Conversations about elderly parents and technology usually center on safety, in particular on devices designed to alert a call center in case of trouble. But our parents are more than the sum of their maladies. Instead of keeping the safe, can't some of these devices help keep them happy? Experts say the key to making tech work for Mom and Dad is not to buy the newest cool thing, but to look for a device or software that fulfills a basic need, that does something they particular want to do. And it's helpful if the learning curve involves an element or two already familiar to them. "The question is what' s the motivation? " said Dr. Gary Small, the director of the center on aging at the university of California, Los Angeles, and the author of iBrain: surviving the technological alteration of the modern mind. "For technology to become 'sticky' with the older generation, we have to get into their heads and understand what make them think this is fun," he added. "The bells and whistles that might attract us are too counterintuitive." Dr. Small says that device for the elderly should answer three criteria, in this order: simplicity of use, availability of phone assistance and hardware that's easy to manipulate. Once installation and set-up are completely—likely the responsibility of a tech-sawy adult child—enjoyment has to outweigh effort. Beyond that, it is important to evaluate how large a technology leap an aging parent will be willing to take. Those who know their way around a VCR or DVD player will be a likelier to embrace a device that requires new equipment or an occasional call to a help number. Dr. Small like single-application devices that meet a personal need for the technological newcomer—like ones that send and receive e-mail, making it easier to stay in touch with family and see those digital photos of a new grandchild. Reading devices like the kindle are also popular with the older users, because they make an enjoyable, lifelong activity easier by replacing a heavy book with lightweight tablet. A reader can be ideal for a parent who travels and wants to take more than one book along. The right motivation can overcome a parent's doubt or anxiety about adopting new technology. Dr. Small' s father, a practicing physician in his 80s, avoided technology until the hospital where he worked switched to electronic records. Suddenly he had no choice. If he wanted to continue to work, he had to wade in. Dr. Cartensen says that electronic manufacturers have failed to develop products for elder users "because of stereotypes which suggest that older people aren't interested, even when they might be," and because marketers think "they can simply wait until younger cohorts grow old, knowing the problem will be solved." But there are signs of change on the horizon, several of them involving that most familiar of technologies, like the television set.

单选题 The passage seems to suggest that tech work for elderly parents is_____.

单选题 Device for the elderly should meet the criteria EXCEPT______.

单选题 According to Dr. Small, the advantage of single-application devices rests on_____.

单选题 The switch of Dr. Small's father is mentioned to demonstrate_____.

单选题 According to Dr. Cartensen, electronic manufacturers should_____.