Infrared thermal imaging in affective neuroscience: insights to the self from the peripheral nervous system.

Changes in peripheral physiology lay in the unconscious and occur as a response to external challenges, whether is to fight a virus (e.g. fever) a predator (e.g Fight or Flight) or even to face a social challenge. Autonomic adaptation carries its own physiological print and by harnessing the power given by homeostatic balance, distinctions can be made between arousal and parasympathetic restoration. Conventional physiological methods restrict the way in which experimental designs can be performed. Functional Infrared Thermal Imaging (fITI) provides an alternative for physiological monitoring that enables experimental paradigms that resemble real life situations. With the use of thermal imaging the following studies were set to examine self-conscious emotions in a naturalistic experimental setting while advancing methodologically the technique of fITI. In the following chapters the potentialities and limits of fITI are illustrated (Chapter 2) and three studies are presented where fITI has been applied to investigate the autonomic signature of guilt in children (Chapter 3); the facial imprints of autonomic contagion in mother and child (Chapter 4); the role of social proximity and gaze in modulating facial temperature (Chapter 5). FITI has managed to reliably and systematically collect physiological thermal changes between affective states illustrating a new pathway for contact-free autonomic monitoring in the arena of self-conscious emotions

Face modeling for face recognition in the wild.

Face understanding is considered one of the most important topics in computer vision field since the face is a rich source of information in social interaction. Not only does the face provide information about the identity of people, but also of their membership in broad demographic categories (including sex, race, and age), and about their current emotional state. Facial landmarks extraction is the corner stone in the success of different facial analyses and understanding applications. In this dissertation, a novel facial modeling is designed for facial landmarks detection in unconstrained real life environment from different image modalities including infra-red and visible images. In the proposed facial landmarks detector, a part based model is incorporated with holistic face information. In the part based model, the face is modeled by the appearance of different face part(e.g., right eye, left eye, left eyebrow, nose, mouth) and their geometric relation. The appearance is described by a novel feature referred to as pixel difference feature. This representation is three times faster than the state-of-art in feature representation. On the other hand, to model the geometric relation between the face parts, the complex Bingham distribution is adapted from the statistical community into computer vision for modeling the geometric relationship between the facial elements. The global information is incorporated with the local part model using a regression model. The model results outperform the state-of-art in detecting facial landmarks. The proposed facial landmark detector is tested in two computer vision problems: boosting the performance of face detectors by rejecting pseudo faces and camera steering in multi-camera network. To highlight the applicability of the proposed model for different image modalities, it has been studied in two face understanding applications which are face recognition from visible images and physiological measurements for autistic individuals from thermal images. Recognizing identities from faces under different poses, expressions and lighting conditions from a complex background is an still unsolved problem even with accurate detection of landmark. Therefore, a learning similarity measure is proposed. The proposed measure responds only to the difference in identities and filter illuminations and pose variations. similarity measure makes use of statistical inference in the image plane. Additionally, the pose challenge is tackled by two new approaches: assigning different weights for different face part based on their visibility in image plane at different pose angles and synthesizing virtual facial images for each subject at different poses from single frontal image. The proposed framework is demonstrated to be competitive with top performing state-of-art methods which is evaluated on standard benchmarks in face recognition in the wild. The other framework for the face understanding application, which is a physiological measures for autistic individual from infra-red images. In this framework, accurate detecting and tracking Superficial Temporal Arteria (STA) while the subject is moving, playing, and interacting in social communication is a must. It is very challenging to track and detect STA since the appearance of the STA region changes over time and it is not discriminative enough from other areas in face region. A novel concept in detection, called supporter collaboration, is introduced. In support collaboration, the STA is detected and tracked with the help of face landmarks and geometric constraint. This research advanced the field of the emotion recognition

Fuzzy Modelling of Human Psycho-Physiological State and Fuzzy Adaptive Control of Automation in Human-Machine Interface

