More creepy elder-monitoring….

Satellite technology could be used to allow familiesto monitor elderly relatives or those suffering from Alzheimer’s, theGovernment suggested yesterday.  Malcolm Wicks, thescience and innovation minister, told MPs that satellites currentlymonitored the planet in various ways – including the -climate, theAntarctic and crops.  Manymotorists now used “satnav” systems – connected to global positionsatellites – instead of maps to find their way around. The devices areaccurate to within a few yards.  “I’m raising thisas a question for discussion – are there other uses of satellitetechnology that could benefit society?” Mr Wicks told The DailyTelegraph.  “For example, we’ve got an ageingpopulation, with many people frail and many suffering from dementia,including Alzheimer’s – how can we get the balance right so that thesepeople have the freedom to live their lives, to go out into thecommunity and go shopping, but also that some might benefit from beingmonitored so that their families know they are safe and secure?

Source:  The Telegraph (UK), http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/19/nsatnav19.xml

And here’s a follow up story…  http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,2061561,00.html