Search results for: functional movement

Authors: Agata Matuszewska, Małgorzata Syczewska

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The movement of the upper limbs contributes significantly to balance control while walking in humans. However, the impact of different arm swing modes on gait stability is yet to be determined. This work intends to establish numerical parameters for assessing the arm swing. Nineteen people, comprising fifteen young, healthy individuals, two middle-aged individuals, and two individuals with dysfunctions, were analyzed using the movement analysis system. Proposed parameters such as ASᵢₐ (reflecting the arm swing amplitude) and Pearson’s correlation coefficient between the right and left upper limbs can be used to classify the type of movement task each participant performs. The results indicate that the ASᵢₐ parameter could potentially detect any abnormalities in upper limb functions, which may be due to musculoskeletal disorders or other malfunctions.

Keywords: arm swing, human balance, interlimb coordination, motion analysis system

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Authors: Yahya Maeni

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It is well established that amblyopic patients have a reduced reading performance and oculomotor deficits. Word length has a significant impact on reading performance and eye movement behaviour during reading. As there no previous attempts to assess whether amblyopic eyes would be affected by word length while reading. This study aims to assess the effect of word length on amblyopic eye movement behaviour during reading including fixation duration, number of fixation and gaze duration. 21 adults with amblyopia and 21 age-matched controls participated in the study (age ± SD) (23.80 ± 4.66) for amblyopes and (24.20 ± 3.58) for Controls. Eye movement was recorded during reading binocularly using Eyelink 1000. Study was designed as 2 x 2 (amblyopia vs. control) x 2 lengths (4 letters, and 8 letters). Compared to controls, the amblyopic participants report significant longer duration of fixation, higher number of fixation and longer gaze duration for short words with far higher significant difference for long words. It could be concluded that eye movement in amblyopia during reading might be accounted for by the length of a word within a text and this could possible explanation of reduced reading performance among amblyopes. By understanding the effect of word length on amblyopia will shed light on reading deficits in amblyopia and help to determine the reading needs of amplyopes in educational and clinical settings.

Keywords: amblyopia, eye movement, reading, fixation

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Authors: D. S. Naumann, B. J. Evans, O. Hassan

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This paper outlines the development of an automated aerodynamic optimisation algorithm using a novel method of parameterising a computational mesh by employing user–defined control nodes. The shape boundary movement is coupled to the movement of the novel concept of the control nodes via a quasi-1D-linear deformation. Additionally, a second order smoothing step has been integrated to act on the boundary during the mesh movement based on the change in its second derivative. This allows for both linear and non-linear shape transformations dependent on the preference of the user. The domain mesh movement is then coupled to the shape boundary movement via a Delaunay graph mapping. A Modified Cuckoo Search (MCS) algorithm is used for optimisation within the prescribed design space defined by the allowed range of control node displacement. A finite volume compressible NavierStokes solver is used for aerodynamic modelling to predict aerodynamic design fitness. The resulting coupled algorithm is applied to a range of test cases in two dimensions including the design of a subsonic, transonic and supersonic intake and the optimisation approach is compared with more conventional optimisation strategies. Ultimately, the algorithm is tested on a three dimensional wing optimisation case.

Keywords: mesh movement, aerodynamic shape optimization, cuckoo search, shape parameterisation

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Authors: Rajkumar N. Ingle

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In this paper, the existence of a solution of nonlinear functional random differential equations of the first order is proved under caratheodory condition. The study of the functional random differential equation has got importance in the random analysis of the dynamical systems of universal phenomena. Objectives: Nonlinear functional random differential equation is useful to the scientists, engineers, and mathematicians, who are engaged in N.F.R.D.E. analyzing a universal random phenomenon, govern by nonlinear random initial value problems of D.E. Applications of this in the theory of diffusion or heat conduction. Methodology: Using the concepts of probability theory, functional analysis, generally the existence theorems for the nonlinear F.R.D.E. are prove by using some tools such as fixed point theorem. The significance of the study: Our contribution will be the generalization of some well-known results in the theory of Nonlinear F.R.D.E.s. Further, it seems that our study will be useful to scientist, engineers, economists and mathematicians in their endeavors to analyses the nonlinear random problems of the universe in a better way.

