Combining qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis methods in understanding multiple sclerosis fatigue management

Combining qualitative inquiry with quantitative frequency data in a mixed methods research approach was valuable in understanding the strategies that people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) used to manage their fatigue. Understanding its management is important because fatigue is often described by people with MS as their most disabling symptom and can pervade all aspects of a person’s life. This research aimed to identify how often people used particular fatigue management strategies and the factors that influenced their use in the context of daily life. The methodology was Qualitative Description with phenomenological overtones using convenience sampling, interviews with semi-structured and structured components, and frequencies combined with typology development. Thirty-one people with MS from Chicago, Ill and Brisbane, Queensland in Australia who experienced fatigue were interviewed and asked to sort 15 cards with common fatigue management strategies into 3 categories, indicating whether they used them regularly, sometimes or never. Frequency counts were used to identify the number of participants who placed a specific strategy in a particular category. Frequencies were used to develop a typology with which to code the qualitative data. The strategies placed most frequently in each category were: Plan / organize the day used regularly, Ask someone for help used sometimes, and Use mobility devices never used. Mixed methods research techniques enabled us to explore the participants’ fatigue management in greater depth. Each data type (i.e., qualitative and quantitative data) complemented the other and led to a richer understanding than either could provide in isolation

Pedestrian flow characteristics through bends: Effects of angle and desired speed

This study quantitatively described how the desired speed, which may reflect the emergency level, and the angle of bend affect the pedestrian flow by comparing fundamental diagrams derived from trajectory data collected through laboratory experiments. Results showed that the slow running (≈ 2.8 m/s speed) can increase the maximum flow through a bend by around 60 % compared to normal walking (≈ 1.4 m/s speed) regardless of the turning angle. Further, it was found that the turning angle of the bend has a stronger negative impact on the moving speed of crowds under running conditions. Compared to the turning angle, congestion level seemed to have a minor impact on the average moving speed through the bends. On the other hand, for 90° and 180° bends, the variations of the speed were observed to decrease with the increase of density which indicated that although congestion level deteriorated the flow conditions at bends, it homogenized the collective moving speed of pedestrians

ESTIMATION METHOD OF LEFT TURN LANE CAPACITY UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF PEDESTRIANS AND CROSSWALK LAYOUT AT SIGNALIZED CROSSWALKS

The left turn lane capacity is highly influenced by the presence of pedestrians under shared signal phasing.  Pedestrian crossing time can be highly influenced by pedestrian platoon maneuver under the influence of traffic signal settings, crosswalk length and bidirectional interactions of pedestrian, due to that left turning vehicles movement may be significantly affected. However, existing capacity estimation methods of left turn lanes did not consider those factors. In addition, the influence of crosswalk layout did not properly consider in the existing methods and researches. This study aims to propose a method to estimate the left turn lane capacity, considering the characteristics of crossing pedestrians and crosswalk layout variations. Waiting pedestrian presence-time is estimated by applying pedestrian presence probability model. In addition, the left turning vehicles discharge flow rate under different crosswalk layout and pedestrian demand condition are investigated and modeled. The left turn lane capacity estimation equation is proposed by characterizing the observed discharge flow rate of left turning vehicles under the influence of crossing pedestrians. It was found that the proposed capacity estimation method can represent the realistic influence of pedestrians and crosswalk layout on the left turn lane capacity at signalized crosswalks

Convergence Stability of Depth-Depth-Matching-Based Steepest Descent Method in Simulated Liver Surgery

We recently established that our digital potential function was globally stable at the point where a virtual liver coincided with its real counterpart. In particular, because three rotational degrees of freedom are frequently used in a surgical operation on a real liver, stability of the potential function concerning three rotational degrees of freedom was carefully verified in the laboratory, using fluorescent lamps and sunlight. We achieved the same stability for several simulated liver operations using a 3D printed viscoelastic liver in a surgical operating room equipped with two light-emitting diode shadowless lamps. As a result, with increasing number of lamps, stability of our depth-depth matching in the steepest descendent algorithm improved because the lamps did not emit an infrared spectrum such as the one emitted by our depth camera. Furthermore, the slower the angular velocity in a surgical sequence, the more overall stability improved

Modeling Trajectories and Trajectory Variation of Turning Vehicles at Signalized Intersections

© 2013 IEEE. Information on the trajectories of turning vehicles at signalized intersections can be used in numerous applications, such as movement planning of autonomous vehicles, realistic representation of surrounding vehicle movements in driving simulator and virtual reality applications, and in microscopic simulation tools. However, no proper framework is currently available to realistically model and estimate trajectories of turning vehicles reflecting the intersection geometries, which is critical for the reliability of simulation models. This study explores the applicability of the minimum-jerk principle, which has been initially applied in neuroscience and robotics domains, to model and simulate free-flow trajectories of turning vehicles. The modeling method is validated by comparing model outputs with empirical trajectories collected at several signalized intersections in Nagoya, Japan. The capability of the model in realistically capturing the variations in turning trajectories based on intersection geometry (e.g., intersection angle and turning radius) is also explained. Further, the applicability of the modeling framework at intersections with different geometric features under different speeds and accelerations are also discussed.This work was supported in part by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) under Grant 19H02261

女性がんサバイバーの心理的適応

The purpose of this study is to explore the psychological adjustments female cancer survivors undergo with respect to their femininity. Semi-structured interviews were performed with ２９ female cancer（breast or gynecologic cancer）survivors in their２０s to５０s. Qualitative descriptive study data was interpreted according to Krippendorff’s content analysis method. As a result, six categories were generated as psychological adjustments utilized by female cancer survivors from the viewpoint of femininity : “I like the way I am” ; “I am charming as a woman” ; “I live independently as a woman” ; “I am expanding my life as a woman” ; “I can feel connected with someone” ; and “I have graduated from pessimism.” These could be interpreted as psychological adaptations that reflect feminine emotions and reflect the strength and resilience of female cancer survivors. In order for female cancer survivors to adjust to living with cancer in a psychologically healthy way, it was suggested that nursing support was important to restore the feelings of the survivors from the perspective of these feminine characteristics

Five isoforms of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase regulatory subunit exhibit different associations with receptor tyrosine kinases and their tyrosine phosphorylations

AbstractThere are five isoforms of the regulatory subunit for the heterodimeric type of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase. These five regulatory subunit isoforms were overexpressed using an adenovirus transfection system, and their own tyrosine phosphorylations and associations with various tyrosine kinase receptors were investigated. When overexpressed in CHO-PDGFR cells, the associations of these regulatory subunit isoforms with the platelet-derived growth factor receptor were similar. However, when overexpressed in CHO-IR cells, p55γ exhibited a significantly lower ability to bind with IRS-1 upon insulin stimulation, as compared with other regulatory subunit isoforms. Furthermore, p55α and p55γ were found to be tyrosine-phosphorylated. Finally, interestingly, when overexpressed in CHO-EGFR cells or A431 cells and stimulated with epidermal growth factor (EGF), phosphorylated EGF receptor was detected in p85α, p85β and p50α immunoprecipitates, but not in p55α and p55γ immunoprecipitates. In addition, EGF-induced tyrosine phosphorylation was observed in p85α, p85β, p55α and p55γ, but not in p50α, immunoprecipitates. Thus, each regulatory subunit exhibits specific responses regarding both the association with tyrosine-phosphorylated substrates and its own tyrosine phosphorylation. These results suggest that each isoform possesses specific roles in signal transduction, based on its individual tyrosine kinase receptor