Search results for: virtual community

Authors: Karin Eines, Riki Tesler

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Introduction: The Mamanet Cachibol League (MCL) is a community-based model developed in Israel to promote physical activity (PA) and amateur team sports among women. team sports are not just groups in the context of specific sport activity but also incorporated into a person’s sense of self and become influencing factor on sport-related behavior among the players. While in the non-Arabic sector, sport venues are available for the local authority population, the Arabic sector authorities face limited access sport facilities, with 168 sport venues and authorities with no venues at all. Within the Arab community, women participation in sports has traditionally been limited and, even more so for participation in team sports. Aims: The purpose of the study was to explore attributes of women MCL activity via: (1) assess differences between participants in the MCL and non-participants among Arab women regarding well-being level; (2) to examine among MCL participants the relationship between health maintenance characteristics and the likelihood of participating in the MCL; and (3) Use qualitative approach to shed light over the question why Arabic women participate in MCL and continue their engagement in PA. Methods: An explanatory sequential mixed-method design was employed to gain a deeper understanding of the advantages and motivations among women participating in community-based team sports. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among Israeli Arab women aged 25–59. Demographic characteristics, well-being (SRH and psychosomatic symptoms), eating habits, and social support were analyzed using two-way analyses of covariance and multiple regression models with a sequential entry of the variables. Quantitative results were further explored in qualitative in-depth interviews among 30 of the MCL participants, which shed light on additional reasons for participation in PA. Results: MCL participants reported better self-reported health (p < 0.001) and lower rates of psychosomatic symptoms (p < 0.001) compared to non-participants. Participation in MCL was also related to higher levels of well-being and healthy eating habits. Women who participated also experienced a profound sense of belonging, leading to enhanced social interactions and positivity in their personal and professional lives. They were dedicated to the group and felt empowered by the reciprocal commitment. The group promoted equality, making the women feel valued and respected, resulting in community admiration. Their involvement positively impacted their families, justifying their time commitment.

Keywords: wellbeing, obesity, community based sports, healthy eating habits, arab women

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Authors: Marta Błażkiewicz, Adam Konefał

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Currently, boron-neutron therapy is carried out mainly with the use of a neutron beam generated in research nuclear reactors. This fact limits the possibility of realization of a BNCT in centers distant from the above-mentioned reactors. Moreover, the number of active nuclear reactors in operation in the world is decreasing due to the limited lifetime of their operation and the lack of new installations. Therefore, the possibilities of carrying out boron-neutron therapy based on the neutron beam from the experimental reactor are shrinking. However, the use of nuclear power reactors for BNCT purposes is impossible due to the infrastructure not intended for radiotherapy. Therefore, a serious challenge is to find ways to perform boron-neutron therapy based on neutrons generated outside the research nuclear reactor. This work meets this challenge. Its goal is to develop a BNCT technique based on commonly available neutron sources such as Cf-252 and PuBe, which will enable the above-mentioned therapy in medical centers unrelated to nuclear research reactors. Advances in the field of neutron source fabrication make it possible to achieve strong neutron fluxes. The current stage of research focuses on the development of virtual models of the above-mentioned sources using the Monte Carlo simulation method. In this study, the GEANT4 tool was used, including the model for simulating neutron-matter interactions - High Precision Neutron. Models of neutron sources were developed on the basis of experimental verification based on the activation detectors method with the use of indium foil and the cadmium differentiation method allowing to separate the indium activation contribution from thermal and resonance neutrons. Due to the large number of factors affecting the result of the verification experiment, the 10% discrepancy between the simulation and experiment results was accepted.

Keywords: BNCT, virtual models, neutron sources, monte carlo, GEANT4, neutron activation detectors, gamma spectroscopy

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Authors: Gizem Kayar, Ramazan Bakir, M. Ilkay Koşar, Ceren U. Gencer, Alperen Ayyildiz

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Anatomy classes are crucial for general education of medical students, whereas learning anatomy is quite challenging and requires memorization of thousands of structures. In traditional teaching methods, learning materials are still based on books, anatomy mannequins, or videos. This results in forgetting many important structures after several years. However, more interactive teaching methods like virtual reality, augmented reality, gamification, and motion sensors are becoming more popular since such methods ease the way we learn and keep the data in mind for longer terms. During our study, we designed a virtual reality based digital head anatomy platform to investigate whether a fully interactive anatomy platform is effective to learn anatomy and to understand the level of teaching and learning optimization. The Head is one of the most complicated human anatomy structures, with thousands of tiny, unique structures. This makes the head anatomy one of the most difficult parts to understand during class sessions. Therefore, we developed a fully interactive digital tool with 3D model marking, quiz structures, 2D/3D puzzle structures, and VR support so as to integrate the power of VR and gamification. The project has been developed in Unity game engine with HTC Vive Cosmos VR headset. The head anatomy 3D model has been selected with full skeletal, muscular, integumentary, head, teeth, lymph, and vein system. The biggest issue during the development was the complexity of our model and the marking of it in the 3D world system. 3D model marking requires to access to each unique structure in the counted subsystems which means hundreds of marking needs to be done. Some parts of our 3D head model were monolithic. This is why we worked on dividing such parts to subparts which is very time-consuming. In order to subdivide monolithic parts, one must use an external modeling tool. However, such tools generally come with high learning curves, and seamless division is not ensured. Second option was to integrate tiny colliders to all unique items for mouse interaction. However, outside colliders which cover inner trigger colliders cause overlapping, and these colliders repel each other. Third option is using raycasting. However, due to its own view-based nature, raycasting has some inherent problems. As the model rotate, view direction changes very frequently, and directional computations become even harder. This is why, finally, we studied on the local coordinate system. By taking the pivot point of the model into consideration (back of the nose), each sub-structure is marked with its own local coordinate with respect to the pivot. After converting the mouse position to the world position and checking its relation with the corresponding structure’s local coordinate, we were able to mark all points correctly. The advantage of this method is its applicability and accuracy for all types of monolithic anatomical structures.