Keywords: Random Fixed Point Theorem, functional random differential equation, N.F.R.D.E., universal random phenomenon

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Authors: F. A. Thomas, M. Schrafl-Altermatt, R. Treier, S. Kaufmann

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Stroke is the main cause of adult disability. Especially upper limb function is affected in most patients. Recently, cooperative hand movements have been shown to be a promising type of upper limb training in stroke rehabilitation. In these movements, which are frequently found in activities of daily living (e.g. opening a bottle, winding up a blind), the force of one upper limb has to be equally counteracted by the other limb to successfully accomplish a task. The use of standardized and reliable clinical assessments is essential to evaluate the efficacy of therapy and the functional outcome of a patient. Many assessments for upper limb function or impairment are available. However, the evaluation of cooperative hand movement tasks are rarely included in those. Thus, the aim of this study was (i) to develop a novel clinical assessment (CASA - Cooperative Activity Stroke Assessment) for the evaluation of patients’ capacity to perform cooperative hand movements and (ii) to test its inter- and interrater reliability. Furthermore, CASA scores were compared to current gold standard assessments for upper extremity in stroke patients (i.e. Fugl-Meyer Assessment, Box & Blocks Test). The CASA consists of five cooperative activities of daily living including (1) opening a jar, (2) opening a bottle, (3) open and closing of a zip, (4) unscrew a nut and (5) opening a clipbox. Here, the goal is to accomplish the tasks as fast as possible. In addition to the quantitative rating (i.e. time) which is converted to a 7-point scale, also the quality of the movement is rated in a 4-point scale. To test the reliability of CASA, fifteen stroke subjects were tested within a week twice by the same two raters. Intra-and interrater reliability was calculated using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for total CASA score and single items. Furthermore, Pearson-correlation was used to compare the CASA scores to the scores of Fugl-Meyer upper limb assessment and the box and blocks test, which were assessed in every patient additionally to the CASA. ICC scores of the total CASA score indicated an excellent- and single items established a good to excellent inter- and interrater reliability. Furthermore, the CASA score was significantly correlated to the Fugl-Meyer and Box & Blocks score. The CASA provides a reliable assessment for cooperative hand movements which are crucial for many activities of daily living. Due to its non-costly setup, easy and fast implementation, we suggest it to be well suitable for clinical application. In conclusion, the CASA is a useful tool in assessing the functional status and therapy related recovery in cooperative hand movement capacity in stroke patients.

Keywords: activitites of daily living, clinical assessment, cooperative hand movements, reliability, stroke

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Authors: Panisa Harnpathananun

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This paper is 'Practical Experience Analysis' which aims to analyze critical obstacles hampering the growth of the functional milk industry and suggest recommendations to overcome those obstacles. Using the Sectoral Innovation System (SIS) along value chain analysis, it is found that restriction in regulation of milk disinfection process, difficulty of dairy entrepreneurs for health claim approval of functional food and beverage and lack of intermediary between entrepreneurs and certified units for certification of functional foods and milk are major causes that needed to be resolved. Consequently, policy recommendations are proposed to tackle the problems occurring throughout the value chain. For the upstream, a collaborative platform using the quadruple helix model is proposed in a pattern of effective dairy cooperatives. For the midstream, regulation issues of new process, extended shelf life (ESL) milk, or prolonged milk are necessary, which can be extended the global market opportunity. For the downstream, mechanism of intermediary between entrepreneurs and certified units can be assisted in certified process of functional milk, especially a process of 'health claim' approval.

Keywords: Thailand, functional milk, supply chain, quadruple helix, intermediary, functional food

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Authors: Abdulaziz Alkathiry

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Concussion is a common brain injury that affect physical and cognitive performance. While several studies indicated that adolescents are more likely to develop concussion, in the last decade concussion has been mainly explored in adults. Migraine has been identified as a common symptom reported after concussion and was tied with worse prognoses. Hence, we aimed to investigate the effect of migraine on functional performance and self-reported symptoms in children with concussion. This cross-sectional study involved 35 symptomatic children aged 9 – 17 years recruited within 1 year from their concussion injury at a tertiary balance center. Participants’ symptoms and functional performance were assessed using the post-concussion symptoms scale (PCSS) and the functional gait assessment (FGA) respectively. Concussed children with migraine showed significantly worse symptoms including fatigue, sleeping impairment, difficulty concentrating, and visual problems (P < 0.05). Functional performance didn’t show differences between concussed children with and without migraine. Although concussed children with and without migraine didn’t show any differences on functional performance, worse cognitive symptoms were found in concussed children with migraine. A customized treatment approach is indicated in the presence of migraine for the management of children with concussion. Keywords: Concussion; Migraine; Balance; Post-Concussion Symptoms Scale; Functional Gait Assessment

Keywords: concussion, migraine, post-concussion symptoms scale, functional gait assessment, balance

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Authors: Marinela Istrate, Ionel Muntele, Alexandru Bănică

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The authors propose the identification, analysis and prognosis of the quantitative and qualitative evolution of the elderly population in the functional urban areas. The present paper takes into account the analysis of some representative indicators (the weight of the elderly population, ageing index, dynamic index of economic ageing of productive population etc.) and the elaboration of an integrated indicator that would help differentiate the population ageing forms in the 48 functional urban areas that were defined based on demographic and social-economic criteria for all large and medium cities in Romania.

