Aphasia is a loss or impairment of the ability to produce or comprehend language due to brain damage. One of the fundamental problems is that it is very difficult for family members and others who interact with the person afflicted to comprehend what the disorder is like; to develop a feeling of empathy.

To combat this problem the Center for Technology Enhanced Learning (CTEL) at Missouri S&T is developing a system with a working title of "SpeechWorx", which is a collaborative environment that simulates aphasia by converting a person's written speech to a form that would be similar to an aphasic's speech and/or perception.

Funded by CTEL, the LITE lab carried out an initial qualitative investigation of the tool in the Fall of 2005 and the data are currently being analyzed, with the basic aim of maximizing the system's effectiveness for enhancing understanding and empathy with respect to different types of aphasic disorders.