Keywords: anatomy, e-learning, virtual reality, 3D model marking

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Authors: Sakchai Rachniyom

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Owing to the ASEAN community will formally take place in the few months; therefore, Thais should realize about the importance of English language. Since, it is regarded as a working language in the community. To promote Science students’ English proficiency, teacher should be able to teach in English language appropriately and effectively. The purposes of the quasi – experimental research are (1) to measure the learning achievement, (2) to evaluate students’ satisfaction on the teaching and learning and (3) to study the consequences of co – teaching method in order comprehend the learning achievement and improvement. The participants were 40 general science students teacher. Two types of research instruments were included; (1) an achievement test, and (2) a questionnaire. This research was conducted for 1 semester. The statistics used in this research were arithmetic mean and standard deviation. The findings of the study revealed that students’ achievement score was significantly increased at statistical level .05 and the students satisfied the teaching and learning at the highest level . The students’ involvement and teachers’ support were promoted. It was also reported students’ learning was improved by co – teaching method.

Keywords: co – teaching method, learning science in english, teacher, education

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Authors: Mohamed El Fares Djellatou, Fracoise Filion

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The Ashukin program that means bridge in Naskapi or Atikamekw language, has been designed to offer a partnership between nursing students and an indigenous community. The students design a health promotion project tailored to the needs of the community. The issues of intimidation in primary school and cyber-dependence in high school were some concerns in a rural Atikamekw community. The goal of the project was to have a conversation with indigenous youths, aged 10-16 years old, on the challenges presented by intimidation and cyber dependence as well as promoting healthy relationships online and within the community. Methods: Multiple progressive inquiry questions (PIQs) were used to assess the feasibility and importance of this project for the Atikamekw nation, and to determine a plan to follow. The theoretical foundations to guide the conception of the project were the Population Health Promotion Model (PHPM), the First Nations Holistic Lifelong Learning Model, and the Medicine Wheel. A broad array of social determinants of health were addressed, including healthy childhood development, personal health practices, and coping skills, and education. The youths were encouraged to participate in interactive educational sessions, using PowerPoint presentations and pamphlets as the main effective strategies. Additional tools such as cultural artworks and physical activities were introduced to strengthen the inter-relational and team spirit within the Indigenous population. A quality assurance tool (QAT) was developed specifically to determine the appropriateness of these health promotion tools. Improvements were guided by the feedback issued by the indigenous schools’ teachers and social workers who filled the QATs. Post educational sessions, quantitative results have shown that 93.48% of primary school students were able to identify the different types of intimidation, 72.65% recognized more than two strategies, and 52.1% were able to list at least four resources to diffuse intimidation. On the other hand, around 75% of the adolescents were able to name at least three negative effects, and 50% listed three strategies to reduce cyber-dependence. This project was meant to create a bridge with the First Nation through health promotion, a population that is known to be disadvantaged due to systemic health inequity and disparities. Culturally safe care was proposed to deal with the two identified priority issues, and an educational toolkit was given to both schools to ensure the sustainability of the project. The project was self-financed through fundraising activities, and it yielded better results than expected.

Keywords: indigenous, first nation, bullying, cyber-dependence, internet addiction, intimidation, youth, adolescents, school, community nursing, health promotion

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Authors: Tania Breton, Dorina Simeonov, Shauna MacEachern

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Ontario’s 10 Year Mental Health and Addictions Strategy has included the establishment of 18 Service Collaborative across the province; cross-sector tables in a specific region coming together to explore mental health and addiction system needs and adopting an intervention to address that need. The process is community led and supported by implementation teams from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), using the framework of implementation science (IS) to enable evidence-based and sustained change. These justice initiatives are focused on the intersection of the justice system and the mental health and addiction systems. In this presentation, we will share the learnings, achievements and challenges of implementing innovative practices to the mental health and addictions needs of Ontarians within the justice system. Specifically, we will focus on the key points across the justice system - from early intervention and trauma-informed, culturally appropriate services to post-sentence support and community reintegration. Our approach to this work involves external implementation support from the CAMH team including coaching, knowledge exchange, evaluation, Aboriginal engagement and health equity expertise. Agencies supported the implementation of tools and processes which changed practice at the local level. These practices are being scaled up across Ontario and community agencies have come together in an unprecedented collaboration and there is a shared vision of the issues overlapping between the mental health, addictions and justice systems. Working with ministry partners has allowed space for innovation and created an environment where better approaches can be nurtured and spread.

Keywords: implementation, innovation, early identification, mental health and addictions, prevention, systems

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Authors: T. Moody, E. Mitchell, T. Dang, A. Barry, T. Proshan, S. Andrisse, V. Odero-Marah

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Women’s prison and reentry programs are focused primarily on reducing recidivism but neglect how an individual’s intersecting identities influence their risk of violence and ways that histories of gender-based violence (GBV) must be addressed for these women to recover from traumas. Light To Life (LTL) and From Prison Cells to Ph.D. (P2P) Womxn’s Cohort program recognizes this need; providing national gender-responsive programming (GRP), and trauma-informed programming to justice-impacted survivors through digital resources, leadership opportunities, educational workshops, and healing justice approaches for positive health outcomes. Through the support of a community-university partnership (CUP), a comparative evaluation study is being conducted among intimate-partner violence (IPV) survivors with histories of incarceration who have or have not participated in the cohort. The objectives of the partnership are to provide mutually beneficial training and consultation for evaluating GRP through a rigorously tested research methodology. This collaborative applies a rigorous methodology of semi-structured interviews with an intervention and control group to evaluate the impact of LTL’s programming in the P2P Womxn’s Cohort. The CUP is essential to achieve the expected results of the project. It will measure primary outcomes, including participants' level of engagement and satisfaction with programming, reduction in attitudes that accept violence in relationships, and increase in interpersonal and intrapersonal skills that lead to healthy relationships. This community-based approach will provide opportunities to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. The results addressed in the hypothesis will provide learning lessons to improve this program, to scale it up, and apply it to other similarly affected populations. The partnership experience and anticipated outcomes contribute to the knowledge in women’s health and criminal justice by fostering public awareness on the importance of developing new partnerships and fostering CUP to establish a framework to the leveraging of partnerships for social impact available to academic institutions.