Keywords: ageing, demographic transition, functional urban areas, spatial resilience

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Authors: Krisstalova Dana, Mazal Jan

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This article deals with geographical conditions in terrain and their effect on the movement of vehicles, their effect on speed and safety of movement of people and vehicles. Finding of the optimal routes outside the communication is studied in the army environment, but it occur in civilian as well, primarily in crisis situation, or by the provision of assistance when natural disasters such as floods, fires, storms etc., have happened. These movements require the optimization of routes when effects of geographical factors should be included. The most important factor is the surface of a terrain. It is based on several geographical factors as are slopes, soil conditions, micro-relief, a type of surface and meteorological conditions. Their mutual impact has been given by coefficient of deceleration. This coefficient can be used for the commander`s decision. New approaches and methods of terrain testing, mathematical computing, mathematical statistics or cartometric investigation are necessary parts of this evaluation.

Keywords: movement in a terrain, geographical factors, surface of a field, mathematical evaluation, optimization and searching paths

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Authors: Ivana Knezevic, Kenneth D. Candido, N. Nick Knezevic

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Background: While pain intensity scales remain generally accepted assessment tool, and the numeric pain rating score is highly subjective, we nevertheless rely on them to make a judgment about treatment effects. Misinterpretation of pain can lead practitioners to underestimate or overestimate the patient’s medical condition. The purpose of this study was to analyze how the numeric rating pain scores given by patients with low back pain correlate with their functional activity levels. Methods: We included 100 consecutive patients with radicular low back pain (LBP) after the Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval. Pain scores, numeric rating scale (NRS) responses at rest and in the movement,Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) questionnaire answers were collected 10 times through 12 months. The ODI questionnaire is targeting a patient’s activities and physical limitations as well as a patient’s ability to manage stationary everyday duties. Statistical analysis was performed by using SPSS Software version 20. Results: The average duration of LBP was 14±22 months at the beginning of the study. All patients included in the study were between 24 and 78 years old (average 48.85±14); 56% women and 44% men. Differences between ODI and pain scores in the range from -10% to +10% were considered “normal”. Discrepancies in pain scores were graded as mild between -30% and -11% or +11% and +30%; moderate between -50% and -31% and +31% and +50% and severe if differences were more than -50% or +50%. Our data showed that pain scores at rest correlate well with ODI in 65% of patients. In 30% of patients mild discrepancies were present (negative in 21% and positive in 9%), 4% of patients had moderate and 1% severe discrepancies. “Negative discrepancy” means that patients graded their pain scores much higher than their functional ability, and most likely exaggerated their pain. “Positive discrepancy” means that patients graded their pain scores much lower than their functional ability, and most likely underrated their pain. Comparisons between ODI and pain scores during movement showed normal correlation in only 39% of patients. Mild discrepancies were present in 42% (negative in 39% and positive in 3%); moderate in 14% (all negative), and severe in 5% (all negative) of patients. A 58% unknowingly exaggerated their pain during movement. Inconsistencies were equal in male and female patients (p=0.606 and p=0.928).Our results showed that there was a negative correlation between patients’ satisfaction and the degree of reporting pain inconsistency. Furthermore, patients talking opioids showed more discrepancies in reporting pain intensity scores than did patients taking non-opioid analgesics or not taking medications for LBP (p=0.038). There was a highly statistically significant correlation between morphine equivalents doses and the level of discrepancy (p<0.0001). Conclusion: We have put emphasis on the patient education in pain evaluation as a vital step in accurate pain level reporting. We have showed a direct correlation with patients’ satisfaction. Furthermore, we must identify other parameters in defining our patients’ chronic pain conditions, such as functionality scales, quality of life questionnaires, etc., and should move away from an overly simplistic subjective rating scale.

Keywords: pain score, functionality scales, low back pain, lumbar

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Authors: Debajyoti Mukherjee, Arathy B. S., Arpita Sahu, Saranga P. Pogula

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A functional model to mimic the functional correctness of a neural network compute accelerator IP is very crucial for design validation. Neural network workloads are based on a Brain Floating Point (BF-16) data type. The major challenge we were facing was the incompatibility of GCC compilers to the BF-16 datatype, which we addressed with a native BF-16 generator integrated into our functional model. Moreover, working with big GEMM (General Matrix Multiplication) or SpMM (Sparse Matrix Multiplication) Work Loads (Dense or Sparse) and debugging the failures related to data integrity is highly painstaking. In this paper, we are addressing the quality challenge of such a complex neural network accelerator design by proposing a functional model-based scoreboard or software model using SystemC. The proposed functional model executes the assembly code based on the ISA of the processor IP, decodes all instructions, and executes as expected to be done by the DUT. The said model would give a lot of visibility and debug capability in the DUT, bringing up micro-steps of execution.

