myWebAccess: A platform for repairing, enhancing and re-distributing Web Services accessible to people with disability

International audienceWeb services are an emerging technology which has attracted much attention from both the research and the industry sectors in recent years. The exploitation of web services as components in web applications facilitates development and supports applications interoperability, regardless of the programming language and platform used. However, existing web services development standards do not take into account the fact that the provided content and the interactive functionality should be accessible to, and easily operable by, people with disabilities. This paper presents a platform named myWebAccess, which provides a mechanism for the semi-automated "repair" of web services' interaction characteristics in order to support the automatic generation of interface elements that conform to the de facto standard of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. myWebAccess enhances interaction quality for specific target user groups, including people with visual and motor disabilities, and supports the use of web services on diverse platforms (e.g., mobile phones equipped with a browser). The users of myWebAccess can create a personalized environment containing their favourite services, and can interact with them through interfaces appropriate to their specific individual characteristics

Accessible web accessibility : a platform and supporting services to facilitate the production of accessible web material

EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Supporting Accessible User Interfaces using Web Services

International audienceWeb services are an emerging technology which has attracted much attention from both the research and the industry sectors in recent years. The exploitation of web services as components in web applications facilitates development and supports applications interoperability, regardless of the programming language and platform used. However, existing web services development standards do not take into account the fact that the provided content and the interactive functionality should be accessible to, and easily operable by, people with disabilities. This book chapter presents a platform named myWebAccess, which provides a mechanism for the semi-automated "repair" of web services' interaction characteristics in order to support the automatic generation of interface elements that conform to the de facto standard of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. myWebAccess enhances interaction quality for specific target user groups, including people with visual and motor disabilities, and supports the use of web services on diverse platforms (e.g., mobile phones equipped with a browser). The web developers can build their own design templates and the users of myWebAccess can create a personalized environment containing their favourite services. Thus, they can interact with them through interfaces appropriate to their specific individual characteristics

Supporting Accessible User Interfaces using Web Services

International audienceWeb services are an emerging technology which has attracted much attention from both the research and the industry sectors in recent years. The exploitation of web services as components in web applications facilitates development and supports applications interoperability, regardless of the programming language and platform used. However, existing web services development standards do not take into account the fact that the provided content and the interactive functionality should be accessible to, and easily operable by, people with disabilities. This book chapter presents a platform named myWebAccess, which provides a mechanism for the semi-automated "repair" of web services' interaction characteristics in order to support the automatic generation of interface elements that conform to the de facto standard of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. myWebAccess enhances interaction quality for specific target user groups, including people with visual and motor disabilities, and supports the use of web services on diverse platforms (e.g., mobile phones equipped with a browser). The web developers can build their own design templates and the users of myWebAccess can create a personalized environment containing their favourite services. Thus, they can interact with them through interfaces appropriate to their specific individual characteristics

myWebAccess: A platform for repairing, enhancing and re-distributing Web Services accessible to people with disability

International audienceWeb services are an emerging technology which has attracted much attention from both the research and the industry sectors in recent years. The exploitation of web services as components in web applications facilitates development and supports applications interoperability, regardless of the programming language and platform used. However, existing web services development standards do not take into account the fact that the provided content and the interactive functionality should be accessible to, and easily operable by, people with disabilities. This paper presents a platform named myWebAccess, which provides a mechanism for the semi-automated "repair" of web services' interaction characteristics in order to support the automatic generation of interface elements that conform to the de facto standard of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. myWebAccess enhances interaction quality for specific target user groups, including people with visual and motor disabilities, and supports the use of web services on diverse platforms (e.g., mobile phones equipped with a browser). The users of myWebAccess can create a personalized environment containing their favourite services, and can interact with them through interfaces appropriate to their specific individual characteristics

The Impact of the Ukrainian War on Stock and Energy Markets: A Wavelet Coherence Analysis