This research aims at proposing a new modelling and control framework that monitors the human operators' psychophysiological state in the human-machine interface to prevent performance breakdown. This research started with the exploration of new psychophysiological state assessment approaches to the adaptive modelling and control method for predicting human task performance and balancing the engagement of the human operator and the automatic system. The results of this research may also be further applied in developing advanced control mechanisms, investigating the origins of human compromised performance and identifying or even remedying operators' breakdown in the early stages of operation, at least. A summary of the current human psychophysiological studies, previous human-machine interface simulation and existing biomarkers for human psychophysiological state assessment was provided for simulation experiment design of this research. The use of newly developed facial temperature biomarkers for assessing the human psychophysiological state and the task performance was investigated. The research continued by exploring the uncertainty of the human-machine interface system through the use of the complex fuzzy logic based offline modelling approach. A new type-2 fuzzy-based modelling approach was then proposed to assess the human operators' psychophysiological states in the real-time human-machine interface. This new modelling technique integrated state tracking and type-2 fuzzy sets for updating the rule base with a Bayesian process. Finally, this research included a new type-2 fuzzy logic-based control algorithm for balancing the human-machine interface systems via adjusting the engagement of the human operators according to their psychophysiological state and task performance. This innovative control approach combined the state estimation of the human operator with the type-2 fuzzy sets to maintain the balance between the task requirements (i.e. difficulty level) and the human operator feasible effort (i.e. psychophysiological states). In addition, the research revealed the impacts of multi-tasking and general fatigue on human operator's performance

Efeitos imediatos da manipulação vertebral de alta velocidade e baixa amplitude em parâmetros térmicos e cardiovasculares

Mestrado em Fisioterapia, ramo de Fisioterapia DesportivaIntrodução: As técnicas manipulativas vertebrais aplicadas pela fisioterapia sobre as limitações funcionais geram efeitos biomecânicos interferindo na mobilidade vertebral. Apesar de existirem estudos mostrando influencias destas técnicas sobre o Sistema Nervoso Autônomo, os efeitos imediatos da técnica de manipulação vertebral sobre sinas autonômicos não são claros. O objetivo desta investigação foi verificar o efeito imediato da aplicação de técnica manipulativa vertebral de alta velocidade e baixa amplitude na resposta do sistema nervoso autônomo pela leitura termográfica da temperatura da pele da face, controle de frequência cardíaca, pressão arterial sistêmica e temperatura corporal. Metodologia: Participaram no estudo 15 indivíduos, atletas praticantes de vôlei de praia, que apresentavam quadro de dor cervical baixa e ou torácica alta. Os atletas Grupo Controle foram submetidos a coleta de temperatura corporal, frequência cardíaca, Termografia de face (olhos e nariz), temperatura corporal e pressão arterial sistêmica um minuto antes de uma técnica simulada, um minuto, cinco e oito minuto minutos após a simulação. O semelhante grupo, agora chamado Grupo Experimental foi submetido a aplicação de uma técnica de manipulação vertebral de alta velocidade e baixa amplitude no segmento vertebral compreendido no intervalo vertebral entre a sétima vertebra cervical e a quarta vertebra torácica (C7 e T4) e repetidas as medidas nos semelhantes tempos após. Principais Resultados: A amostra não apresentou homogeneidade para o Índice de Massa Corporal (IMC) (p= 0,033). A temperatura para o olho direito durante os oito minutos da técnica simulada apresentou diminuição (p = 0,041), significante para comparação entre 1 minuto antes do teste e o 8 minutos após o teste simulado (p = 0,028). A temperatura para o nariz durante 8 minutos da técnica experimental apresentou aumento (p = 0,033), significante para comparação entre 1 minuto antes do teste e o 8 minutos após o teste simulado (p = 0,028). A Temperatura Corporal (TC), para o GE, durante 8 minutos após o teste simulado houve diminuição (p = 0,001), significante na comparação entre 1 minuto e 8 minutos (p = 0,001). A Frequência Cardíaca (FC) no GC relacionando os 8 minutos do teste houve diminuição (p = 0,003), significante para a comparação entre o 1 minuto e 8 minutos (p = 0,011). A FC para GE quando relacionando os 8 minutos após a técnica apresentou diminuição (p = 0,00), significante para comparação entre 1 minuto e 8 minutos (p = 0,00). Conclusões: A técnica de fisioterapia manipulativa de não gerou alteração autonômica nos olhos dos atletas. A temperatura do nariz gerou mudança autonômica para aumento do padrão parassimpático. A temperatura corporal e pressão arterial sistêmica não apresentaram alteração mediante a técnica manipulativa. Por não gerar um efeito significativo nos parâmetros de expressividade autonômica em 8 minutos após a aplicação da técnica de manipulação, esta não promove um efeito imediato sobre o sistema nervo autônomo.Introduction: The manipulative techniques of the vertebrae applied by physiotherapy on the limitations inherent to the effects generate biomechanical effects interfering with vertebral mobility. Although there are studies showing technical influences on the Autonomic Nervous System, the immediate effects of the vertebral technique on autonomic signs are not clear. The objective of this investigation was to verify the immediate effect of applying a high-speed, low-amplitude vertebral manipulative technique on the response of the autonomic nervous system by thermographic reading of facial skin temperature, heart rate control, systemic blood pressure and body temperature. Methodology: Fifteen individuals participated in the study, beach volleyball athletes, who presented low neck pain and/or high chest pain. The Control Group athletes were submitted to the collection of body temperature, heart rate, face thermography (eyes and nose), body temperature and systemic blood pressure one minute before a simulated technique, one minute, five and eight minutes after the simulation. The similar group, now called the Experimental Group, was submitted to the application of a technique of vertebral manipulation of high speed and low amplitude in the vertebral segment comprised in the vertebral interval between the seventh cervical vertebra and the fourth thoracic vertebra (C7 and T4) and repeated the measurements in similar times after. Main Results: The sample was not homogeneous for the Body Mass Index (BMI) (p = 0.033). The temperature for the right eye during the eight minutes of the simulated technique showed a decrease (p = 0.041), which was significant for comparison between 1 minute before the test and 8 minutes after the simulated test (p = 0.028). The temperature for the nose during 8 minutes of the experimental technique showed an increase (p = 0.033), significant for comparison between 1 minute before the test and 8 minutes after the simulated test (p = 0.028). The Body Temperature (TC) for the EG, during 8 minutes after the simulated test, there was a decrease (p = 0.001), significant in the comparison between 1 minute and 8 minutes (p = 0.001). The Heart Rate (HR) in the CG relating the 8 minutes of the test decreased (p = 0.003), which was significant for the comparison between the 1 minute and 8 minutes (p = 0.011). The HR for EG when relating the 8 minutes after the technique showed a decrease (p = 0.00), which was significant for the comparison between 1 minute and 8 minutes (p = 0.00). Conclusions: The manipulative physiotherapy technique did not generate autonomic changes in the athletes' eyes. The nose temperature generated an autonomic change to increase the parasympathetic pattern. Body temperature and systemic blood pressure did not change using the manipulative technique. As it does not generate a significant effect on the autonomic expressiveness parameters within 8 minutes after the application of the manipulation technique, it does not have an immediate effect on the autonomic nervous system.N/