Keywords: ISA, neural network, Brain Float-16, DUT

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Authors: Jae-Woo Kim, Kyung-Jung Lee, Hyun-Sik Ahn

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This paper presents a design methodology for the motor driven automotive subsystems with the consideration of the functional safety. There are many such modules in vehicles which use DC/AC motors for an electronic throttle control system, a motor driven power steering, a motor driven seat belt systems and for HVAC systems. The functional safety for the automotive electrical and electronic parts are standardized as ISO 26262, but the development procedure is very complex to be followed. We focus on the functional safe motor controller design process and show the designed motor controller hardware satisfies the required safety integrity level by using metric calculations with the safety mechanism.

Keywords: AUTOSAR, MDPS, Simulink, software component

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Authors: Moshreka Aditi Huq

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This study shows how a progressive portion of civil intellectuals in Bangladesh contributed as the solidarity activist entities in a movement of tea workers that became the symbol of their unique moral struggle. Their passive yet sharp way of resistance, with the integration of mass tea workers of a tea estate, got demonstrated against certain private companies and government officials who approached to establish a special economic zone inside the tea garden without offering any compensation and rehabilitation for poor tea workers. Due to massive protests and rebellion, the authorized entrepreneurs had to step back and called off the project immediately. The extraordinary features of this movement generated itself from the deep core social need of indigenous tea workers who are still imprisoned in the colonial cage. Following an anthropological and ethnographic perspective, this study adopted the main three techniques of intensive interview, focus group discussion, and laborious observation, to extract empirical data. The intensive interviews were undertaken informally using a mostly conversational approach. Focus group discussions were piloted among various representative groups where observations prevailed as part of the regular documentation process. These were conducted among civil intellectual entities, tea workers, tea estate authorities, civil service authorities, and business officials to obtain a holistic view of the situation. The fieldwork was executed in capital Dhaka city, along with northern areas like Chandpur-Begumkhan Tea Estate of Chunarughat Upazilla and Habiganj city of Habiganj District of Bangladesh. Correspondingly, secondary data were accessed through books, scholarly papers, archives, newspapers, reports, leaflets, posters, writing blog, and electronic pages of social media. The study results find that: (1) civil intellectuals opposed state-sponsored business impositions by producing counter-discourse and struggled against state hegemony through the phases of the movement; (2) instead of having the active physical resistance, civil intellectuals’ strength was preferably in passive form which was portrayed through their intellectual labor; (3) the combined movement of tea workers and civil intellectuals reflected on social security of ethnic worker communities that contrasts state’s pseudo-development motives which ultimately supports offensive and oppressive neoliberal growths of economy; (4) civil intellectuals are revealed as having certain functional limitations in the process of movement organization as well as resource mobilization; (5) in specific contexts, the genuine need of protest by indigenous subaltern can overshadow intellectual elitism and helps to raise the voices of ‘subjugated knowledge’. This study is quite likely to represent two sets of apparent protagonist entities in the discussion of social injustice and oppressive development intervention. On the one, hand it may help us to find the basic functional characteristics of civil intellectuals in Bangladesh when they are in a passive mode of resistance in social movement issues. On the other hand, it represents the community ownership and inherent protest tendencies of indigenous workers when they feel threatened and insecure. The study seems to have the potential to understand the conditions of ‘subjugated knowledge’ of subalterns. Furthermore, being the memory and narratives, these ‘activism mechanisms’ of social entities broadens the path to understand ‘power’ and ‘resistance’ in more fascinating ways.

Keywords: civil intellectuals, resistance, subjugated knowledge, indigenous

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Authors: Shiza Nisar

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This study examines how editorials in Pakistan’s English-language newspapers represented the Aurat March in Pakistan, which is held on International Women’s Day, 8 March, to reclaim public spaces for women. There was a public outcry against the controversial movement, sparked by the key messages and slogans used to communicate with the masses. This research aims to study non-western news frames used by Pakistan’s leading English-language newspapers—Dawn, The Express Tribune, The News, and The Nation—for the portrayal of Aurat March since 2018. The findings show how these editorials construct and reinforce the concept of feminism being threatened by the dangerous other. This research aims to contribute to the understanding of Pakistan’s elite discourse, which insists that this event is a movement led by females in a male-dominated society to voice their rights and reclaim public spaces; however, this movement is more than just that.

Keywords: discourse, Aurat March, media framing, feminist movement, editorials

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Authors: Robert Grzeszczak, Magdalena Gniadzik

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The article deals with one of the most significant issues concerning the functioning of the internal market of the European Union – the free movement of workers and free movement of persons. The purpose is to identify the political and legal effects of the “renationalisation process” on the EU and its Member States. The concept of renationalisation is expressed through Member States’ aim to verify the relationship with the EU. The tendency is more visible in the public opinion of several MS’s of the ‘EU core’ and may be confirmed by the changes applied by the regulatory body. The thesis for the article is the return of renationalisation tendencies in the area of the Single Market, which is supported by, among others, an open criticism of the foundations of EU integration or considerations on withdrawal from the EU by some MS. This analysis will focus primarily on the effects that renationalisation may have on the free movement of persons. The free movement of persons is one of the key issues for the development of the European integration. It is still subject to theoretical reflections, new doubts and practical issues. The latest developments in politics, law and jurisprudence demonstrate the need to reflect on the attempts to redefine certain principles regarding migrant EU workers and their protection against nationality-based discrimination.

