Fifteen-year-old Trisha Prabhu, a tech prodigy, is making waves for finding a solution, for a cause close to her heart. Two years ago, she heard of a 11 year old girl in the United States, having committed suicide, due to cyberbullying.
That was it! A high school student herself, Trisha was shocked that somebody younger than her could take her life, victimized by cyberbullying. This made her think of the importance of stopping the same. And then she invented Rethink, a software programme, that consults you before going ahead with harmful messages.
When one sends a harmful message, the programme asks the sender if he/she wants to send that message as it might hurt the receiver. According to Trisha’s research, 93% of the subjects changed their mind about the message and decided not to get on with it, thus reducing the problem of cyberbullying.
Image courtesy: www.cyberlovesecurity.com
Her research also says that teens, due to an under developed pre-frontal cortex, act impulsively to harm others, before thinking through the consequences. But when they have an alert mechanism which forces them to rethink their decision, most delete the message or tone it down. This is precisely what Trisha’s programme makes you do; rethink!
Trisha, studying high school in Chicago, is one of the finalists of 2014 Google Science Fair. She has expressed the wish to continue working on Rethink and make it a part of social media, whether or not she wins the competition. She is also spreading awareness about cyberbullying among people.
Trisha also gave an impressive TED talk on her invention which you can listen to here:
Way to go girl. We need more like you in these days of cyber-centered lifestyle!