Pandemic Media: Preliminary Notes Toward an Inventory

With its unprecedented scale and consequences the COVID-19 pandemic has generated a variety of new configurations of media. Responding to demands for information, synchronization, regulation, and containment, these "pandemic media" reorder social interactions, spaces, and temporalities, thus contributing to a reconfiguration of media technologies and the cultures and polities with which they are entangled. Highlighting media’s adaptability, malleability, and scalability under the conditions of a pandemic, the contributions to this volume track and analyze how media emerge, operate, and change in response to the global crisis and provide elements toward an understanding of the post-pandemic world to come

Bridging the gap between emotion and joint action

Our daily human life is filled with a myriad of joint action moments, be it children playing, adults working together (i.e., team sports), or strangers navigating through a crowd. Joint action brings individuals (and embodiment of their emotions) together, in space and in time. Yet little is known about how individual emotions propagate through embodied presence in a group, and how joint action changes individual emotion. In fact, the multi-agent component is largely missing from neuroscience-based approaches to emotion, and reversely joint action research has not found a way yet to include emotion as one of the key parameters to model socio-motor interaction. In this review, we first identify the gap and then stockpile evidence showing strong entanglement between emotion and acting together from various branches of sciences. We propose an integrative approach to bridge the gap, highlight five research avenues to do so in behavioral neuroscience and digital sciences, and address some of the key challenges in the area faced by modern societies

The Fourth Amendment in the Twenty-First Century: Technology, Privacy, and Human Emotions

Police and local political officials in Tampa FL argued that the FaceIt system promotes safety, but privacy advocates objected to the city\u27s recording or utilizing facial images without the victims\u27 consent, some staging protests against the FaceIt system. Privacy objects seem to be far more widely shared than this small protest might suggest