There are a lot of reasons why I love Windows 7. One of those reasons is seeing people use Windows 7 in surprising new ways. Innovative people seem to create extraordinary solutions on our platforms. In particular, this ingenuity is evident in students.
As part of the Imagine Cup, students from Brigham Young University have designed an application that allow pregnant mothers in rural parts of the world to receive ultrasounds from doctors who otherwise wouldn’t have access to expensive machines and equipment. This problem, which is omnipresent in the developing world, has in the past been responsible for a large number of unnecessary deaths.
This new application by the Brigham Young students leverages both Windows 7 and Windows Azure in creating a solution. For those who don’t know, Windows Azure is Microsoft’s cloud platform that enables developers to develop (leveraging their current skills) and run applications with unbound scalability and ease-of-use to meet their business needs. Basically, this means that application developers can do more with less (less money, less storage space and less hassle.) In fact this video is a great way to learn more.
The Brigham Young Students used Windows Azure and Windows 7 to solve the widespread problem: Moms lacking access to clinics and doctors in possession of sophisticated, expensive equipment. When these mothers don’t have access to advanced healthcare practices and people, they suffer. Their rural doctors don’t have access to advance medical technologies and as such women are unable to get routine pre-natal care and, in particular, ultrasounds.
Now using Microsoft technology, a solution is not only plausible but now possible. Doctors in rural clinics around the world will be able to use this application to run routine medical care previously unimagined. To find out more about the Bearpaw Brigham Young program watch this video:
Finally, you can find out more about the students and the Imagine Cup via Facebook.