Keywords: Community-university partnership, gender-responsive programming, incarceration, intimate-partner violence, POC, women

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Authors: Sung-Jun Yoo, Kazuhide Ito

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In this study, a comprehensive computer simulated person (CSP) that integrates computational human model (virtual manikin) and respiratory tract model (virtual airway), was applied for estimation of indoor environmental quality. Moreover, an inclusive prediction method was established by integrating computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis with advanced CSP which is combined with physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model, unsteady thermoregulation model for analysis targeting micro-climate around human body and respiratory area with high accuracy. This comprehensive method can estimate not only the contaminant inhalation but also constant interaction in the contaminant transfer between indoor spaces, i.e., a target area for indoor air quality (IAQ) assessment, and respiratory zone for health risk assessment. This study focused on the usage of the CSP as an air/thermal quality sensor in indoors, which means the application of comprehensive model for assessment of IAQ and thermal environmental quality. Demonstrative analysis was performed in order to examine the applicability of the comprehensive model to the heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC) control scheme. CSP was located at the center of the simple model room which has dimension of 3m×3m×3m. Formaldehyde which is generated from floor material was assumed as a target contaminant, and flow field, sensible/latent heat and contaminant transfer analysis in indoor space were conducted by using CFD simulation coupled with CSP. In this analysis, thermal comfort was evaluated by thermoregulatory analysis, and respiratory exposure risks represented by adsorption flux/concentration at airway wall surface were estimated by PBPK-CFD hybrid analysis. These Analysis results concerning IAQ and thermal comfort will be fed back to the HVAC control and could be used to find a suitable ventilation rate and energy requirement for air conditioning system.

Keywords: CFD simulation, computer simulated person, HVAC control, indoor environmental quality

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Authors: Jonathan Ogwal, Louis H. Kamulegeya, John M. Bwanika, Davis Musinguzi

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Introduction: Community retail Pharmacy drug distribution points (CRPDDP) were implemented in the Lango sub-region as part of the Ministry of Health’s response to improving access and adherence to antiretroviral treatment (ART). Clients received their ART refills from nearby local pharmacies; as such, the need for continuous engagement through mobile phone appointment reminders and health messages. We share learnings from the implementation of mobile text reminders and voice call follow-ups among ART clients attending the CRPDDP program in northern Uganda. Methods: A retrospective data review of electronic medical records from four pharmacies allocated for CRPDDP in the Lira and Apac districts of the Lango sub-region in Northern Uganda was done from February to August 2022. The process involved collecting phone contacts of eligible clients from the health facility appointment register and uploading them onto a messaging platform customized by Rapid-pro, an open-source software. Client information, including code name, phone number, next appointment date, and the allocated pharmacy for ART refill, was collected and kept confidential. Contacts received appointment reminder messages and other messages on positive living as an ART client. Routine voice call follow-ups were done to ascertain the picking of ART from the refill pharmacy. Findings: In total, 1,354 clients were reached from the four allocated pharmacies found in urban centers. 972 clients received short message service (SMS) appointment reminders, and 382 were followed up through voice calls. The majority (75%) of the clients returned for refills on the appointed date, 20% returned within four days after the appointment date, and the remaining 5% needed follow-up where they reported that they were not in the district by the appointment date due to other engagements. Conclusion: The use of mobile text reminders and voice call follow-ups improves the attendance of community retail pharmacy refills.

Keywords: antiretroviral treatment, community retail drug distribution points, mobile text reminders, voice call follow-up

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Authors: Olayinka Ariba, Abe Oudshoorn, Steve Rolfe, Carrie Anne Marshall, Deanna Befus, Jason Gilliland, Miranda Crockett, Susana Caxaj, Sarah McLean, Amy Van Berkum, Natasha Thuemler

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Background: Secure housing is a platform for health and well-being. Those who struggle with housing stability have complex life and health histories and often require some support services such as the provision of permanent supportive housing. Poor access to supportive resources creates an exacerbation of chronic homelessness, particularly affecting individuals who need immediate access to mental health and addiction supports. This paper presents the first phase of a three-part study examining how on-site support impacts housing stability for recently-re-housed persons. Method: This study utilized a community-based participatory research methodology. Twenty in-depth interviews were conducted with permanent supportive housing residents from a single-site dwelling. Interpretative description analysis was used to draw common themes and understand the experiences and challenges of housing support. Results: Three interconnected themes were identified: 1) Available and timely supports; 2) Affordability; and 3) Community, but with independence as desired. These interconnected components are helping residents transition from homelessness or long-term mental health inpatient care to live in the community. Despite some participant concerns about resident conflicts, staff availability, and affordability, this has been a welcome and successful move for most. Conclusion: Supportive housing is essential for successful tenancies as a platform for health and well-being among Canada’s most vulnerable and, from the perspective of persons recently re-housed, permanent supportive housing is a worthwhile investment.

Keywords: homelessness, supportive housing, rehoused, housing stability

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Authors: Mukunda Upadhyay, Rakesh Mishra, Rajni Singh

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This paper is an attempt to understand the abstract concept of space, citizenship and migration in the north-eastern region. In the twentieth century, researchers and thinkers related citizenship and migration on national models. The national models of jus sulis and jus sangunis provide scope of space and rights to only those who are either born in the territory or either share the common descent. Space ensures rights and citizenship ensures space and for many migrants, citizenship is the ultimate goal in the host country. Migrants with the intention of settling down in the destination region, begin to adapt and assimilate in their new homes. In many cases, migrants may also retain the culture and values of the place of origin. In such cases the difference in the degree of retention and assimilation may determine the chances of conflict between the host society and migrants. Such conflicts are fueled by political aspirations of few individuals on both the sides. The North-Eastern part of India is a mixed community with many linguistic and religious groups sharing a common Geo-political space. Every community has its own unique history, culture and identity. Since the last half of the nineteenth century, this region has been experiencing both internal migration from other states and immigration from the neighboring countries which has resulted in the interactions of various cultures and ethnicities. With the span of time, migration has taken bitter form with problems concentrated around acquiring rights through space and citizenship. Political tensions resulted by host hostility and migrants resistance has ruined the social order in few areas. In order to resolve these issues in this area proper intervention has to be carried out by the involvement of the National and International community.

