So it is Ada Lovelace Day 2011. This has turned into my Ada Lovelace Day blog, but this year I have decided I am happy with that idea! It is great to have a space to save my recollections on some great women in computing.
This year I want to tell you about a new hero of mine: Dr Annalu Waller. I only met Annalu3 years ago when I moved to the University of Dundee. Since then she has been a friend I can turn to whenever there are any issues worrying me at work. She has made me realise that a problem shared really is a problem solved!
In Annalu's words: "Dr Annalu Waller is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Computing at the University of Dundee. She has worked in the field of Augmentative and Alternate Communication (AAC) since 1985, designing communication systems for and with nonspeaking individuals. She established the first AAC assessment and training centre in South Africa in 1987 before coming to Dundee in 1989. Her PhD developed narrative technology support for adults with acquired dysphasia following stroke. Her primary research areas are human computer interaction, natural language processing, personal narrative and assistive technology. In particular, she focuses on empowering end users, including disabled adults and children, by involving them in the design and use of technology. She manages a number of interdisciplinary research projects with industry and practitioners from rehabilitation engineering, special education, speech and language therapy, nursing and dentistry. She is on the editorial boards of several academic journals and sits on the boards of a number of national and international organisations representing disabled people.
Her research interests include:
- Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)
- User-centred design approaches to assistive technology
- The use of narrative based communication systems with young non-speaking children
- The impact of natural language processing on the development of AAC systems for non-speaking people
- Computer based language development systems for children with disabilities
- The development of Blissymbolics based systems as a tool for literacy learning
- Medical informatics
Academically speaking she has reminded me that when I design computer programs I should think about people who are not as geeky as me!
Did I mention that she has Cerebral palsy?
Friday, 7 October 2011
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