Follow-up question handling in the IMIX and Ritel systems: A comparative study

One of the basic topics of question answering (QA) dialogue systems is how follow-up questions should be interpreted by a QA system. In this paper, we shall discuss our experience with the IMIX and Ritel systems, for both of which a follow-up question handling scheme has been developed, and corpora have been collected. These two systems are each other's opposites in many respects: IMIX is multimodal, non-factoid, black-box QA, while Ritel is speech, factoid, keyword-based QA. Nevertheless, we will show that they are quite comparable, and that it is fruitful to examine the similarities and differences. We shall look at how the systems are composed, and how real, non-expert, users interact with the systems. We shall also provide comparisons with systems from the literature where possible, and indicate where open issues lie and in what areas existing systems may be improved. We conclude that most systems have a common architecture with a set of common subtasks, in particular detecting follow-up questions and finding referents for them. We characterise these tasks using the typical techniques used for performing them, and data from our corpora. We also identify a special type of follow-up question, the discourse question, which is asked when the user is trying to understand an answer, and propose some basic methods for handling it

The effects of cognitive-motor training interventions on executive functions in older people: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Ageing is associated with physical and cognitive decline, affecting independence and quality of life in older people. Recent studies show that in particular executive functions are important for daily-life function and mobility. This systematic review investigated the effectiveness of cognitive-motor training including exergaming on executive function (EF, set-shifting, working memory, inhibitory control) in healthy older people. Methods: An electronic database search for randomised controlled trials (RCT), controlled clinical trials (CCT) and parallel group trials was performed using MEDLINE, EMBASE, and PsychINFO following PRISMA guidelines. Inclusion criteria were: (1) community-dwelling participants 60 years without a medical condition or medical treatment, (2) reporting at least one cognitive-motor intervention while standing or walking, (3) use of dual-task interventions using traditional methods or modern technology to deliver a cognitive-motor task, (4) inclusion of at least one cognitive outcome. The PEDro scale was used for quality assessment. Results: A total of 1557 studies were retrieved, of which 25 studies were included in this review. Eleven studies used a technology-based dual-task intervention, while 14 trials conducted a general cognitive-motor training. The age range of the cohort was 69 to 87 years. The interventions demonstrated positive effects on global cognitive function [mean difference 0.6, 95% CI 0.29-0.90] and inhibitory control [mean difference 0.61, 95% CI 0.28-0.94]. Effects were heterogeneous (I2 range: 60-95) and did not remain after a sensitivity analysis. Processing speed and dual-task costs also improved, but meta-analysis was not possible. Conclusion: Cognitive-motor and technology-based interventions had a positive impact on some cognitive functions. Dual-task interventions led to improvements of domains related global cognitive functions and inhibitory control. Likewise, technology-based exergame interventions improved functions related to processing speed, attentional and inhibitory control. Training interventions with a certain level of exercise load such as progression in difficulty and task specificity were more effective to gain task-related adaptations on cognitive functions

Possible relevance of pigeons as an indicator species for monitoring air pollution.

Wild city pigeons were caught at four different locations in the Netherlands to represent areas of high (Amsterdam-high), moderate (Amsterdam-medium), and low (Maastricht and Assen) traffic density. It is assumed that local ambient air pollution decreases as a function of traffic density. In these pigeons levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)-DNA adducts, oxidative DNA damage, and heavy metal residues were determined in kidney, lung, liver, and blood (no adduct analysis in blood). The contribution of leaded gasoline to total body lead content was estimated by measuring concentrations of Pb and its isotopes in blood. We also analyzed samples of ambient air particulate matter for PAH and heavy metal concentrations at the four different locations. Interregional differences in heavy metals in ambient air particulate matter were reflected relatively well by pigeon body loads. The higher lead and cadmium concentrations in blood, kidney, liver, and lung were found in the Amsterdam high traffic density area, followed by Amsterdam medium, Assen, and Maastricht. A high Pb concentration in blood coincided with relatively low 206Pb/207Pb values, indicating a high contribution of leaded gasoline to total blood Pb concentrations in pigeons from the Amsterdam high traffic density area. Significantly enhanced blood zinc values were found in pigeons from both locations in Amsterdam compared to pigeons from the other two areas. However, no differences in Zn tissue levels between the four different groups were found. Oxidative DNA damage, determined as the ratio of 7-Hydro-8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine/ deoxyguanosine, in pigeon liver was highest in Amsterdam-high, followed by Assen (low traffic density). Pb content, but not the Cd content, was positively associated with oxidative DNA damage in liver tissue. In lung tissue, a negative correlation was found between oxidative DNA damage and Zn content. These results indicate that the carcinogenic potential of Pb might be ascribed to oxygen radical formation, whereas Zn plays a protective role against oxidative DNA damage. Places with high and medium traffic density could be clearly discriminated on the basis of PAH levels in the ambient air. The PAH content in particulate air samples was not, however, reflected in total PAH-related DNA adduct levels because no differences could be observed in tissue adduct levels in pigeons from the four different locations. Our results indicate that wild city pigeons can be used as biological indicators of exposure to heavy metal pollution in outdoor air

Instrumented Assessment of Physical Activity Is Associated With Muscle Function but Not With Muscle Mass in a General Population