Keywords: space, citizenship, assimilation, migration, rights

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Authors: Ayesha Selwyn, Annapoorni Chandrashekar, Kumar Ashwarya, Nishant Baghel

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Project-based learning (PBL) activities are typically implemented in technology-enabled schools by highly trained teachers. In rural India, students have limited access to technology and quality education. Implementing typical PBL activities is challenging. This study details how Pratham Education Foundation’s Hybrid Learning model was used to implement two PBL activities related to music in 900 remote Indian villages with 46,000 students aged 10-14. The activities were completed by 69% of groups that submitted a total of 15,000 videos (completed projects). Pratham’s H-Learning model reaches 100,000 students aged 3-14 in 900 Indian villages. The community-driven model engages students in 20,000 self-organized groups outside of school. The students are guided by 6,000 youth volunteers and 100 facilitators. The students partake in learning activities across subjects with the support of community stakeholders and offline digital content on shared Android tablets. A training and implementation toolkit for PBL activities is designed by subject experts. This toolkit is essential in ensuring efficient implementation of activities as facilitators aren’t highly skilled and have limited access to training resources. The toolkit details the activity at three levels of student engagement - enrollment, participation, and completion. The subject experts train project leaders and facilitators who train youth volunteers. Volunteers need to be trained on how to execute the activity and guide students. The training is focused on building the volunteers’ capacity to enable students to solve problems, rather than developing the volunteers’ subject-related knowledge. This structure ensures that continuous intervention of subject matter experts isn’t required, and the onus of judging creativity skills is put on community members. 46,000 students in the H-Learning program were engaged in two PBL activities related to Music from April-June 2019. For one activity, students had to conduct a “musical survey” in their village by designing a survey and shooting and editing a video. This activity aimed to develop students’ information retrieval, data gathering, teamwork, communication, project management, and creativity skills. It also aimed to identify talent and document local folk music. The second activity, “Pratham Idol”, was a singing competition. Students participated in performing, producing, and editing videos. This activity aimed to develop students’ teamwork and creative skills and give students a creative outlet. Students showcased their completed projects at village fairs wherein a panel of community members evaluated the videos. The shortlisted videos from all villages were further evaluated by experts who identified students and adults to participate in advanced music workshops. The H-Learning framework enables students in low resource settings to engage in PBL and develop relevant skills by leveraging community support and using video creation as a tool. In rural India, students do not have access to high-quality education or infrastructure. Therefore designing activities that can be implemented by community members after limited training is essential. The subject experts have minimal intervention once the activity is initiated, which significantly reduces the cost of implementation and allows the activity to be implemented at a massive scale.

Keywords: community supported learning, project-based learning, self-organized learning, education technology

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Authors: Tsuu Faith Machingura, Doreen Nkala, Daniel Madzanire

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Higher and tertiary Education in Zimbabwe is driven by is a five-pillar Education 5.0 model, which thrusts upon teaching, community engagement, research, innovation and industrialisation. Migration from the previous three-pillar model, the focus of which was on teaching, research and community engagement, to the current one saw universities churning out prolific social entrepreneurs. Apart from examining challenges social entrepreneurs face, the study aimed to identify opportunities that are available for the country as a corollary of the proliferation of social entrepreneurs. A sample of 20 participants comprising 15 social entrepreneurs and five lecturers was purposively drawn. Focus group and face to face interviews were used to gather data. The study revealed that the current higher and tertiary education model in Zimbabwe has stimulated proliferation of social entrepreneurs. It was recommended that a sound financial support system was needed to support new entrepreneurs.

Keywords: social entrepreneurs, education 5.0, innovation, industrialisation

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Authors: Chih-Jer Lin, Jian-Hong Hou

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Industry 4.0 is a vision of integrated industry implemented by artificial intelligent computing, software, and Internet technologies. The main goal of industry 4.0 is to deal with the difficulty owing to competitive pressures in the marketplace. For today’s manufacturing factories, the type of production is changed from mass production (high quantity production with low product variety) to medium quantity-high variety production. To offer flexibility, better quality control, and improved productivity, robot manipulators are used to combine material processing, material handling, and part positioning systems into an integrated manufacturing system. To implement the automated system for sheet metal bending operations, motion planning of a 7-degrees of freedom (DOF) robot is studied in this paper. A virtual reality (VR) environment of a bending cell, which consists of the robot and a bending machine, is established using the virtual robot experimentation platform (V-REP) simulator. For sheet metal bending operations, the robot only needs six DOFs for the pick-and-place or tracking tasks. Therefore, this 7 DOF robot has more DOFs than the required to execute a specified task; it can be called a redundant robot. Therefore, this robot has kinematic redundancies to deal with the task-priority problems. For redundant robots, Pseudo-inverse of the Jacobian is the most popular motion planning method, but the pseudo-inverse methods usually lead to a kind of chaotic motion with unpredictable arm configurations as the Jacobian matrix lose ranks. To overcome the above problem, we proposed a method to formulate the motion planning problems as optimization problem. Moreover, a genetic algorithm (GA) based method is proposed to deal with motion planning of the redundant robot. Simulation results validate the proposed method feasible for motion planning of the redundant robot in an automated sheet-metal bending operations.

