Hi, I am a 4th year student majoring in International Studies: Linguistics and Sociology, also minoring in Studio Art. I am originally from Hong Kong but I have been living in San Diego for 7 years. I am currently living in the International House for a second time this year on campus and it was what originally sparked my interest in all things international. I was studying in London last year for 6 months and travelled a lot around Europe. Although Europe is a strong Western power, poverty could still be seen everywhere. The class INTL 101 introduced me to the world of poverty and social inequality and Western domination, etc. and since then I have been taking some sociology classes that I find very interesting.
This class caught my attention because instead of simply learning about the depressing facts that people are suffering, I could actually maybe create something that could help out their lives. I am not sure how exactly I can do it since I have no technological background whatsoever but I am interested in everyday essential things that people need. For example, I know this is really old, but I found the nytimes article from the first readings very interesting.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/29/science/29cheap.html?_r=3&ref=science&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
and this
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/22/science/22stov.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=technology+in+developing+countries&st=nyt&oref=slogin
I have only taken classes about Africa, and I do not know too much about India in terms of the social status and technological advancement in different places in the country. More research is needed for better knowledge.

Well, so I realized India uses a lot of languages. My thought is to have a translator that translates different Indian languages based on sounds since many cannot read or write/type. I know this is easier said than done and its difficult to pick up the exact sounds and translate them to the right meanings since a person's voice is quite personal comparing to a digitalized computer voice. But it is an idea..
http://www.indiantranslators.com/

I feel challenged by coming up with a technological development when I have never been to the country or cities, because if I do not know how people live in the place, I cannot fully understand what they really need. There are resources online but it is not the same as physically experiencing and understanding. Maybe I should rent some Bollywood movies to at least understand some parts of their culture. hahaa.