'Singing for the Brain': a qualitative study exploring the health and well-being benefits of singing for people with dementia and their carers

Dementia has detrimental effects on cognitive, psychological and behavioural functioning, as well as significant impact on those who provide care. There is a need to find suitable psychosocial interventions to help manage the condition, enhance well-being, and to provide support for caregivers. This study explored the impact of Singing for the Brain™, an intervention based on group singing activities developed by The Alzheimer’s Society for people with dementia and their carers. This qualitative study used semi-structured interviews with people with dementia and their carers. Ten interviews involving 20 participants were analysed thematically. Social inclusiveness and improvements in relationships, memory and mood were found to be especially important to participants. As well as enjoying the sessions, participants found that attending Singing for the Brain™ helped in accepting and coping with dementia

The potential of painting: unlocking Disenfranchised Grief for people living with dementia

As part of the “Creative Well” programme at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHN) North Wales, artist/researchers Megan Wyatt and Susan Liggett qualitatively investigated how painting can access a means of communication for people living with Dementia. In a workshop setting within a gallery environment at Ruthin Crafts Centre, participants living with dementia were facilitated on a one to one basis the opportunity to paint alongside the artist/researchers. The participants were from a wellestablished art group called “Lost in Art” that is managed by Denbighshire Arts Service. During the workshops, a number of experiences were articulated. These included experiences of illness, crisis and loss. They were captured through observations, interviews, visual art and video to contribute to new understandings and models of engagement through art for people living with dementia and their carers. Focusing on theory and practice in arts based research and the social sciences, this paper investigates the potential of painting to unlock experiences such as disenfranchised grief for people living with dementia. The conclusions do not measure how and if participants felt disenfranchised grief but rather provide an alternative to augment the body of knowledge surrounding how people living with dementia can communicate feelings of disenfranchised grief through painting. Objective: In this presentation I aim to outline the main findings from the above paper that is to be published in an academic journal later in the year on Illness Crisis and Loss published by Sage

'Unlocking the door to being there'. The contribution of creative facilitators in supporting people living with dementia to engage with heritage settings

This article reports findings from the evaluation of ‘Sensory Palaces’, an innovative project developed by the charity Historic Royal Palaces (HRP), which looks after six of the United Kingdom’s unoccupied royal palaces. The Sensory Palaces (SP) project employs creative facilitators to support people living with dementia and their care partners in engaging with two of these sites; Hampton Court Palace, and Kew Palace. This paper focusses on the role and contribution of the creative facilitators in supporting people living with dementia to connect with these heritage spaces. It reports on data collected from facilitator interviews relating to the benefits of engaging together through sensory and creative methods to explore and share experiences of the palaces, drawing out important factors from the design, content and delivery of the sessions

Dementia and detectives: Alzheimer's disease in crime fiction

Fictional representations of dementia have burgeoned in recent years, and scholars have amply explored their double-edged capacity to promote tragic perspectives or normalising images of ‘living well’ with the condition. Yet to date, there has been only sparse consideration of the treatment afforded dementia within the genre of crime fiction. Focusing on two novels, Emma Healey’s Elizabeth is Missing and Alice LaPlante’s Turn of Mind, this article considers what it means in relation to the ethics of representation that these authors choose to cast as their amateur detective narrators women who have dementia. Analysing how their narrative portrayals frame the experience of living with dementia, it becomes apparent that features of the crime genre inflect the meanings conveyed. While aspects of the novels may reinforce problem-based discourses around dementia, in other respects they may spur meaningful reflection about it among the large readership of this genre

Ethical implications of the perception and portrayal of dementia

yesThe way we perceive and portray dementia has implications for how we act towards people with dementia and how we address the issue of dementia within society. As a multi-disciplinary working group, established within the framework of the European Dementia Ethics Network of Alzheimer Europe, we aimed to describe the different ways that people with dementia are perceived and portrayed within society and to consider the moral implications of this. In the current paper, we address perceptions of dementia as reflected in explanatory models of its cause and nature, descriptions of characteristics of people with dementia, the use of language, media portrayals and the views of people living with dementia. Academics and professionals could use this exploration to reflect on their behaviour and their use of language regarding people with dementiaThe taskforce’s work arises from the 2013 Work Plan of Alzheimer Europe, which received funding from the European Union in the framework of the Health Programme

