Intel's Proactive Health tab emerged from an anthropological study of households that had been early adopters of broadband technology. Almost every study participant over age 40 asked for technology to help with the care of aging parents. As the worldwide population over age 65 doubles in the next 20 years, the caregiving needs of this population will become an ever greater part of our personal lives and social healthcare costs. The lab is applying digital home technologies to the development of "aging in place" personal health systems. These applications of wireless sensors, adaptive interfaces, real-time data capture, and context-aware feedback provide a rigorous testbed for digital home technologies. They also support an alternative to the costly "mainframe" healthcare that dominates current medical science and practice. Ultimately, aging-in-place research supports fundamental new ways of understanding both aging and disease processes to help us all better manage our health.