Keywords: European Union, Singel Market, free movement of persons, posting of workers

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Authors: Debajyoti Mukherjee, Arathy B. S., Arpita Sahu, Saranga P. Pogula

Abstract:

A Functional Model to mimic the functional correctness of a Neural Network Compute Accelerator IP is very crucial for design validation. Neural network workloads are based on a Brain Floating Point (BF-16) data type. The major challenge we were facing was the incompatibility of gcc compilers to BF-16 datatype, which we addressed with a native BF-16 generator integrated to our functional model. Moreover, working with big GEMM (General Matrix Multiplication) or SpMM (Sparse Matrix Multiplication) Work Loads (Dense or Sparse) and debugging the failures related to data integrity is highly painstaking. In this paper, we are addressing the quality challenge of such a complex Neural Network Accelerator design by proposing a Functional Model-based scoreboard or Software model using SystemC. The proposed Functional Model executes the assembly code based on the ISA of the processor IP, decodes all instructions, and executes as expected to be done by the DUT. The said model would give a lot of visibility and debug capability in the DUT bringing up micro-steps of execution.

Keywords: ISA (instruction set architecture), NN (neural network), TLM (transaction-level modeling), GEMM (general matrix multiplication)

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Authors: Manar Y. Abd El-Aziz, Alyaa E. Morgham, Amira A. El-Fallal, Heba Tolla E. Abo El Naga

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Sport wears almost preferred with knitted fabrics, specially interlock construction. But, there is a need for higher comfortability and functional properties for fabrics to be more fitted to this application. This study compared cotton and polyester microfibers and blended them to improve the functional activity of interlock in sport wear by mercerized and non-mercerized. also, fabric dyeing and dyeability are affected by mercerization. Many functional properties, such as UV protection as well as antimicrobial activity. The changes in different mechanical as well as physical properties were investigated. The washing fastness properties of the dyed fabrics are also given. The changes in moisture regain, loss in weight, and burst and burst elongation for all mercerized fabrics have been studied.

Keywords: interlock, mercirization, dyeability, function properties, moisture management

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Authors: Yun-Ching Tu, Yu-Chun Chih

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People with aphasia (PWA) may have communicative difficulties in their daily lives, but research on functional communication in aphasia is still limited in Taiwan. The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of aphasia-related factors on functional communication assessment. This study adopted a convenience sampling method. Thirty aphasic participants participated in the study. During the test, the examiner would ask questions that are encountered in daily life and record the participant‘s responses. Some questions would provide pictures to simulate situations in daily life. The results showed that the non-fluent aphasia group performed significantly worse than the fluent aphasia group. In addition, patients with severe aphasia performed significantly lower scores than patients with moderate aphasia and mild aphasia. However, group differences in the chronic stage and acute stage were not significant. In sum, since communication in daily life is diverse and language is still needed in the communication process, patients with aphasia who have better language ability may have relatively better functional communication. In contrast, the more severely impaired the language ability of a patient with aphasia is, the more functional communication will be affected, resulting in poor communication performance in daily life.

Keywords: adult, aphasia, assessment, functional communication

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Authors: Savaş Karpuz, Sami Küçükşen

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The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of neurological rehabilitation in patients with traumatic brain injury. Participants were 45 consecutive adults with traumatic brain injury who were received the neurologic rehabilitation. Sociodemographic characteristics of the patients, the cause of the injury, the duration of the coma and posttraumatic amnesia, the length of stay in the other inpatient clinics before rehabilitation, the time between injury and admission to the rehabilitation clinic, and the length of stay in the rehabilitation clinic were recorded. The differences in functional status between admission and discharge were determined with Disability Rating Scale (DRS), Functional Independence Measure (FIM), and Functional Ambulation Scale (FAS) and levels of cognitive functioning determined with Ranchos Los Amigos Scale (RLAS). According to admission time, there was a significant improvement identified in functional status of patients who had been given the intensive in-hospital cognitive rehabilitation program. At discharge time, the statistically significant differences were obtained in DRS, FIM, FAS and RLAS scores according to admission time. Better improvement in functional status was detected in patients with lower scores in DRS, and higher scores FIM and RLAS scores at the entry time. The neurologic rehabilitation significantly affects the recovery of functional status after traumatic brain injury.