Recent advances in pulsed-laser deposition of complex-oxides

Pulsed-laser deposition (PLD) is one of the most promising techniques for the formation of complex-oxide heterostructures, superlattices, and well-controlled interfaces. The first part of this paper presents a review of several useful modifications of the process, including methods inspired by combinatorial approaches. We then discuss detailed growth kinetics results, which illustrate that 'true' layer-by-layer (LBL) growth can only be approached, but not fully met, even though many characterization techniques reveal interfaces with unexpected sharpness. Time-resolved surface x-ray diffraction measurements show that crystallization and the majority of interlayer mass transport occur on time scales that are comparable to those of the plume/substrate interaction, providing direct experimental evidence that a growth regime exists in which non-thermal processes dominate PLD. This understanding shows how kinetic growth manipulation can bring PLD closer to ideal LBL than any other growth method available today.Comment: 37 pages, 9 figures. Revie

Laser Machining by short and ultrashort pulses, state of the art and new opportunities in the age of the photons

An overview is given of the applications of short and ultrashort lasers in material processing. Shorter pulses reduce heat-affected damage of the material and opens new ways for nanometer accuracy. Even forty years after the development of the laser there is a lot of effort in developing new and better performing lasers. The driving force is higher accuracy at reasonable cost, which is realised by compact systems delivering short laser pulses of high beam quality. Another trend is the shift towards shorter wavelengths, which are better absorbed by the material and which allows smaller feature sizes to be produced. Examples of new products, which became possible by this technique, are given. The trends in miniaturization as predicted by Moore and Taniguchi are expected to continue over the next decade too thanks to short and ultrashort laser machining techniques. After the age of steam and the age of electricity we have entered the age of photons now

Allergen specificity of early peanut consumption and effect on development of allergic disease in the Learning Early About Peanut Allergy study cohort

BACKGROUND: Early introduction of dietary peanut in high-risk infants with severe eczema, egg allergy, or both prevented peanut allergy at 5 years of age in the Learning Early About Peanut Allergy (LEAP) study. The protective effect persisted after 12 months of avoiding peanuts in the 12-month extension of the LEAP study (LEAP-On). It is unclear whether this benefit is allergen and allergic disease specific. Objective: We sought to assess the effect of early introduction of peanut on the development of allergic disease, food sensitization, and aeroallergen sensitization. METHODS: Asthma, eczema, and rhinoconjunctivitis were diagnosed based on clinical assessment. Reported allergic reactions and consumption of tree nuts and sesame were recorded by questionnaire. Sensitization to food allergens and aeroallergens was determined by means of skin prick testing and specific IgE measurement. RESULTS: A high and increasing burden of food allergen and aeroallergen sensitization and allergic disease was noted across study time points; 76% of LEAP participants had at least 1 allergic disease at 60 months of age. There were no differences in allergic disease between LEAP groups. There were small differences in sensitization and reported allergic reactions for select tree nuts, with levels being higher in the LEAP consumption group. Significant resolution of eczema and sensitization to egg and milk occurred in LEAP participants and was not affected by peanut consumption. CONCLUSION: Early consumption of peanut in infants at high risk of peanut allergy is allergen specific and does not prevent the development of other allergic disease, sensitization to other food allergens and aeroallergens, or reported allergic reactions to tree nuts and sesame. Furthermore, peanut consumption does not hasten the resolution of eczema or egg allergy

Recent progress in photonic processing of metal‐oxide transistors

Over the past few decades, significant progress has been made in the field of photonic processing of electronic materials using a variety of light sources. Several of these technologies have now been exploited in conjunction with emerging electronic materials as alternatives to conventional high temperature thermal annealing offering rapid manufacturing times and compatibility with temperature-sensitive substrate materials among other potential advantages. A review of recent advances in photonic processing paradigms of metal oxide thin film transistors (TFTs), is presented with particular emphasis on the use of various light source technologies for the photochemical and thermochemical conversion of precursor materials or post-deposition treatment of metal oxides and their application in thin-film electronics. The pros and cons of the different technologies are discussed in light of recent developments and prospective research in the field of modern large-area electronics is highlighted

Rights in mind: Thinking differently about dementia and disability

The aim of this paper is to argue for the utility of a relational model of disability, as a way of conceptualizing dementia. We explore whether dementia should be considered as a disability, and whether people with dementia might consider themselves as disabled people. We review examples of, and issues raised by, the political activism of people with dementia. We consider how language constructs dementia negatively. We discuss how the environment influences the experience of dementia. In conclusion, we show that a relational model of dementia lays the basis for a human rights approach to the condition, based on collaborative partnerships between people with dementia and people from other disability communities