Keywords: redundant robot, motion planning, genetic algorithm, obstacle avoidance

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Authors: Banazzouz Halima

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Throughout the ages, language has been viewed not only as a simple code of communicating information but rather as the most powerful and versatile medium of maintaining relationships with other people. While,by the end of the 18th century, such matters of scientific investigation concerning the study of human language began to occur under the scope of “Linguistics” generally defined as the scientific study of language. Linguistics, thus, provides a growing body of scientific knowledge about language which can guide the activity of the language teacher and student as well. Moreover,as times passed, the linguistic development engaged language in a broadly practiced academic discipline having relationship with other sciences such as: psychology, sociology, anthropology etc. Therefore, “Sociolinguistics” was given birth during the 1960’s. In fact, the given abstract is mainly linguistic, inserted under the scope of “Sociolinguistics” and by far it highlights on the process of linguistic variation and language change to show that all languages change through time and linguistic systems may vary from one speech community to another providing there is a sense of vitality where people of different parts of the globe may mutually and intelligibly communicate and comprehend each other.

Keywords: language change-sociolinguistics, social context-speech community, vitality of language, linguistic variation, urban dialectology, urban dialectology

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Authors: Sigal Portnoy, Jason Friedman, Eitan Raveh

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Introduction: Sensory substitution is possible due to the capacity of our brain to adapt to information transmitted by a synthetic receptor via an alternative sensory system. Practical sensory substitution systems are being developed in order to increase the functionality of individuals with sensory loss, e.g. amputees. For upper limb prosthetic-users the loss of tactile feedback compels them to allocate visual attention to their prosthesis. The effect of adding vibrotactile feedback (VTF) to the applied force has been studied, however its effect on the allocation if visual attention during dual-tasking and the response during misleading visual feedback have not been studied. We hypothesized that VTF will improve the performance and reduce visual attention during dual-task assignments in healthy individuals using a robotic hand and improve the performance in a standardized functional test, despite the presence of misleading visual feedback. Methods: For the dual-task paradigm, twenty healthy subjects were instructed to toggle two keyboard arrow keys with the left hand to retain a moving virtual car on a road on a screen. During the game, instructions for various activities, e.g. mix the sugar in the glass with a spoon, appeared on the screen. The subject performed these tasks with a robotic hand, attached to the right hand. The robotic hand was controlled by the activity of the flexors and extensors of the right wrist, recorded using surface EMG electrodes. Pressure sensors were attached at the tips of the robotic hand and induced VTF using vibrotactile actuators attached to the right arm of the subject. An eye-tracking system tracked to visual attention of the subject during the trials. The trials were repeated twice, with and without the VTF. Additionally, the subjects performed the modified box and blocks, hidden from eyesight, in a motion laboratory. A virtual presentation of a misleading visual feedback was be presented on a screen so that twice during the trial, the virtual block fell while the physical block was still held by the subject. Results: This is an ongoing study, which current results are detailed below. We are continuing these trials with transradial myoelectric prosthesis-users. In the healthy group, the VTF did not reduce the visual attention or improve performance during dual-tasking for the tasks that were typed transfer-to-target, e.g. place the eraser on the shelf. An improvement was observed for other tasks. For example, the average±standard deviation of time to complete the sugar-mixing task was 13.7±17.2s and 19.3±9.1s with and without the VTF, respectively. Also, the number of gaze shifts from the screen to the hand during this task were 15.5±23.7 and 20.0±11.6, with and without the VTF, respectively. The response of the subjects to the misleading visual feedback did not differ between the two conditions, i.e. with and without VTF. Conclusions: Our interim results suggest that the performance of certain activities of daily living may be improved by VTF. The substitution of visual sensory input by tactile feedback might require a long training period so that brain plasticity can occur and allow adaptation to the new condition.

Keywords: prosthetics, rehabilitation, sensory substitution, upper limb amputation

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Authors: Muhammad Luqman, Mujahid Karim

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Agricultural journalism considered an effective tool in the diffusion of agricultural technologies among the members of farming communities. Various agricultural journalism forms are used by the different organization in order to address the community problems and provide solutions to them. The present study was conducted for analyzing the role of agricultural journalism in the dissemination of agricultural information. The universe of the study was district Sargodha from which a sample of 100 was collected through a validating and pre-tested questionnaire. Statistical analysis of collected data was done with the help of SPSS. It was concluded that majority (64.6%) of the respondent were middle-aged (31-50) years, also indicates a high (73.23%) literacy rate above middle-level education, most (78.3%) of the respondents were connected with the occupation of farming. In various forms of agricultural journalism “Radio/T.V./F.M) is used by 99.4% of the respondent, Mobile phones (96%), Magazine/ Newspaper/ periodical (66.4%) and social media (60.9%). Regarding majors areas focused on agriculture journalism “Help farmers to enhance their productivity is on the highest level with a mean of ( =3.98/5.00). The regression model of farmer's education and various forms of agricultural journalism facilities used was found to be significant.

Keywords: agricultural information, journalism, farming community, technology diffusion and adoption

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Authors: Yu Cheng-Yu

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‘Heterotopia’, ‘Visual Cultural Art Education’ and ‘New Media’ of these three subjects seemingly are irrelevant. In fact, there are synchronicity and intertextuality inside. In addition to visual culture, art education inspires students the ability to reflect on popular culture image through visual culture teaching strategies in school. We should get involved in the community to construct the learning environment that conveys visual culture art. This thesis attempts to probe the heterogeneity of space and value from Michel Foucault and to research sustainable development strategy in ‘New Media Art Village’ heterogeneity from Jean Baudrillard, Marshall McLuhan's media culture theory and social construction ideology. It is possible to find a new media group that can convey ‘Visual Culture Art Education’ around the National Taipei University of Technology in this commercial district that combines intelligent technology, fashion, media, entertainment, art education, and marketing network. Let the imagination and innovation of ‘New Media Art Village’ become ‘implementable’ and new media Heterotopia of inter-subjectivity with the engagement of big data and digital media. Visual culture art education will also bring aesthetics into the community by New Media Art Village.