Keywords: traumatic brain injury, rehabilitation, functional status, neurological

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Authors: Adesola Odole, Nse Odunaiya, Samuel Adewale

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Chronic Mechanical Low Back Pain (CMLBP) is prevalent in the aging population; some studies have documented the association among pain intensity, functional disability and physical activity in the general population but very few studies in the elderly. This study was designed to investigate the association among pain intensity, functional disability and physical activity of elderly individuals with CMLBP in the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Nigeria and also to determine the difference in physical activity, pain intensity and functional disability between males and females. A total of 96 participants diagnosed with CMLBP participated in this cross-sectional survey. They were conveniently sampled from selected units in the UCH, Ibadan, Nigeria. Data on sex, marital status, occupation and duration of onset of pain of participants were obtained from the participants. The Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly, Visual Analogue Scale and Oswestry Disability Questionnaire were used to measure the physical activity, pain intensity and functional disability of the participants respectively. Data was analysed using Spearman correlation, independent t-test; and α was set at 0.05. Participants (25 males, 71 females) were aged 69.64±7.43 years. The majority (76.0%) of the participants were married, and over half (55.2%) were retirees. Participants’ mean pain intensity score was 5.21±2.03 and mean duration of onset of low back pain was 63.63 ± 90.01 months. The majority (67.6%) of the participants reported severe to crippled functional disability. Their mean functional disability was 46.91 ± 13.99. Participants’ mean physical activity score was 97.47 ± 82.55. There was significant association between physical activity and pain intensity (r = -0.21, p = 0.04). There was significant association between physical activity and functional disability (r = -0.47, p = 0.00). Male (87.26 ± 79.94) and female (101.07 ± 83.71) participants did not differ significantly in physical activity (t = 0.00, p = 0.48). In addition, male (5.48 ± 2.06) and female (5.11 ± 2.02) participants’ pain intensity were comparable (t = 0.26, p = 0.44). There was also no significant difference in functional disability (t = 0.05, p = 0.07) between male (42.56 ±13.85) and female (48.45 ± 13.81) participants. It can be concluded from this study that majority of the elderly individuals with chronic mechanical low back pain had a severe to crippled functional disability. Those who reported increased physical activity had reduced pain intensity and functional disability. Male and female elderly individuals with chronic mechanical low back pain are comparable in their pain intensity, functional disability, and physical activity. Elderly individuals with CMLBP should be educated on the importance of participating in physical activity which could reduce their pain symptoms and improve functional disability.

Keywords: elderly, functional disability, mechanical low back pain, pain intensity, physical activity

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Authors: Christina Adly, Meena Abdelmeseeh, Tamer Basha

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This paper proposes a system for hand movement recognition using multichannel surface EMG(sEMG) signals obtained from 40 subjects using 40 different exercises, which are available on the Ninapro(Non-Invasive Adaptive Prosthetics) database. First, we applied processing methods to the raw sEMG signals to convert them to their amplitudes. Second, we used deep learning methods to solve our problem by passing the preprocessed signals to Fully connected neural networks(FCNN) and recurrent neural networks(RNN) with Long Short Term Memory(LSTM). Using intrasubject evaluation, The accuracy using the FCNN is 72%, with a processing time for training around 76 minutes, and for RNN's accuracy is 79.9%, with 8 minutes and 22 seconds processing time. Third, we applied some postprocessing methods to improve the accuracy, like majority voting(MV) and Movement Error Rate(MER). The accuracy after applying MV is 75% and 86% for FCNN and RNN, respectively. The MER value has an inverse relationship with the prediction delay while varying the window length for measuring the MV. The different part uses the RNN with the intersubject evaluation. The experimental results showed that to get a good accuracy for testing with reasonable processing time, we should use around 20 subjects.

Keywords: hand movement recognition, recurrent neural network, movement error rate, intrasubject evaluation, intersubject evaluation

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Authors: Adebola Ajayi, Olakunle M. Makanjuola

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Effect of sprouting period on proximate, functional and mineral properties of malted sorghum flour was evaluated. The study was carried out to determine the proximate, functional and mineral properties of sprouting period on malted sorghum flour produced. The malted sorghum flour was obtained by sorting, weighing, washing, steeping, draining, germination, drying, dry milling, sieving. Malted sorghum flour was evaluated for proximate composition, functional properties and mineral contents. Moisture, protein, fat content, crude fiber, ash contents and carbohydrate of 24 and 48 hours, were in the range of 10.50-11.0, 11.17-11.17, 1.50-4.00, 2.50-1.50, 1.50-1.54 and 73.15-70.79% respectively. Bulk density ranged between 0.64 and 0.59g/ml, water and oil absorption capacities ranged between 139.3 and 150.0 and 217.3 and 222.7g/g respectively. Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc, Iron and Manganese were also range of 12.5, 59.3-60.0, 3.22-3.25, 3.80-3.90 and 3.22-3.25 mg/100g respectively. The results indicate that the germination of red sorghum resulted in the enhancement of the nutritional quality and its functional properties.

