A RIDE TO REMEMBER

For the past three years, researchers in Sweden have been experimenting with a stationary bike that takes dementia patients on virtual trips down memory lane. The bike is surrounded by a Google Street View display, allowing the “biker” to pedal down any street. Elder care centers in Northern Europe have been using it to give memory-loss patients the opportunity to return to their old neighborhoods. Remarkably, revisiting familiar locations from the past brings up forgotten memories and allows patients to share stories that their families didn’t even know. It turns out that sometimes, what is lost can be found again.