Objectives: Self-reported physical activity has shown to affect muscle-related parameters. As self-report is likely biased, this study aimed to assess the association between instrumented assessment of physical activity (I-PA) and muscle-related parameters in a general population. Method: Included were 156 young-to-middle-aged and 80 older community-dwelling adults. Seven days of trunk accelerometry (DynaPort MoveMonitor, McRoberts B.V.) quantified daily physical activity (i.e., active/inactive duration, number and mean duration of active/inactive periods, and number of steps per day). Muscle-related parameters included muscle mass, handgrip strength, and gait speed. Results: I-PA was associated with handgrip strength in young-to-middle-aged adults and with gait speed in older adults. I-PA was not associated with muscle mass in either age group. Discussion: The association between I-PA and muscle-related parameters was age dependent. The lack of an association between I-PA and muscle mass indicates the relevance of muscle function rather than muscle mass

DNA adducts in fish following an oil spill exposure

On 12 December 1999, one third of the load of the Erika tanker, amounting to about 10,000 t crude oil flowed into sea waters close to the French Atlantic Coast. This oil contained polycyclic aromatic compounds (PAC) that are known to be genotoxic. Genotoxic effects induce DNA adducts formation, which can thus be used as pollution biomarkers. Here, we assessed the genotoxic impact of the “Erika” oil spill by DNA adducts detection in the liver of immature fishes (Solea solea) from four locations of the French Brittany coasts. Two months after the spill, a high amount of DNA adducts was found in samples from all locations, amounting to 92–290 DNA adduct per 109 nucleotides. Then total DNA adduct levels decreased to reach about 50 adducts per 109 nucleotides nine months after the spill. In vitro experiments using human cell cultures and fish liver microsomes evidence the genotoxicity of the Erika fuel. They also prove the formation of reactive species able to create DNA adducts. Furthermore, in vitro and in vivo DNA adducts fingerprints are similar, thus confirming that DNA adducts are a result of the oil spill

Multiple PLDs Required for High Salinity and Water Deficit Tolerance in Plants

High salinity and drought have received much attention because they severely affect crop production worldwide. Analysis and comprehension of the plant's response to excessive salt and dehydration will aid in the development of stress-tolerant crop varieties. Signal transduction lies at the basis of the response to these stresses, and numerous signaling pathways have been implicated. Here, we provide further evidence for the involvement of phospholipase D (PLD) in the plant's response to high salinity and dehydration. A tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) α-class PLD, LePLDα1, is transcriptionally up-regulated and activated in cell suspension cultures treated with salt. Gene silencing revealed that this PLD is indeed involved in the salt-induced phosphatidic acid production, but not exclusively. Genetically modified tomato plants with reduced LePLDα1 protein levels did not reveal altered salt tolerance. In Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), both AtPLDα1 and AtPLDδ were found to be activated in response to salt stress. Moreover, pldα1 and pldδ single and double knock-out mutants exhibited enhanced sensitivity to high salinity stress in a plate assay. Furthermore, we show that both PLDs are activated upon dehydration and the knock-out mutants are hypersensitive to hyperosmotic stress, displaying strongly reduced growth

Design, development and deployment of a hand/wrist exoskeleton for home-based rehabilitation after stroke - SCRIPT project

YesChanges in world-wide population trends have provided new demands for new technologies in areas such as care and rehabilitation. Recent developments in the the field of robotics for neurorehabilitation have shown a range of evidence regarding usefulness of these technologies as a tool to augment traditional physiotherapy. Part of the appeal for these technologies is the possibility to place a rehabilitative tool in one’s home, providing a chance for more frequent and accessible technologies for empowering individuals to be in charge of their therapy. Objective: this manuscript introduces the Supervised Care and Rehabilitation Involving Personal Tele-robotics (SCRIPT) project. The main goal is to demonstrate design and development steps involved in a complex intervention, while examining feasibility of using an instrumented orthotic device for home-based rehabilitation after stroke. Methods: the project uses a user-centred design methodology to develop a hand/wrist rehabilitation device for home-based therapy after stroke. The patient benefits from a dedicated user interface that allows them to receive feedback on exercise as well as communicating with the health-care professional. The health-care professional is able to use a dedicated interface to send/receive communications and remote-manage patient’s exercise routine using provided performance benchmarks. Patients were involved in a feasibility study (n=23) and were instructed to use the device and its interactive games for 180 min per week, around 30 min per day, for a period of 6 weeks, with a 2-months follow up. At the time of this study, only 12 of these patients have finished their 6 weeks trial plus 2 months follow up evaluation. Results: with the “use feasibility” as objective, our results indicate 2 patients dropping out due to technical difficulty or lack of personal interests to continue. Our frequency of use results indicate that on average, patients used the SCRIPT1 device around 14 min of self-administered therapy a day. The group average for the system usability scale was around 69% supporting system usability. Conclusions: based on the preliminary results, it is evident that stroke patients were able to use the system in their homes. An average of 14 min a day engagement mediated via three interactive games is promising, given the chronic stage of stroke. During the 2nd year of the project, 6 additional games with more functional relevance in their interaction have been designed to allow for a more variant context for interaction with the system, thus hoping to positively influence the exercise duration. The system usability was tested and provided supporting evidence for this parameter. Additional improvements to the system are planned based on formative feedback throughout the project and during the evaluations. These include a new orthosis that allows a more active control of the amount of assistance and resistance provided, thus aiming to provide a more challenging interaction.This work has been partially funded under Grant FP7-ICT-288698(SCRIPT) of the European Community Seventh Framework Programme