Early dementia screening from a consumer EEG headset, a blunt answer on whether a fully inclusive world is possible, and what India's own accessibility standard means for disabled workers. Steven Scott reports from day two of Zero Project Conference India in Mumbai, the regional edition of the conference that takes over the UN in Vienna every February. NEMA AI founder Nidhi built AI at Accenture before starting a company that maps the brain using off the shelf Emotiv headsets. Ten or fifteen minutes of recording, two minutes of analysis, and a doctor gets a picture of memory, stress, sleep and attention. The aim is catching mild cognitive decline at 45 or 50 rather than 65, where approved drugs can stretch what would have been one brutal year into ten. She keeps reports away from consumers on purpose, because a number you cannot interpret at two in the morning creates worry. She also has firm views on ADHD, which she says shows clearly in how fast neurons fire, and little patience for diagnosis by Instagram. Dr Sambhavi Chandrashekar is global accessibility lead at D2L, makers of the Brightspace learning platform, and chairs the Global Leadership Council of the International Association of Accessibility Professionals. She explains inclusive design as iterative work that is never finished, uses the curb cut to show how one group's fix can be another group's hazard, and lands on personalisation as the answer for digital interfaces. She is enthusiastic about India writing its own procurement standard, IS 17802, rather than adopting the European EN 301 549, and quotes disability rights lawyer Lainey Feingold on regulations allowing disabled people to dream. Steven pushes back on her position that Braille is literacy, and her doctoral research supplies the line of the day: if a website is not accessible, the blind participants did not consider it credible. Youth4Jobs hosted the conference and works on one thing, getting disabled young people in India into paid work, with nearly 4,000 employer partners and a programme sending disabled people door to door in their own communities. Where a job is not the answer, it helps set up a business with loans and grants, which matters most for disabled women whose families have written them off. Nand Kishore, who runs events and NGO partnerships there, tells his own story: a spinal cord injury three years ago, nine months in bed, delivery work, then a full time job, a marriage and marathons. Two more conversations from day two, including accessibility auditing firm Ashtavakra and a 21 year old founder claiming a 52 dollar LiDAR handheld can replace a white cane, are on the Double Tap YouTube channel in full. Chapters0:00 – Day two in Mumbai: inside Zero Project Conference India1:55 – NEMA AI: EEG brain mapping and catching decline early7:00 – Is ADHD real? What a brain map actually shows12:51 – Why the results go to a doctor and not to you15:50 – Sambhavi Chandrashekar on what inclusive design means22:52 – Can a fully inclusive world exist?28:03 – India and Canada compared: standards, money and IS 1780235:55 – Braille literacy and why accessibility equals credibility42:24 – Youth4Jobs, employment and Nand Kishore's own story52:03 – More from Mumbai on the Double Tap YouTube channel Relevant LinksZero Project Conference India: https://zeroprojectconferenceindia.orgZero Project: https://zeroproject.orgYouth4Jobs: https://youth4jobs.orgNEMA AI: https://nemaai.comEmotiv: https://www.emotiv.comD2L Brightspace: https://www.d2l.comAshtavakra Accessibility Solutions: https://ashtavakra.co.inTech Mahindra Foundation: https://techmahindrafoundation.orgLaw Office of Lainey Feingold: https://www.lflegal.comDouble Tap: https://doubletaponair.com ---- Follow on: YouTube: https://www.doubletaponair.com/youtubeX (formerly Twitter): https://www.doubletaponair.com/xInstagram: https://www.doubletaponair.com/instagramTikTok: https://www.doubletaponair.com/tiktokThreads: https://www.doubletaponair.com/threadsFacebook: https://www.doubletaponair.com/facebookLinkedIn: https://www.doubletaponair.com/linkedinSubscribe to the Podcast: Apple: https://www.doubletaponair.com/appleSpotify: https://www.doubletaponair.com/spotifyRSS: https://www.doubletaponair.com/podcastiHeadRadio: https://www.doubletaponair.com/iheartAbout Double Tap Hosted by the insightful duo, Steven Scott and Shaun Preece, Double Tap is a treasure trove of information for anyone who's blind or partially sighted and has a passion for tech. Steven and Shaun not only demystify tech, but they also regularly feature interviews and welcome guests from the community, fostering an interactive and engaging environment. Tune in every day of the week, and you'll discover how technology can seamlessly integrate into your life, enhancing daily tasks and experiences, even if your sight is limited. "Double Tap" is a registered trademark of Double Tap Productions Inc. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