Keywords: sprouting, sorghum, malted sorghum flour, cabinet dryer

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Authors: S. F. Kanaan, Fatima Al-Kadi, H. Khrais

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Background: Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that is characterized by chronic pain that limits physical and functional activities. To our best knowledge, there is currently no key physiotherapy approach recommended to reduce pain and improve function. In addition, there are scarce studies that investigated the effect of manual therapy in the management of Fibromyalgia, and no study investigated the efficacy of Mulligan´s mobilization with movement (MWM) in particular. Methods: A 51-year-old female diagnosed with Fibromyalgia for more than a year. The patient was complaining of generalized pain including neck, lower back, shoulders, elbows, hips, and knees. In addition, the patient reported severe limitation in activities and inability to complete her work as a lawyer. The Intervention provided for the patient consisted of 4 sessions (in two weeks) of MWM for neck, lower back, shoulders, elbows, sacroiliac joint, hips, and knees. The Visual Analogue Scale of pain (VAS), Range of Motion (ROM), 10-minute walk test, Roland Morris Low Back Pain and Disability Questionnaire (RMQ), Disability of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand Score (DASH) were collected at the baseline and at the end of treatment. Results: Average improvement of ROM in the neck, lower back, shoulder, elbows, hips, and knees was 45%. VAS scale changed from pre-treatment to post-treatment as the following: neck pain (9 to 0), lower back pain (8 to 1), shoulders pain (8 to 2), elbows pain (7 to 1), and knees pain (9 to 0). The patient demonstrated improvement in all functional scale from pre-intervention to post-intervention: 10-meter walk test (9.8 to 4.5 seconds), RMQ (21 to 11/24), and DASH (88.7% to 40.5%). The patient did not report any side effect of using this approach. Conclusion: Fibromyalgia can cause joint 'faulty position' leading to pain and dysfunction, which can be reversed by using MWM. MWM showed to have clinically significant improvement in ROM, pain, and ability to walk and a clinically significant reduction in disability in only 4 sessions. This work can be expanded in a larger sample.

Keywords: mobilization, fibromyalgia, dysfunction, manual therapy

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Authors: Hy Dang, Bo Mei

Abstract:

The development of machine learning methods and techniques has opened doors for investigation in many areas such as medicines, economics, finance, etc. One active research area involving machine learning is stock market prediction. This research paper tries to consider multiple techniques and methods for stock movement prediction using historical price or price factors. The paper explores the effectiveness of some deep learning frameworks for forecasting stock. Moreover, an architecture (TimeStock) is proposed which takes the representation of time into account apart from the price information itself. Our model achieves a promising result that shows a potential approach for the stock movement prediction problem.

Keywords: classification, machine learning, time representation, stock prediction

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Authors: Jon Gunnar Bernburg

Abstract:

The present study addresses a topic that is fundamental to social movement theory, namely, the contingent link between movement support and movement participation. Usually, only a small fraction of those who agree with the cause of a social movement is mobilized into participating in it (a pattern sometimes referred to as 'the collective action problem'). However, historical moments sometimes emerge when many supporters become mobilized to participate in the movement, greatly enhancing the chance of movement success. By studying a case in point, this paper addresses the limited work on how support and participation are related at such critical moments. Specifically, the paper examines the association between supporting and participating in a huge 'pro-democracy' protest in Iceland in April 2016, in the wake of the global Panama Papers scandal. Organized via social media by only a handful of activists, but supported by a majority of Icelanders, the protest attracted about a fourth of the urban population, leading to a snap election and government change. Surveying Iceland’s urban population, this paper tests hypotheses about the processes mobilizing supporters to participate in the protest. The findings reveal how variables derived from the theories of biographical availability (males vs. females, working class vs. professionals), critical mass (expectations, prior protest success), and social embeddedness (close ties with protesters) moderate the association between protest support and participation. The study helps to account for one of the largest protests in Iceland’s history while contributing to the theory about how historical contexts shape the behavior of movement supporters.

Keywords: Iceland, crisis, protest support vs. participation, theories of mass mobilization

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Authors: Van Huong Mai, Kanokwan Nithiratphat, Adool Booncham

Abstract:

The Movement of Contemporary Life consisted of two purposes, which were to study the movement and development of the modern life and to create the visual arts, which were paintings expressed via the form of apartment buildings was used from mixed media (digital printing and acrylic painting on canvas) which conveyed the rapid pace of modern life leading to diverse movements in viewer’s feeling. The operation of this creation was collected field data, documentary data, and influence from creative work. The data analysis was analyzed in order to theme, form, technique, and process to satisfy of concept and special character of the pieces.

