BUT students help understand Alzheimer’s disease

The BUT Faculty of Computer Science is home to the youngest at our university – the Vector Research Circle. Despite it’s been established recently, Vector conducts advanced work on a socially important project. It’s about building awareness of Alzheimer’s disease. The project is aimed at the families of the sick and helps to empathise with the problems of people suffering from memory disorders.

A group of students from the circle have created a virtual model of a flat. This is part of a game which, thanks to VR technology and special goggles, provides an evocative understanding of the nature of the disease.

– The aim of our project is to show what people with dementia have to deal with. These are difficulties in performing basic activities, as well as loneliness – explains Tomasz Dąbrowski.

The game is interactive. The user, moving around the flat, can move and touch various objects. He is also confronted with everyday difficulties, which allow him to feel the situation of the sick person. An example? The courier delivered us a book, but because we have a memory problem, we ordered the package again.

The Circle from the Faculty of Computer Science is open to cooperation. It undertakes joint activities, for example, with colleagues from the BUT Faculty of Architecture. For a project on dementia, it consulted its ideas with students from the Faculty of Psychology at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. This helped direct further work.

– We are currently working on the basis of a script which we received from a befriended university in Toruń. The models themselves, or the design of the background, is all our own invention. We didn’t have any specific guidelines, so we could be creative,” says Michał Dorosz.

The project is already in its final stage. The models of the flat and the surroundings are ready. The code and final details are being worked on. The potential of our students has been noticed by the industry.

– We received a proposal from a certain company for which we will be able to make projects. In return, the company offered us paid internship and mentoring – said Bartłomiej Chmielewski.

 And where did the name of the circle come from?

– We were looking for a name that contains the letters ‘v’ and ‘r’, like VR. The perfect fit was ‘vector’, which is also a programming term – Bartłomiej Chmielewski explains the etymology of the name.

The Vector Research Circle has been active for two months and we must admit that it is full of energy. Students from the circle encourage everyone to join their ranks. Everyone is welcome there.