Provision of tailored health information for patient empowerment: An initial study

Search of “right” health information by patients/citizens is an important step towards their empowerment. The number of health information seekers on the Internet is steadily increasing over the years so it is crucial to understand their information needs and the challenges they face during the search process. However, generic search engines do not make any distinction among the users and overload them with the amount of information. Moreover, specific search engines/sites mostly work on medical literature and are built by hand. This paper analyses the possibility of providing the user with tailored web information by exploiting the web semantic capabilities and, in particular, those of schema.org and its health-lifesci extension. After presenting a short review of the main user requirements when searching for health information on the Internet, an analysis of schema.org and its health-lifesci extension is shown to understand the main properties and semantic capabilities in the health/medical domain. Finally, an initial mapping among user requirements and schema.org elements is presented in order to provide expert and non-expert user categories with web pages that satisfy their specific requirements

An Intelligent Empowering Agent (IEA) to Provide Easily Understood and Trusted Health Information Appropriate to the User Needs

Most members of the public, including patients, usually obtain health information from Web searches using generic search engines, which is often overwhelming, too generic, and of poor quality. Although patients may be better informed, they are often none the wiser and not empowered to communicate with medical professionals so that their care is compatible with their needs, values, and best interests. Intelligent Empowering Agents (IEA) use AI to filter medical information and assist the user in the understanding of health information about specific complaints or health in general. We have designed and developed a prototype of an IEA that dialogues with the user in simple language, collects health information from the Web, and provides tailored, easily understood, and trusted information. It empowers users to create their own comprehensive and objective opinion on health matters that concern them. This paper describes the IEA main characteristics and presents the results of subjective and objective tests carried out to assess the effectiveness of the IEA

Self-imaging effect in multimode waveguides with longitudinal periodicity

This paper deals with the self--imaging effect in multimode waveguides. Analogies and differences to the free--space case are shown. The fields in multimode waveguides are studied. Particularly, the behavior of the fields is examined, when aperiodic perturbation is introduced

Ultrasonic songs and stridulum anatomy of Asiophlugis crystal predatory katydids (Tettigonioidea: Meconematinae: Phlugidini)

The behavioural ecology of ultrasonic-singing katydids is not well understood, and the general bioacoustics, barely known for a few Neotropical Meconematinae, tends to be overlooked for species from Southeast Asia. These include Asiatic species of Phlugidini, commonly known as crystal predatory katydids. One of its genera, Asiophlugis consists of 16 species for which acoustic signals and stridulum anatomy are broadly unknown. These characters can be used to understand species boundaries. Here, we sampled Asiophlugis from five sites in Malay Peninsula and Borneo Island, recorded the acoustic signals of five species plus one subspecies using ultrasound sensitive equipment, and examined their stridulum anatomy. The calling songs of the taxa involved were documented for the first time. We found that the stridulum anatomy (e.g., tooth distributions, tooth length and tooth density) is distinct between species, but less so between subspecies. In contrary, songs of different taxa are different based on acoustic parameters (e.g., pulse duration, peak frequency) and descriptive patterns, even between the subspecies. We also did not observe that song signals are more different in sympatry than in allopatry. Whether this can be generalised requires further sampling, highlighting the need for more research on the ultrasonic acoustic communication in Asiatic katydids

Can it be harmful for parents to talk to their child about their weight? A meta-analysis

Many parents express concern that raising the issue of weight risks harming their child's physical self-perceptions and wellbeing. Such concerns can deter families from engaging with weight management services. This systematic review aimed to investigate the evidence behind these concerns by analysing the association between parent-child weight-talk and child wellbeing. A systematic search of eight databases identified four intervention studies and 38 associative studies. Meta-analysis was only possible for the associative studies; to facilitate more meaningful comparisons, weight-talk was categorized into four communication types and effect size estimates for the association between these and wellbeing indicators were calculated through a random effects model. Encouraging children to lose weight and criticizing weight were associated with poorer physical self-perceptions and greater dieting and dysfunctional eating (effect sizes: 0.20 to 0.47). Conversely, parental encouragement of healthy lifestyles without explicit reference to weight was associated with better wellbeing, but this was only measured in two studies. Of the four intervention studies, only one isolated the effects of parents' communication on wellbeing outcomes, reporting a positive effect. There was no effect of age on the strength of associations, but dysfunctional eating was more strongly associated with parent communication for girls than boys. The findings indicate that some forms of parent-child weight-talk are associated with poor wellbeing, but suggest that this is not inevitable. Encouraging healthy behaviours without reference to weight-control, and positive parental involvement in acknowledging and addressing weight-concern may avoid such outcomes. More longitudinal research is needed to analyse the direction of these effects

Transcriptome profiling of ontogeny in the acridid grasshopper Chorthippus biguttulus

Acridid grasshoppers (Orthoptera:Acrididae) are widely used model organisms for developmental, evolutionary, and neurobiological research. Although there has been recent influx of orthopteran transcriptomic resources, many use pooled ontogenetic stages obscuring information about changes in gene expression during development. Here we developed a de novo transcriptome spanning 7 stages in the life cycle of the acridid grasshopper Chorthippus biguttulus. Samples from different stages encompassing embryonic development through adults were used for transcriptomic profiling, revealing patterns of differential gene expression that highlight processes in the different life stages. These patterns were validated with semi-quantitative RT-PCR. Embryonic development showed a strongly differentiated expression pattern compared to all of the other stages and genes upregulated in this stage were involved in signaling, cellular differentiation, and organ development. Our study is one of the first to examine gene expression during post-embryonic development in a hemimetabolous insect and we found that only the fourth and fifth instars had clusters of genes upregulated during these stages. These genes are involved in various processes ranging from synthesis of biogenic amines to chitin binding. These observations indicate that post-embryonic ontogeny is not a continuous process and that some instars are differentiated. Finally, genes upregulated in the imago were generally involved in aging and immunity. Our study highlights the importance of looking at ontogeny as a whole and indicates promising directions for future research in orthopteran development

Preface paper to the Semi-Arid Land-Surface-Atmosphere (SALSA) Program special issue

The Semi-Arid Land-Surface-Atmosphere Program (SALSA) is a multi-agency, multi-national research effort that seeks to evaluate the consequences of natural and human-induced environmental change in semi-arid regions. The ultimate goal of SALSA is to advance scientific understanding of the semi-arid portion of the hydrosphere–biosphere interface in order to provide reliable information for environmental decision making. SALSA approaches this goal through a program of long-term, integrated observations, process research, modeling, assessment, and information management that is sustained by cooperation among scientists and information users. In this preface to the SALSA special issue, general program background information and the critical nature of semi-arid regions is presented. A brief description of the Upper San Pedro River Basin, the initial location for focused SALSA research follows. Several overarching research objectives under which much of the interdisciplinary research contained in the special issue was undertaken are discussed. Principal methods, primary research sites and data collection used by numerous investigators during 1997–1999 are then presented. Scientists from about 20 US, five European (four French and one Dutch), and three Mexican agencies and institutions have collaborated closely to make the research leading to this special issue a reality. The SALSA Program has served as a model of interagency cooperation by breaking new ground in the approach to large scale interdisciplinary science with relatively limited resources