livingwithdisability:

Great news that Google has bought Lift Labs a tech company that makes an ‘assisted living’ product.

The Lift Labs device is a fork or spoon created to reduce tremor, by stabilising using internal mechanics to keep it steady. With Google behind it will have a big opportunities for reaching people worldwide and further development. NY Times has speculated that Google may have been interested because Sergey Brin’s mother has Parkinson’s disease and he has a genetic predisposition of developing it.

From NY Times:

Lift Labs’ founder and a handful of employees will join Google and work out of the company’s Mountain View headquarters.

Most people take eating for granted, but for the 11 million Americans with either essential tremor or Parkinson’s disease, the act of lifting a utensil can be harrowing, embarrassing and messy.

Lift Labs’ Liftware device – basically a vibrating spoon/fork that makes eating easier by counteracting the tremors with a bunch of little swivels – tries to ameliorate the condition.

“A lot of social interaction revolves around eating,” said Dr. Kelvin Chou, a neurology professor at the University of Michigan who has collaborated with Lift Labs. “It’s embarrassing for them, and they feel like people are watching them all the time. I’ve had patients say ‘Someone came up to me and said I should stop drinking.’ Things like that.”

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People with tremor might also want to check out the handsteady cup.