

A special attraction for the old and the young
alike was ‘anytime, anywhere physiotherapist.’ The company had leveraged gaming
platforms and devices such as Microsoft Kinect to monitor and correct movements
in physiotherapy. “This way, people can perform the prescribed exercises as
shown on a TV panel in the convenience of their homes,” explained a Cognizant
spokesperson. “This demo was a big hit with many visitors experiencing the idea
first-hand.”

A new entrant to Maker Faire in Singapore, Cognizant created
quite a buzz with the ‘Smart Home’ display, comprising models of different smart
homes built with Lego blocks by children of Cognizant employees. These models were
programmed to control various home appliances with just a hand phone or a laptop
using Raspberry Pi. Cognizant conducted workshops with children, youth and
families and mentored them on how they could program their own homes. “Our aim
is to spark creativity among young minds by providing them with hands-on
experience of building of their own smart home,” added the company spokesperson.

Senior leaders and technology architects from
Cognizant trained and mentored 25 young interns and graduates from universities
such as National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University and
UniSIM to manage the Cognizant stall, thus sparking their interest in next-generation
technologies.

Cognizant’s participation was not limited to showcasing
and teaching digital technologies. In keeping with its commitment to education,
community care and STEM, over 50 Cognizant employees extended volunteering support
to the Maker Faire event through the company’s employee-led social initiatives
program called Outreach, focused on education,
care for the elderly, environment, and voluntary welfare organizations.
Outreach volunteers conduct weekly tutoring, reading, drawing and crafts
activities with disadvantaged children in Singapore and have partnered with various
organizations to support education and
enrichment programs.

As part of the enrichment initiative, Outreach volunteers invited to the
Faire children from “Blessings in a Bag”, a non-profit organization, to create
greater interest and curiosity among them in STEM technologies. The children
were given detailed explanations about the scientific and design concepts
showcased at the Cognizant and other stalls.

The world of digital business calls for increasing proficiency in
science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Cognizant believes that
sparking an interest in STEM education among young people is crucial to meeting
the demands of an innovation economy. As part of our endeavor to help close the
talent gap in STEM fields, encourage creativity and innovation, and prepare
today’s youth for tomorrow’s opportunities, Cognizant has been a supporter of
the Maker movement.