This study attempts to examine the existence of interdependencies between specific stock market indices, exchange rates and crude oil for the period January 2021 to July 2022 with daily data. In the period we have chosen, the post-vaccination phase against COVID-19, as well as the war in Ukraine, is covered. The variables selected for this study are RTSI, Eurostoxx, S&P 500, EUR/USD and RUB/USD exchange rates and crude oil prices. The selection of the specific variables was made because they are directly related to the pre-war period that coincides with the post-vaccine period of the pandemic, which allowed us to characterize it as the normal period and to characterize the period of the war in Ukraine that coincides with the energy crisis as the unstable period. In this way, the present study covers the markets of Russia and other developed economies. For empirical purposes, we applied a wavelet coherence approach in order to investigate the possible existence of simultaneous coherence between the variables at different times and scales for all the considered times. The findings of the study reveal the existence of strong correlations between all variables, during different time periods and for different frequencies during the period under review. Of particular interest is the finding that shows that during the crisis period, the RTSI significantly affects both the European and American stock markets, while also determining the evolution of the Russian currency. In addition, it appears that capital constraints in the Russian stock market, combined with increased demand for crude oil, determine the interdependence between RTSI and crude oil. Finally, an interesting finding of the study is the existence of a negative correlation between the US stock index and crude oil in low-frequency bands and the RTSI and Eurostoxx with crude oil for the post-vaccination and pre-war periods in the medium term. These findings can be used by both investors and portfolio managers to hedge risks and make more confident investment decisions. In addition, these findings can be used by policy makers in the planning of regulatory policies regarding the limitations of the systemic risks in capital markets

Can ESG Stocks Be a Safe Haven during Global Crises? Evidence from the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine War with Time-Frequency Wavelet Analysis

In times of intense economic variability and social turbulence worldwide, this paper aims to examine the existence of transient correlations and interdependencies between the most important MSCI ESG indices worldwide and the most important commodities’ index, economic uncertainty, natural gas, gold, and VIX, in a geographical and social context during two recent crises: the COVID-19 pandemic and the energy crisis due to the Ukrainian war. Using daily data from 3 January 2020 and extending until 23 August 2022, this study applies a wavelet coherence approach to analyze time series co-movements, in order to emphasize all possible combinations’ correlations and achieve more accurate outcomes at any given time and frequency band simultaneously and spontaneously. The results show robust coherence between different geographical areas, time, and frequency bands, indicating both positive and negative correlations with most of the combined ESG indices and other economic indicators. The study suggests that stock indices of leading ESG companies in North America and Europe constitute a safe investment haven during major upheavals and crises, providing a way for investors to manage risk and generate positive returns while contributing to economic sustainability

COVID-19 Infection among Elite Football Players: A Nationwide Prospective Cohort Study

Little is known about the risk of COVID-19 infection among footballers. We aimed to investigate the incidence and characteristics of COVID-19 infection among footballers. In total, 480 football players of Super League Greece and 420 staff members participated in a prospective cohort study, which took place from May 2020 to May 2021. Nasopharyngeal swabs were collected from footballers and staff members weekly. All samples (n = 43,975) collected were tested using the reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test for the detection of “SARS-CoV-2”. In total, 190 positive cases (130 among professional football players and 60 among staff) were recorded. Out of the 190 cases that turned positive, 64 (34%) cases were considered as symptomatic, and 126 (66%) cases were asymptomatic. The incidence rate of a positive test result for footballers was 0.57% (confidence interval (CI) 0.48–0.68%) and for staff members it was 0.27% (CI 0.20%, 0.34%), respectively. Footballers recorded a twofold increased risk of COVID-19 infection in comparison to staff members (relative risk = 2.16; 95% CI = 1.59–2.93; p-value < 0.001). No significant transmission events were observed during the follow-up period. We found a low incidence of COVID-19 infection among professional footballers over a long follow-up period. Furthermore, the implementation of a weekly diagnostic testing (RT-PCR) was critical to break the transmission chain of COVID-19, especially among asymptomatic football players and staff members

Tuberculous pyomyositis: a re-emerging entity of many faces

Tuberculosis (TB) has become a global concern due to its increasing incidence, particularly in immunocompromised patients, closely following the migratory patterns of populations. TB pyomyositis is a rare extrapulmonary manifestation of TB. Its clinical presentation varies and requires a high degree of suspicion for early diagnosis. We present three patients diagnosed with TB pyomyositis: a 46-year-old man with dermatomyositis (DM) and hepatitis B who presented with fever, muscle weakness, and an abscess at the right proximal arm; a 71-year-old immunocompetent male, with a past medical history of tuberculous lymphadenopathy in childhood, who presented with a 2-month history of fever and pain at the right thigh, and a 44-year-old woman with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) on prednisone and methotrexate who presented with skin eruption at her thighs mimicking lupus panniculitis. In all three patients, Mycobacterium tuberculosis was identified as the causative agent. The lack of specific signs, the false negative tuberculin skin test in some cases, and the unfamiliarity of many clinicians with this entity can cause diagnostic delays. Prompt diagnosis requires a high index of suspicion especially in immunocompromised patients with fever. © 2014 Clinical Rheumatology