Quality of life: Conceptual challenges in exploring the role of ICT in active ageing

The chapter aims to examine the definitional challenges associated with the term quality of life, measurement challenges, the challenges associated with enhancing quality of life, and the role of information and communication technologies (ICT) in quality of life in old age, and finally comments on the challenges of a modern information society for older people. The term quality of life started as a social scientific index of the relative well-being of whole populations, i.e. the state of states. Nowadays quality of life is more likely to be viewed as an individualized aspect of the modern psyche. This shift in conceptualization is problematic in that, if quality of life is individualized, it cannot be meaningful to assess it in the same way for everyone. Nevertheless, over the years a vast range of methods of measuring quality of life has emerged, leading to several measurement challenges. Wealth, health and social relations have all been found to be prime determinants of subjective quality of life; for ICT to enhance quality of life for older people they need to mediate the relationships between these three important factors and quality of life. To date there is relatively little evidence that ICT has improved the quality of life of older people. Suggestions are made as to why ICT is unlikely to influence life quality for older citizens. The chapter is drawn to a close by asking if quality of life is a meaningless term and if the future is bleak for old people in a modern information society. The answer to both questions is no

REVIEW OF YASHTIMADHU ON MENTAL HEALTH W.S.R TO MEDHYA RASAYANA

Ayurveda lays stress on various measures to be adopted in order to promote mental health and to prevent mental disorders through Sadvritta, Dincharya, Ritucharya, Vegavidharana and Rasayana. Yashtimadhu Churana (powder of Glycyrrhiza Glabra with milk) is one among four Medhyarasayana mentioned in Charak Chikitsa. Generally most of the Rasayana are micro-molecular nutrients having Balya, Medhya, Agnivardhaka, Ojovardhaka and Vayasthapana properties and had been also proven the pharmacological properties like immunomodulator, adaptogenic, anti-stress, anti-anxiety, anti-depressant, anti-oxidant and nutrient tonic. Mandukparni Swarasa (juice of Centella asiatica), Yashtimadhu Churana (powder of Glycyrrhiza Glabra with milk), Guduchi Swarasa (juice of Tinospora cordifolia) and Kalka (paste) of Shankhapushpi Moola and Phala (root-fruit of Convolvulus pluricaulis) are mentioned as Medhyarasayana. Rasayana nourishes each and every cell of the body and hence contributes to the integrity and replenishment of Saptadhatus. Also it helps in the promotion of memory and intelligence, provide immunity against disease and maintain optimum strength of body and mind

AGE’s Influence on Workplace Safety

According to the National Safety Council (NSC, n.d.), the total cost of work injuries in 2019 was an estimated $171 billion. This estimate includes wage and productivity losses, medical expenses, administrative expenses and employers’ uninsured costs. In that same year, an estimated 105 million workdays were lost due to injuries (NSC, n.d.). This report does not provide any specific details or any characteristics about the injured. However, knowledge of certain characteristics of the injured such as age can be critical information. This type of information could be useful in the development of workplace hazard prevention and mitigation programs

Effect of Virtual Reality Exercises on the Cognitive Status and Dual Motor Task Performance of the Aging Population

Aging is a global phenomenon affecting numerous developed and developing countries. During this process, the functional state of the body, especially the cognitive state, declines. This research investigated the impact of virtual reality exercises on the cognitive status and dual-task performance in the elderly of Tabriz city, Iran. Forty men with a mean age of 71.5 were selected and assigned to either the experimental (n = 20) or control groups (n = 20). Both groups completed the Mini-Mental State Examination for cognitive status. The pre-test was performed through the Timed Up and Go test (TUG) along with a countdown of numbers. Then, the experimental group practiced virtual driving for six weeks, while the control group received no treatment. After the treatment, both groups completed the post-test. At each stage, the test was performed as a dual motor task as well. Data were analyzed using the paired t-test and the independent sample t-test to show the intra-group and inter-group differences, respectively. The results showed a significant improvement in the cognitive status and dual-task performance of the elderly men after the six-week training period, which was also significant compared to the control group. Virtual reality driving can be used to improve the cognitive status and dual task performance of elderly men

FPGA Processor In Memory Architectures (PIMs): Overlay or Overhaul ?

The dominance of machine learning and the ending of Moore's law have renewed interests in Processor in Memory (PIM) architectures. This interest has produced several recent proposals to modify an FPGA's BRAM architecture to form a next-generation PIM reconfigurable fabric. PIM architectures can also be realized within today's FPGAs as overlays without the need to modify the underlying FPGA architecture. To date, there has been no study to understand the comparative advantages of the two approaches. In this paper, we present a study that explores the comparative advantages between two proposed custom architectures and a PIM overlay running on a commodity FPGA. We created PiCaSO, a Processor in/near Memory Scalable and Fast Overlay architecture as a representative PIM overlay. The results of this study show that the PiCaSO overlay achieves up to 80% of the peak throughput of the custom designs with 2.56x shorter latency and 25% - 43% better BRAM memory utilization efficiency. We then show how several key features of the PiCaSO overlay can be integrated into the custom PIM designs to further improve their throughput by 18%, latency by 19.5%, and memory efficiency by 6.2%.Comment: Accepted in 2023 33rd International Conference on Field-Programmable Logic and Applications (FPL

Implementation and Evaluation of Deep Neural Networks in Commercially Available Processing in Memory Hardware

