{"391961":{"#nid":"391961","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Toothbrush Technology for Developmentally Disabled Wins 2015 Ideas to Serve Competition","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EToothbrush technology that would empower people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to care for their teeth more effectively and independently won the 2015 Ideas to Serve (I2S) Competition March 27 at Georgia Tech\u0027s Scheller College of Business.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe annual competition, organized by Georgia Tech\u2019s \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\/centers-initiatives\/ile\/\u0022\u003EInstitute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ILE)\u003C\/a\u003E, is open to all Tech students and recent alumni who \u201cDare to Care\u201d through their product\/service ideas or venture concepts that could solve social problems or sustain the environment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESmile Bright won the Ideas Track first prize of $5,000 for its toothbrush concept, which includes slanted sides of the brush head and long, angled bristles to clean the sides of teeth without the need for fine motor control. With a handle designed to be easier to grip, the toothbrush plays an instructional song guiding users where to brush and for how long.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESmile Bright team member Neha Sinha, a mechanical engineering major, learned about the dental challenges of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities through acquaintances at her gym.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022As our team got into the process of product development, we realized how passionate we are about our concept and how much further we would like to take it,\u0022 she said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESinha\u2019s Smile Bright teammates include computer engineering major Anthony Jones; business administration majors Nadine Marfurt and Rehman Pirani; civil engineering major Laura O\u2019Connell; and chemical engineering major Somya Tirath.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAccording to the team, Smile Bright\u2019s goal is to improve not only oral care, but also the independence of those with intellectual and developmental disabilities so that they can maintain their oral health into adulthood without the aid of a caretaker.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESmile Bright has pursued its dental care technology through its members\u2019 participation in a product development class of Georgia Tech\u2019s interdisciplinary \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\/centers-initiatives\/technology-management-program\/\u0022\u003EDenning Technology and Management Program\u003C\/a\u003E, which develops leaders with both technological and managerial know-how.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETeams participating in this year\u2019s I2S competed in two tracks: Ideas (early stage) and Advanced, depending up on their level of progress. Of 20 teams who started in the Ideas Track, 12 advanced to the final round. Five teams competed in the Advanced Track.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Advanced Track winner ($2,500) is \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.vayando.com\/\u0022\u003EVayando\u003C\/a\u003E, which offers an online booking platform that connects curious travelers with micro-entrepreneurs in emerging economies around the world, increasing their earning potential and ability to sustain themselves (for example, coffee farmers in Costa Rica or basket weavers in Rwanda). Vayando\u2019s chief financial officer is MBA student Joshua Wine, who has two partners unaffiliated with Tech.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Ideas Track runner-up ($2,500) is Living Local, which is developing technology that allows produce to be shipped while still alive, preventing spoilage without the costly energy expenditure of refrigeration \u2013 reducing both food waste and the carbon footprint of the delivery process. Living Local\u2019s team includes biomedical engineering major Alexander Weiss and mechanical engineering major Ruwan Subasinghe.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOther awards included:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EPeople\u2019s Choice ($1,000): VVV Academy, which offers an educational tool that encourages long-term exploration in young students while improving academic performance, test scores, and overall achievement.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EBest Video ($500): The Hearty Eater, which plans to enliven existing open space infrastructure and partner with local chefs to provide quality food in a lively, community-oriented environment, allowing everyone to enjoy quality food options, including the food insecure.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EBest Poster ($500): LuMa, whose concept is for technology that can minimize cyber bullying and suicide through the monitoring of the social media messages of adolescents and young adults.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003C\/ul\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe hope that eventually these ideas will lead to sustainable organizations that are able to generate sufficient income flows to sustain their missions,\u201d said Professor Terry Blum, director of ILE. \u201cIf the organizations are for-profit companies, the ideas should eventually be capable of providing returns for investors as well.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMost of the I2S teams are interdisciplinary, representing a cross section of majors at Tech, and they are addressing pressing social and environmental issues across various sectors such as education, healthcare, agriculture, economic development, and sustainable energy.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDuring the I2S Finals Poster Showcase, teams made quick pitches on their concepts and fielded questions from judges and audience members.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESponsors of I2S include The Hal and John Smith Family Foundation,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/grayghostventures.com\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EGrayGhost Ventures\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/leadership.gatech.edu\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech LEAD Program\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\/centers-initiatives\/cecil-b-day-program-for-business-ethics\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ECecil B. Day Program for Business Ethics\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\/centers-initiatives\/technology-management-program\/index.html\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ESteven A. Denning Technology and Management Program\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\/centers-initiatives\/ray-c-anderson-center-for-sustainable-business\/index.html\u0022\u003ERay C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech Scheller College of Business\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.speechworks.net\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ESpeechworks\u003C\/a\u003E, Tedd Munchak Chair in Entrepreneurship, and \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/venturelab.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EVentureLab\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESuccessful I2S alumni include\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.thetohl.com\/\u0022\u003ETOHL\u003C\/a\u003E, a mobile infrastructure solution to delivering water in hard-to-reach areas;\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/atlantaharvest.com\/\u0022\u003EAtlanta Harvest\u003C\/a\u003E, which addresses the lack of fresh produce in underserved urban areas while creating much needed jobs at the same time; and\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/thepentorship.org\/\u0022\u003EThe Pentorship Program\u003C\/a\u003E, which works to combat prisoner recidivism by offering career development training and mentor-match to inmates.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cGeorgia Tech students are uniquely positioned to become change makers,\u201d said I2S organizer Dori Pap. \u201cThey are armed with the best education, are technologically savvy, and have an incredible support system on campus that constantly encourages and pushes them to use their creativity for problem solving. Through I2S, we support and celebrate those students who are passionate about improving the human condition.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor detailed team info about 2015 participants and a list of judges see the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\/centers-initiatives\/ile\/i2s\/2015_I2S_Finals_Program.pdf\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EI2S Program\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Toothbrush Technology for Developmentally Disabled Wins 2015 Ideas to Serve Competition"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EToothbrush technology that would empower people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to care for their teeth more effectively and independently won the 2015 Ideas to Serve (I2S) Competition March 27 at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Toothbrush Technology for Developmentally Disabled Wins 2015 Ideas to Serve Competition"}],"uid":"27271","created_gmt":"2015-03-31 09:14:58","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:03:05","author":"Brad Dixon","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2015-03-31T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2015-03-31T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"391951":{"id":"391951","type":"image","title":"Ideas to Serve winners 2015","body":null,"created":"1449246332","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 16:25:32","changed":"1475894406","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:40:06","alt":"Ideas to Serve winners 2015","file":{"fid":"75572","name":"i2swinners.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/i2swinners.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/i2swinners.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":2194962,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/i2swinners.jpg?itok=T-IrtftI"}}},"media_ids":["391951"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/scheller.gatech.edu\/centers-initiatives\/ile\/i2s\/","title":"Ideas to Serve Competition"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"133","name":"Special Events and Guest Speakers"},{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"3472","name":"entrepreneurship"},{"id":"43101","name":"Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business"},{"id":"12487","name":"Ideas to SERVE Competition"},{"id":"1209","name":"MBA"},{"id":"169007","name":"social good"},{"id":"1556","name":"undergraduate"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EBrad Dixon, Communications Manager\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech Scheller College of Business\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E404-894-3943\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:braddixon@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ebraddixon@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["braddixon@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}