Keywords: social construction, heterogeneity, new media, big data, visual culture art education

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Authors: P. Jayashree, S. Rajkumar

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With the trend of virtual and augmented reality environments booming to provide a life like experience, gaming is a major tool in supporting such learning environments. In this work, a variant of Voronoi heuristics, employing supervised learning for the TRON game is proposed. The paper discusses the features that would be really useful when a machine learning bot is to be used as an opponent against a human player. Various game scenarios, nature of the bot and the experimental results are provided for the proposed variant to prove that the approach is better than those that are currently followed.

Keywords: artificial Intelligence, automation, machine learning, TRON game, Voronoi heuristics

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Authors: Kuanrong Qiu, Sebnem Madrali, Evgueniy Entchev

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To achieve the satisfactory objectives in deploying integrated renewable energy systems, it is crucial to consider all the related parameters affecting the design and decision-making. The multi-criteria evaluation method is a reliable and efficient tool for achieving the most appropriate solution. The approach considers the influential factors and their relative importance in prioritizing the alternatives. In this paper, a multi-criteria decision framework, based on the criteria including technical, economic, environmental and reliability, is developed to evaluate and prioritize renewable energy technologies and configurations of their integrated systems for community applications, identify their viability, and thus support the adoption of the clean energy technologies and the decision-making regarding energy transitions and transition patterns. Case studies for communities in Canada show that resource availability and the configurations of the integrated systems significantly impact the economic performance and environmental performance.

Keywords: multi-criteria, renewables, integrated energy systems, decision-making, model

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Authors: Afshin Azari, Farzad Peiravian, Nazila Yousefi

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Introduction: Community pharmacies have been always played an important role in public health. Therefore, having a decent service provided by these pharmacies is of paramount importance for the healthcare system. The issue of pharmacy ownership and its possible impact on the quality of services and amount of violations has been argued for many years, and there are different opinions around this debate. Since, so far, no scientific research has been performed to investigate this issue in Iran, this study aimed to examine the differences between these two types of pharmacies ownership in terms of violations and service quality. Method: This study investigates the impact of two different kinds of pharmacy ownership (pharmacists and non-pharmacist’s ownership) on the pharmacies’ amount of violations and services quality. Pharmacies’ amount of violations was examined using “pharmacy inspection reports” between September 2018 and September 2019, in their distinguishable categories: minor, major and critical violations. Then, service quality was examined using a questionnaire from the perspective of pharmacy customers. Results: Considering violations, there was no evidence to prove a significant relationship between critical violations and major violations with the type of pharmacy ownership. However, in minor violations, the average of violations was higher in pharmacies owned by pharmacists in comparison to their non-pharmacist owned counterparts. Regarding service quality, the results showed that there is no significant relationship between the quality of service and the type of pharmacy ownership. Discussion and Conclusion: In this study, no significant relationship was found between the amount of violations and the type of pharmacy ownership. This could indicate that the pharmacy ownership would not influence the rate of violations. Considering that more inspections have been carried out in non-pharmacist owned pharmacies, it can be concluded that these pharmacies are more under control, and in fact, this monitoring has reduced violations in these pharmacies. The quality of services in the two types of pharmacies were not significantly different from each other, and this shows that non-pharmacist-owned pharmacies also try to maintain the desired level of service in competition with their competitors.

Keywords: pharmacy ownership, quality of service, violation, community pharmacy

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Authors: Melanie Grier, Adam Murry

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Objective: Worldwide, Indigenous Peoples experience underemployment and poverty at disproportionately higher rates than non-Indigenous people, despite similar rates of employment seeking. Euro-colonial conquest and genocidal assimilation policies are implicated as perpetuating poverty, which research consistently links to health and wellbeing disparities. Many of the contributors to poverty, such as inadequate income and lack of access to medical care, can be directly or indirectly linked to underemployment. Calls have been made to prioritize Indigenous perspectives in Industrial-Organizational (I/O) psychology research, yet the literature on Indigenous employment remains scarce. What does exist is disciplinarily diverse, topically scattered, and lacking evidence of community-based participatory research (CBPR) practices, a research project approach which prioritizes community leadership, partnership, and betterment and reduces the potential for harm. Due to the harmful colonial legacy of extractive scientific inquiry "on" rather than "with" Indigenous groups, Indigenous leaders and research funding agencies advocate for academic researchers to adopt reparative research methodologies such as CBPR to be used when studying issues pertaining to Indigenous Peoples or individuals. However, the frequency and consistency of CBPR implementation within scholarly discourse are unknown. Therefore, this project’s goal is two-fold: (1) to understand what comprises CBPR in Indigenous research and (2) to determine if CBPR has been historically used in Indigenous employment research. Method: Using a systematic literature review process, sixteen articles about CBPR use with Indigenous groups were selected, and content was analyzed to identify key components comprising CBPR usage. An Indigenous CBPR components framework was constructed and subsequently utilized to analyze the Indigenous employment empirical literature. A similar systematic literature review process was followed to search for relevant empirical articles on Indigenous employment. A total of 120 articles were identified in six global regions: Australia, New Zealand, Canada, America, the Pacific Islands, and Greenland/Norway. Each empirical study was procedurally examined and coded for criteria inclusion using content analysis directives. Results: Analysis revealed that, in total, CBPR elements were used 14% of the time in Indigenous employment research. Most studies (n=69; 58%) neglected to mention using any CBPR components, while just two studies discussed implementing all sixteen (2%). The most significant determinant of overall CBPR use was community member partnership (CP) in the research process. Studies from New Zealand were most likely to use CBPR components, followed by Canada, Australia, and America. While CBPR use did increase slowly over time, meaningful temporal trends were not found. Further, CBPR use did not directly correspond with the total number of topical articles published that year. Conclusions: Community-initiated and engaged research approaches must be better utilized in employment studies involving Indigenous Peoples. Future research efforts must be particularly attentive to community-driven objectives and research protocols, emphasizing specific areas of concern relevant to the field of I/O psychology, such as organizational support, recruitment, and selection.