Deep Neural Networks (DNN), specifically Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) are often associated with a large number of data-parallel computations. Therefore, data-centric computing paradigms, such as Processing in Memory (PIM), are being widely explored for CNN acceleration applications. A recent PIM architecture, developed and commercialized by the UPMEM company, has demonstrated impressive performance boost over traditional CPU-based systems for a wide range of data parallel applications. However, the application domain of CNN acceleration is yet to be explored on this PIM platform. In this work, successful implementations of CNNs on the UPMEM PIM system are presented. Furthermore, multiple operation mapping schemes with different optimization goals are explored. Based on the data achieved from the physical implementation of the CNNs on the UPMEM system, key-takeaways for future implementations and further UPMEM improvements are presented. Finally, to compare UPMEM’s performance with other PIMs, a model is proposed that is capable of producing estimated performance results of PIMs given architectural parameters. The creation and usage of the model is covered in this work

The Journey through Perspective Transformation: Learning Nursing Theory

Through the use of grounded theory, educational methods most useful for nurses to achieve a perspective transformation, as exemplified by learning nursing theory were examined. Perspective transformation is a theory originally developed by Mezirow (1978) in a study of older women returning to college for additional education. Mezirow defined perspective transformation as the alteration or change of meaning perspectives. Perspective transformation in an individual can be compared to a paradigm change within a scientific community. Within the nursing literature on perspective transformation, most articles related to the perspective transformation needed for nurses to learn to use nursing theory as the framework for patient care. Little has been written on how nurses learn nursing theory, none found from the perspective of the learner. The experiences of 21 working nurses who had made a perspective transformation by learning nursing theory and practicing within a nursing theoretical framework were examined. One hour interviews were taped and transcribed. Data were coded using Level 1 open coding, Level 2 axial coding, and Level 3 selective coding. Study findings indicated that nurses achieving perspective transformation go through three nonlinear stages: (a) becoming aware, (b) developing meaning, and (c) perspective transformation. Those evolving beyond perspective transformation to self-actualization go through a fourth stage. During this stage, they combined theoretical models to create a personal nursing model for patient care. Nursing needs to operate within its own theoretical base. Nursing theory helps describe, explain, predict, or prescribe the phenomenon that are the reality of nursing. This study is important because it examined the most useful methods to help nurses learn nursing theory, incorporate theory into practice, and achieve perspective transformation. Future research studies should continue to pursue: (a) how to help nurses learn to incorporate nursing theoretical models into practice, (b) how to encourage organizational support of nursing theoretical frameworks, (c) satisfaction of patients cared for within the framework of nursing theoretical models, (d) the improvement of patient care through the use of nursing theory in practice, and (e) the professional growth of nurses practicing through the use of nursing theoretical frameworks

Problem-Based Learning to improve the speaking skill in EFL

The following research aims to determine the improvements that can be obtained thanks to the application of the PBL (Problem-Based Learning) methodology, in addition to identifying the impact it generates on speech skills in students at level A1 of the English proficiency program belonging to the Technical University of Cotopaxi Extension "La Maná" where different difficulties have constantly been presented in the language teaching-learning process. One of the most notorious problems during English classes is the low participation in classes, in addition to the lack of interest and fear that students present, so the implementation of the PBL Methodology is sought, accompanied by tools such as surveys to determine the effectiveness of itself. After applying a pre-test online and after having analyzed the results, an understanding is reached of a significant incidence both in errors that occur in the grammatical structure, such as the lack of a basic and necessary vocabulary for the assigned level and also the level necessary to improve pronunciation. This research has a quantitative-qualitative, quasi-experimental, descriptive and explanatory approach with deductive, synthetic and analytic methods. The teacher has the responsibility of applying an appropriate methodology for the group of students, otherwise the teaching-learning process will not be carried out correctly, based on this premise, the proposal of a brochure with 5 units is presented where the methodology of PBL (Learning Based in Problems) and later, after having obtained results, they will be compared with the results previously acquired through the Pre-test. If an improvement in their speech skills is determined, thus improving the problems raised, it can be assumed that students will be able to cope in different situations of daily and professional life with a meaningful learning and a large vocabulary.La siguiente investigación tiene como objetivo determinar las mejoras que se pueden obtener gracias a la aplicación de la metodología ABP (Aprendizaje Basado en Problemas), además de identificar el efecto que genera en las habilidades del habla en los estudiantes del nivel A1 del programa de suficiencia de inglés perteneciente a la Universidad Técnica de Extensión Cotopaxi 'La Maná' donde constantemente se han presentado diferentes dificultades en el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje de idiomas. Uno de los problemas más notorios durante las clases de inglés es la baja participación en la impartición de la materia, además de la falta de interés y miedo que presentan los estudiantes, por lo que se busca la implementación de la Metodología ABP, acompañada de herramientas como encuestas para determinar la efectividad de la misma. Tras aplicar un pre-test online y tras haber analizado los resultados, se llega a comprender una incidencia significativa tanto en los errores que se producen en la estructura gramatical, como en la falta de un vocabulario básico y necesario para el nivel asignado y también el nivel necesario para mejorar la pronunciación. Esta investigación tiene un enfoque cuantitativo-cualitativo, cuasi-experimental, descriptivo y exploratorio con métodos deductivos e inductivo, sintético y analítico. El docente tiene la responsabilidad de aplicar una metodología apropiada para el grupo de estudiantes caso contrario el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje no será llevado a cabo correctamente, en base a esta premisa, se presenta la propuesta de un folleto con 5 unidades donde se presenta la metodología de PBL (Aprendizaje Basado en Problemas) y posteriormente, una vez obtenidos los resultados, se compararán con los obtenidos previamente a través del Pre-test. Si se determina una mejora en las habilidades del habla, mejorando así los problemas planteados, se puede suponer que los estudiantes serán capaces de afrontar diferentes situaciones de la vida diaria y profesional con un aprendizaje significativo y un amplio vocabulari