Newswise — Stony Brook, NY, November 13, 2017 – Drowsy driving is serious and deadly. Approximately 6,000 deaths annually can be attributed to falling asleep at the wheel. Faculty from Stony Brook University’s School of Health Technology and Management have developed an educational and interactive website StopDrowsyDriving.org to help raise awareness about the prevalence and dangers associated with falling asleep at the wheel and reduce crashes and causalities on the roadways.
The website includes a sleepiness assessment quiz, where users can realize their risk for drowsy driving. It also provides facts and myths about drowsy driving and suggests strategies to improve sleep habits to reduce risk. The project was supported by a grant from the New York State Governor’s Highway Safety Association, the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, and the National Safety Foundation. Faculty interest in research and education about drowsy driving was motivated by over four years of working with high school students and young adults through the School’s Distracted and Drowsy Driving Prevention Program.
The research team has secured additional funding through the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee for the development of a research-informed Drowsy Driving curriculum and pilot implementation that will begin in February 2018.
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About Stony Brook University
Stony Brook University is going beyond the expectations of what today’s public universities can accomplish. Since its founding in 1957, this young university has grown to become a flagship as one of only four University Center campuses in the State University of New York (SUNY) system with more than 26,000 students and 2,600 faculty members, and 18 NCAA Division I athletic programs. Our faculty have earned numerous prestigious awards, including the Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Indianapolis Prize for animal conservation, Abel Prize and the inaugural Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics. The University offers students an elite education with an outstanding return on investment: U.S. News & World Report ranks Stony Brook among the top 50 public universities in the nation. Its membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU) places Stony Brook among the top 62 research institutions in North America. As part of the management team of Brookhaven National Laboratory, the University joins a prestigious group of universities that have a role in running federal R&D labs. Stony Brook University is a driving force in the region’s economy, generating nearly 60,000 jobs and an annual economic impact of more than $4.6 billion. Our state, country and world demand ambitious ideas, imaginative solutions and exceptional leadership to forge a better future for all. The students, alumni, researchers and faculty of Stony Brook University are prepared to meet this challenge.
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