Keywords: community-based participatory research, content analysis, employment, indigenous research, international, reconciliation, recruitment, reparative research, selection, systematic literature review

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Authors: B. Remya Mohan, Kamal Bijlani, R. Jayakrishnan

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Visualization in an educational context provides the learner with visual means of information. Conceptualizing certain circumstances such as consequences of smoking can be done more effectively with the help of the technology, Augmented Reality (AR). It is a new methodology for effective learning. This paper proposes an approach on how AR based on Marker Technology simulates the harmful effects of smoking and its consequences using Unity 3D game engine. The study also illustrates the impact of AR technology on students for better learning. AR technology can be used as a method to improve learning.

Keywords: augmented reality, marker technology, multi-platform, virtual buttons

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Authors: Rashed Shah, Jeanne Koepsell, Dixmer Rivera, Eric Swedberg, David Marsh

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Success of primary health care goals of health promotion and disease prevention may well be determined by community based health workers’ overall job satisfaction. It is also important to understand the ways community health workers perceive their jobs and the importance they give to the various factors influencing their job satisfaction, which is critical before making a decision for task-shifting and for expanding their scope of work. Although brigadistas are unpaid volunteers, they are formally recognized and receive support and supervision from the Ministry of Health in Nicaragua. Brigadistas are responsible for classifying and diagnosing illnesses, administering treatment, counseling mothers and care givers within the community, encouraging referral in case of serious illness and making follow-up visits at home. Some brigadistas provide more technically advanced services, including treatment for pneumonia, diarrhea, malaria and tuberculosis and/or distribution of contraceptives. Expanding brigadistas’ duties could threaten their heretofore ‘job satisfaction’. This study primarily aims to report on job satisfaction of brigadistas in Nicaragua before expanding the scope of their work by adding more responsibilities. The study was guided by the following research questions: 1) What aspects of their job made the brigadistas satisfied or dissatisfied? 2) What is the job satisfaction level of brigadistas in Nicaragua? This cross-sectional study was conducted during March – July 2014, to assess brigadistas’ job satisfaction, prior to deciding on inclusion of care for sick newborns and young infants (<2 months of age) to brigadistas’ existing service package of community case management for children of 2-59 months of age. Following stratified random sampling strategy, 15 brigadistas were randomly selected from each of the following four strata: [(1) females under 25 years of age, (2) females over 30 years of age, (3) males under 25 years of age, and (4) males over 30 years of age. Out of 45 completed in-person interview with eligible and available brigadistas, 20 (44.4%) were with female and 25 (55.6%) were with male respondents; the mean age (±sd) was found as 32.0 (±3.2) years. About 53% (24/45) brigadista mentioned “Training” as the most helpful for performing their job. Another 31% (14/45) mentioned that “feeling of doing good, supporting community, women and children” was helpful to perform their job well. When asked about difficulty, about 35.5% (16/45) brigadistas mentioned about “Lack of time” due to their responsibilities in family, farm, other work places, study and such time constraint made their job performance difficult. Measured on a 0-5 scale, estimated average job satisfaction was 4.2. Current trends in task-shifting and integrated program delivery require community health workers (like the brigadistas) to deliver several essential services, including maternal, newborn and child health, and family planning, and thereby increasing their responsibilities. Given the reported level of job satisfaction among brigadistas (4.2 out of 5), and the mentioned difficulty in performing their current job (as ‘Lack of Time’) in this study results, the policy makers and program managers in MOH should be cautious enough before making a decision to expand current scope of work for brigadistas in Nicaragua.

Keywords: Brigadisata, job satisfaction, Nicaragua, task-shifting

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Authors: Ted Silva

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Dietrich de Velsa's Équation à un inconnu / Equation to an Unknown hybridizes art cinema style with the sexually explicit aesthetics of pornography to envision a uniquely queer world unmoored by heteronormative influence. This stylization evokes the memory of a queer history that once approximated such a prospect. With this historical and political context in mind, this paper utilizes formal analysis to assess how the film frames queer sexual encounters as tender acts of care, sometimes literally mending physical wounds. However, Equation to Unknown also highlights the transience of these sexual exchanges. By emphasizing the homogeneity of the protagonist’s sexual conquests, the film reveals that these practices have a darker meaning when the men reject the individualized connection to pursue purely visceral gratification. Given the lack of diversity or even recognizable identifying factors, the men become more anonymous to each other the more they pair up. Ultimately, Equation to an Unknown both celebrates and problematizes its vision of a queer utopia, highlighting areas in the community wherein intimacy and care flourish and locating those spots in which they are neglected.

Keywords: pornography studies, queer cinema, French cinema, history

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Authors: Fenni Sim

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Background: The application of systemic family therapy approaches to community health cases have not gathered traction. In National Kidney Foundation, Singapore, the belief is that community support has great potential in helping End Stage Renal Failure (ESRF) patients manage the demands of their treatment regime, whether Hemodialysis (HD) or Peritoneal Dialysis(PD) and sustain them on the treatment. However, the current community support does not include family interventions and is largely nursing based. Although nursing support is well provided to patients, and their family members in issues related to treatment and compliance, complex family issues and dynamics arising from caregiver strain or pre-dialysis relationship strain might deter efforts in managing the challenges of the treatment. Objective: The objective of the study is to understand the potential scope of work provided by a social worker who is trained in systemic family therapy and the effects of these interventions. Methodology: 3 families on HD and 3 families on PD who have been receiving family intervention for the past 6 months would be chosen for the study. A qualitative interview would be conducted to review the effectiveness for the family. Scales such as SCORE-15, PHQ-9, and Zarit Burden were used to measure family functioning, depression, and caregiver’s burden for the families. Results: The research is still in preliminary phase. Conclusion: The study highlights the importance of family intervention for families with multiple stressors on different treatment modalities who might have different needs and challenges. Nursing support needs to be complemented with family-based support to manage complex family issues in order to achieve better health outcomes and improved family coping.