Keywords: movement, contemporary life, visual art, acrylic painting, digital art, urban space

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Authors: Xinrui Zhao

Abstract:

Connective actions acquired a completely different outlook of a social movement which credited with the rapid developed of social media technologies. New social movements amalgamate and mobilize around hashtags, memes, and personalized action frames. In 2017, the #MeToo movements from America spread to a variety of countries as a hashtag on social media. It attempted to demonstrate the widespread prevalence of sexual assault and harassment movement. It also encouraged Chinese women to participate by devoting and contributing their voices and acts. Furthermore, China’s #MeToo movement shows certain characteristics which are strongly shaped by particular political and cultural backgrounds, that also need to be studied. This paper serves as supplementary materials of connective action studies by addressing the #MeToo movement issues in China, which is rarely mentioned previously in the literature, it also supports a view that suggests that ideological and cultural drivers both strategically contribute to personalized action frames. This paper combines textual analysis methods, collecting attached materials from search engines in China’s social media, portrays the structure of China’s #MeToo movements by showing prominent activists, scholars, organization and the public’s action frame in China’s social media(Weibo, wechat, zhihu, douban). In doing so, it seeks to find how China’s #MeToo movements are organized and reveal diversities of social action approaches among those three subjects, digs out the correlations of their actions related to different social media platforms. This analysis suggests that while facing the government's censorship and moral judgments from the public, China’s #MeToo movement combines with few influential sexual assault and harassment events and is lead by the prominent activists who also are the victims in the events. The debates and critiques among Chinese scholars concerned the outcomes and significance of China’s #MeToo movement are divided into sides. Organizations still show less power in participating China’s movement social media. Public’s participation is varied of platforms which hugely affected by their personal experiences and knowledge.

Keywords: connective action, China, MeToo movement, social media

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Authors: Pierce Radecki, Pulkit Malik, Bharath Ramaswamy, Ben Shapiro

Abstract:

The ability to effectively design and test magnetic nanoparticles for controlled movement has been an elusive goal in the design of these particles. Magnetic nanoparticles of various characteristics have been created for use towards therapeutic effects, however the challenge of designing for controlled movement remains unmet. A step towards design in this aspect is a first principles model that captures and predicts the behaviors of particles in a magnetic field. The model is governed by four forces acting on the particles, the magnetic gradient, the dipole-dipole forces, the steric forces, and the viscous drag force. The particles are multi-core or single core, and incorporate a preferred magnetization axis. Particles exhibit behaviors, such as chaining, in simulations that are similar to those witnessed through experimentation. Currently, experimental results are being compared to the modeling results for verification of the model, through the analysis of chaining behaviors. This modeling system will be used in designing magnetic nanoparticles for specific chaining and movement behaviors.

Keywords: controlled movement, modeling, magnetic nanoparticles, nanoparticle design

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Authors: Ernests Jansons, Karlis Agris Gross

Abstract:

Winter brings snow and ice in the Northern Europe and with it the need to move safely over ice. It has been customary to select an appropriate material surface for movement over ice, but another way to influence the interaction with ice is to modify the ice surface. The objective of this work was to investigate the influence of ice topography on initiating movement over ice and on sliding velocity over ice in the laboratory and real-life conditions. The ice was prepared smooth, scratched or with solidified ice-droplets to represent the surface of ice after ice rain. In the laboratory, the coefficient of friction and the sliding velocity were measured, but the sliding velocity measured at the skeleton push-start facility. The scratched ice surface increased the resistance to movement and also showed the slowest sliding speed. Sliding was easier on the smooth ice and ice covered with frozen droplets. The contact surface was measured to determine the effect of contact area with sliding. Results from laboratory tests will be compared to loading under heavier loads to show the influence of load on sliding over different ice surfaces. This outcome provides a useful indicator for pedestrians and road traffic on the safety of movement over different ice surfaces as well as a reference for those involved with winter sports.

Keywords: contact area, friction, ice topography, sliding velocity

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Authors: Setareh Shekarsaraei, Marjan Moridi, Nasser L. Hadipour

Abstract:

In this study, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and nuclear quadrupole resonance spectroscopy parameters of 14N (Nitrogen in imidazole ring) in N–H…O hydrogen bonding for Histidine hydrochloride monohydrate were calculated via density functional theory. We considered a five-molecule model system of Histidine hydrochloride monohydrate. Also, we examined the trends of environmental effect on hydrogen bonds as well as cooperativity. The functional used in this research is M06-2X which is a good functional and the obtained results have shown good agreement with experimental data. This functional was applied to calculate the NMR and NQR parameters. Some correlations among NBO parameters, NMR, and NQR parameters have been studied which have shown the existence of strong correlations among them. Furthermore, the geometry optimization has been performed using M062X/6-31++G(d,p) method. In addition, in order to study cooperativity and changes in structural parameters, along with increase in cluster size, natural bond orbitals have been employed.

Keywords: hydrogen bonding, density functional theory (DFT), natural bond orbitals (NBO), cooperativity effect

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