Stop Detection in Smartphone-based Travel Surveys

Future Mobility Sensing (FMS) is a smartphone-based travel survey system that employs a web-based prompted-recall interaction to correct automatically inferred information. A key component of FMS is a stop detection algorithm that derives the users' activity locations and times based on the raw data collected by their phones. Output of this algorithm is presented in the Activity Diary for the users to validate, and its accuracy has a significant impact on user burden. In this paper, we present FMS' stop detection algorithm and its performance during testing by volunteers and public users during a large-scale field test

Use of drug therapy in the management of symptomatic ureteric stones in hospitalized adults (SUSPEND), a multicentre, placebo-controlled, randomized trial of a calcium-channel blocker (nifedipine) and an α-blocker (tamsulosin) : study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Bridges Structural Health Monitoring and Deterioration Detection Synthesis of Knowledge and Technology

INE/AUTC 10.0

Innovation through Wearable Sensors to Collect Real-Life Data among Pediatric Patients with Cardiometabolic Risk Factors

Background. While increasing evidence links environments to health behavior, clinicians lack information about patients’ physical activity levels and lifestyle environments. We present mobile health tools to collect and use spatio-behavioural lifestyle data for personalized physical activity plans in clinical settings. Methods. The Dyn@mo lifestyle intervention was developed at the Sainte-Justine University Hospital Center to promote physical activity and reduce sedentary time among children with cardiometabolic risk factors. Mobility, physical activity, and heart rate were measured in free-living environments during seven days. Algorithms processed data to generate spatio-behavioural indicators that fed a web-based interactive mapping application for personalised counseling. Proof of concept and tools are presented using data collected among the first 37 participants recruited in 2011. Results. Valid accelerometer data was available for 5.6 (SD=1.62) days in average, heart rate data for 6.5 days, and GPS data was available for 6.1 (2.1) days. Spatio-behavioural indicators were shared between patients, parents, and practitioners to support counseling. Conclusion. Use of wearable sensors along with data treatment algorithms and visualisation tools allow to better measure and describe real-life environments, mobility, physical activity, and physiological responses. Increased specificity in lifestyle interventions opens new avenues for remote patient monitoring and intervention

Whose Line Is It Anyway? Probable Cause and Historical Cell Site Data

This Note argues that the “specific and articulable facts” standard does not accord with the intent of the drafters of the Fourth Amendment to protect individuals’ reasonable expectation of privacy. Although allowing the government access to historical cell site data to use as evidence in a criminal proceeding aids law enforcement, legislators must recognize the risks that flow from allowing the government to retrieve cell phone location information without probable cause. At least one study suggests that the public is losing confidence in their ability to control personal information, ultimately creating public discomfort with and suspicion of government surveillance. If Congress declines to amend the statute, the idea of a “big brother” government watching its people may disturb the sensibilities of the public. In 2012, cell phone providers responded to over 1.1 million federal, state, and local law enforcement requests for cell phone records, with the public largely remaining unaware of the volume of these requests. Part I presents the Supreme Court’s Fourth Amendment jurisprudence regarding this issue, while Part II highlights the analytical problems the circuit courts have faced in attempting to reconcile Supreme Court decisions in order to decide historical cell site data cases. Finally, Part III presents potential resolutions of the proper standard for historical cell site data retrieval and urges Congress to reexamine the SCA’s “specific and articulable facts” standard to better comport with society’s privacy expectations

Hybrid Satellite-Terrestrial Communication Networks for the Maritime Internet of Things: Key Technologies, Opportunities, and Challenges

With the rapid development of marine activities, there has been an increasing number of maritime mobile terminals, as well as a growing demand for high-speed and ultra-reliable maritime communications to keep them connected. Traditionally, the maritime Internet of Things (IoT) is enabled by maritime satellites. However, satellites are seriously restricted by their high latency and relatively low data rate. As an alternative, shore & island-based base stations (BSs) can be built to extend the coverage of terrestrial networks using fourth-generation (4G), fifth-generation (5G), and beyond 5G services. Unmanned aerial vehicles can also be exploited to serve as aerial maritime BSs. Despite of all these approaches, there are still open issues for an efficient maritime communication network (MCN). For example, due to the complicated electromagnetic propagation environment, the limited geometrically available BS sites, and rigorous service demands from mission-critical applications, conventional communication and networking theories and methods should be tailored for maritime scenarios. Towards this end, we provide a survey on the demand for maritime communications, the state-of-the-art MCNs, and key technologies for enhancing transmission efficiency, extending network coverage, and provisioning maritime-specific services. Future challenges in developing an environment-aware, service-driven, and integrated satellite-air-ground MCN to be smart enough to utilize external auxiliary information, e.g., sea state and atmosphere conditions, are also discussed

Do the omeprazole family compounds exert a protective effect against influenza-like illness?

BACKGROUND: Infections by influenza viruses place a heavy burden on public health and economies worldwide. Although vaccines are the best weapons against influenza, antiviral drugs could offer an opportunity to alleviate the burden of influenza. Since omeprazole family compounds block the “proton pump”, we hypothesized that they could interfere with the mechanism of fusion of the virus envelope and endosomal membrane, thereby hindering the M2 proton pump mechanism of influenza viruses. METHODS: A matched case-control study was performed in 2010-2011 in Italy. Cases were subjects aged over 18 years with a diagnosis of Influenza-like Illness (ILI); 254 case-control pairs were recruited. A multivariable conditional logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association between the prevention of ILI and the administration of omeprazole family compounds. The interaction between omeprazole family compounds and influenza vaccination was also examined. RESULTS: After control for potential confounders, subjects treated with omeprazole family compounds displayed a lower risk of catching ILI (OR(adj) = 0.29, 95% CI: 0.15-0.52). The risk of ILI in unvaccinated non-OFC users was about six times than that in vaccinated OFC users. CONCLUSIONS: Although confirmation is necessary, these results suggest that omeprazole family compounds could be profitably used in the prevention of ILI