Keywords: complementing nursing support, end stage renal failure, healthcare, systemic approaches

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Authors: Vicent Lwanga

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Background: Elderly Widows Orphans Family Support, a Community Based Organization operating in Kapchorwa with the main focus of reducing economic and social vulnerability among children affected by HIV/AIDS. The survey on reducing vulnerability targeted HIV/AIDS affected households, which included 111 adults and 185 children. The broad objective of the study was to determine how the needs of the children affected by HIV/AIDS could be appropriately met by specifically examining the situation of children affected by HIV/AIDS and establishing their needs. Methodology: The survey applied a structured questionnaire. Parents whose consent for the interview of the children had been obtained then communicated to the selected child/children. If the child consented, an arrangement for the interview was made as regards the time and place of the interview. Lessons: Adult respondents included 22.2% males and 77.8% females. Child respondents were males, 49.5%, and females 50.5%. The majority of the households are from lower economic strata. 74.1% and 63.0% of males and females, respectively, indicated that their illness had affected their income-earning activities; some of the adults have lost their jobs due to AIDS. A fair number of the children are engaged in economic activity: some of those still in school worked after school for wages and looked after their siblings. The income earned was spent mostly on household needs and school fees — one-fifth of children linked parents` inability to do more of what they desired to their ill-health. Elderly Widows Orphans Family Support secured sponsors to educate 22 girls and 16 boys in the community. Income-generating projects like piggery and skill training are given to orphans. The specific vulnerability of HIV/AIDS orphan's needs is responded to now more than ever. Community organisations interventions such as financial support to orphans introduced to moderate the impact of the disease on orphans and families.

Keywords: aids, children, needs, vulnerability

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Authors: Yoshihiro Horio

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Many young offenders grow up in difficult environments. It has often been suggested that many young offenders are victims of abuse. However, there were restricted to abuse or family’s problem. Little research has examined data on ‘multiple victimization’ experiences of young offenders. Thus, this study investigated the victimization experiences of young offenders, including child abuse at home, bullying at school, and crime in the community. Specifically, the number of victimization experiences of young offenders was compared with those of non-delinquents at home, school, and in the community. It was found that young offenders experienced significantly more victimization than non-delinquents. Additionally, the influence of childhood victimization on later misconduct and/or delinquency was examined, then it was founded that victimization experiences to be a risk factor for subsequent delinquency. The hierarchical multiple regression analysis showed that young offenders who had a strong emotional reaction to their experience of abuse began their misconduct at an earlier age. If juveniles start their misconduct early, the degree of delinquency will increase. The anger of young offenders was stronger than that of non-delinquents. A strong emotion of anger may be related to juvenile delinquency.

Keywords: abuse, bullying, delinquency, victimization, young offenders

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Authors: Mukhtar Sarkin-Kebbi

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Insurgency, religious extremism and other related religious crises become hydra-headed in Nigeria, which caused destruction of human lives and properties worth of billions naira. As result, millions people were displaced and million children were out of school most of whom from Muslims community. The wrong teaching and misinterpretation of Islam by some Muslim community fuel the spread of extremist ideology hatred among Muslim sects, non-Muslims and emergency of extremist groups, like Boko Haram. A multi-religious country like Nigeria to realise its development in all human aspects, there must be unity and religious tolerance. Many agreed that changing the ideologies of insurgents and religious extremism will require intellectual role with vigorous campaign. Muslim scholars can play a vital role in promoting social reform and peaceful coexistence. This paper discusses the importance of unity among Muslim community and religious tolerance in light of the Qur’an and the Hadith. The paper also reviews the relationship between Muslims and non Muslims during the life time the Prophet (S.A.W.) in order to serve as exemplary model. Contemporary issues such as religious extremism, sectarians, intolerance and their consequences were examined. To minify religious intolerance and extremism,the paper identifies the roles to be played by Muslim scholars with references from Qur’an and Sunnah. The paper concludes that to realise overall human development and eternal salvation, Muslim should shun away from any religious crises and embrace unity and religious tolerance. Finally the paper recommends among others that only pious and learned scholars should be allowed to preach in any religious gathering, Muslim should exercise patience, tolerance in dealing with Muslims and non Muslims. Muslims should leave by example from the teaching of Qur’an and Sunnah of the Prophet (S.A.W.).

Keywords: Muslim scholars, peace building, religious extremism, religious tolerance

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Authors: Vicent Lwanga

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Issue: Communication between parent and child is important and necessary. Poor parenting and lack of openness and communication between parents and their children contribute to the increasing rate of HIV infection among young persons between the ages of 10-25. The young person, when left on their own are at the risk of misinformation from peers and from other sources. Description: Parent-Child Communication (PCC) was designed as a key component of a community-based HIV and AIDS intervention focused on young persons by Elderly Widows Orphans Family Support Organisation. Findings from the preliminary community-level process indicated that the lack of parent-child communication militates against young persons adopting and maintaining healthier sexual behaviors. An integrated youth strategy consisting of youth Peer Education/Facilitation and PCC was used to bridge this gap. The process involved an interactive parent-child forum, which allowed parents and children to meet and have open and frank discussions on the needs of young persons and the role of parents. This forum addressed all emerging issues from all parties and created better cordiality amongst them. Lessons Learnt: When young people feel unconnected to their parents, family, or home, they may become involved in activities that put their health at risk. Equally, when parents affirm the value of their children through open interaction, children are more likely to develop positive and healthy attitudes about themselves. Creating the opportunity for this interactive forum is paramount in any intervention program focused on young persons. Conclusion: HIV and AIDS-related programmes, especially those focusing on youth, should have PCC as an integral, essential component. Parents should be vehicles for information dissemination and need to be equipped with the capacity and skills to take on the onerous task of talking sexual reproductive health and sexuality with their children and wards.

Keywords: aids, communication, HIV, youth

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