Medical Rehabilitation Robotics

Robotic Rehabilitation is a novel field of bio engineering combining precise mechanical design with control technology through the interaction of Medical and Engineering professionals to produce a new tool in medical rehabilitation. Paralysis is one of the common symptoms of a stroke sufferer; a medical condition causing weakness in one side of the body. It is treatable with a course of physiotherapy and Interactive Robotics can greatly accelerate this recovery. Although Robotic Rehabilitation is a relatively new technology its benefits are well recognized. The objective of this research work was to develop an interactive robot for the medical rehabilitation of stroke victims. This interactive robot reduces labour intensive procedures, accelerate rehabilitation and provide a valuable aid for rehabilitation therapists. At present, a typical rehabilitation session for a patient suffering from paralysis requires a therapist to execute exercises involving hand on hand interaction. The therapist takes the patients hand and guides him/her through the exercise. Such exercises require circular or diagonal movement, arm extension, retraction and hand movement. Figure1. shows a typical exercise path movement for the right arm. Green diagonal lines show the elbow motion and yellow, the shoulder motion. The blue circle and square show how both elbow and shoulder regions can be combined in some exercises. The interactive robot design developed allows the patient to carry out such exercises without assistance of a therapist. Different exercise paths and degrees of difficulty can be selected from a menu and exercises can be carried out at any time in any suitable location or at home

Acoustic target detection and classification using neural networks

A neural network approach to the classification of acoustic emissions of ground vehicles and helicopters is demonstrated. Data collected during the Joint Acoustic Propagation Experiment conducted in July of l991 at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico was used to train a classifier to distinguish between the spectrums of a UH-1, M60, M1 and M114. An output node was also included that would recognize background (i.e. no target) data. Analysis revealed specific hidden nodes responding to the features input into the classifier. Initial results using the neural network were encouraging with high correct identification rates accompanied by high levels of confidence

Development of a Robotic Platform for Upper Limb Rehabilitation

The aim of this project is to develop a rehabilitation robot intended for use in a non-specialised or domestic setting. Robots have been shown to have a positive effect on limb rehabilitation and developing rehabilitation robots for use outside of specialist rehabilitation centres could be beneficial in terms of access to, intensity and cost of treatment. The device is intended for the rehabilitation of the shoulder/elbow region of the upper limbs. The design requirements for such a device mean that it must be low cost, portable, robust and have a detailed focus on safety. Other areas of interest pertaining to rehabilitation robotic devices intended for this purpose are also discussed. One of these areas of interest is robot based patient assessment methods. The current widely accepted assessment scales are manually applied, which is inefficient for rehabilitation on a non-specialised or domestic setting and also leads to issues relating to intrarater and inter-rater reliability. Another area of interest is high level control strategies that could be potentially suitable for this type of robot

Above the noise : the search for periodicities in the inner heliosphere

Remote sensing of coronal and heliospheric periodicities can provide vital insight into the local conditions and dynamics of the solar atmosphere. We seek to trace long (one hour or longer) periodic oscillatory signatures (previously identified above the limb in the corona by, e.g., Telloni et al., 2013, Astrophys. J., 767, 138) from their origin at the solar surface out into the heliosphere. To do this, we combine on-disk measurements taken by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and concurrent extreme ultra-violet (EUV) and coronagraph data from one of the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) spacecraft to study the evolution of two active regions in the vicinity of an equatorial coronal hole over several days in early 2011. Fourier and wavelet analysis of signals are performed. Applying white-noise-based confidence levels to the power spectra associated with detrended intensity time series yields detections of oscillatory signatures with periods from 6 − 13 hours in both AIA and STEREO data. As was found by Telloni et al. (2013), these signatures are aligned with local magnetic structures. However, typical spectral power densities all vary substantially as a function of period, indicating spectra dominated by red (rather than white) noise. Contrary to the white-noise-based results, applying global confidence levels based on a generic background noise model (allowing a combination of white noise, red noise, and transients following Auch`ere et al., 2016, Astrophys. J., 825, 110) without detrending the time series, uncovers only sporadic, spatially uncorrelated evidence of periodic signatures in either instrument. Automating this method to individual pixels in the STEREO/COR coronagraph field of view is non-trivial.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

INVESTIGATING THE ROLE OF MAPK SIGNALING DYNAMICS AND CHEMOTROPIC REGULATION IN YEAST

All eukaryotes possess MAPK pathways which allow cells to respond to diverse environmental stimuli, including stress, mitogenic, and developmental cues. Deviation from strict MAPK signaling regulation has been associated with the development of many human diseases, including cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. To better understand how cells utilize these pathways to make decisions on their fate, researchers often gain valuable insight from studying related pathways in simpler eukaryotic models, such as yeast, due to their genomes being smaller, better defined, and easier to perturb. In this dissertation, we employ new tools to study MAPK signaling dynamics and chemotropic regulation during the pheromone response in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In the first aim, we examine the role of membrane binding by the MAPK scaffold protein, Ste5, in mediating the chemotropic behavior of cells exposed to gradients of pheromone. Our findings indicate that modulation of scaffold binding to the membrane does not alter directional sensing, but rather sets a chemotropic sensitivity range by modulating the dose response of downstream pathway activity. In the second aim, we explore how the spatial and temporal patterns of Fus3/Kss1 activity contribute to developmental outcomes in cells, including the decision to bud, mate, and undergo polarized morphogenesis in the presence of pheromone. We first apply the Erk Kinase Activity Reporter (EKAR) to specifically report Fus3 and Kss1 activity in live yeast cells. Using this reporter, we are able to elucidate important features of MAPK activity dynamics and cell-to-cell variability. Specifically, we find activity kinetics to exhibit strong cell-cycle dependence and that intracellular activity gradients develop over time as projections grow. In the third aim, we systematically examine mating at the genome-level with the goal of identifying new or previously unidentified mediators of chemotropism in yeast. First, we devised and executed an imaging-based genome-wide screen of mating efficiency and identified groups of mutants exhibiting mating defects. We then explored the nature of the defect in two groups of protein trafficking mutants: the ESCRT proteins and a membrane-localized component of the exocyst complex, Sec3. Our results indicate previously unidentified roles for these proteins in supporting optimal mating pathway activation and chemotropic behavior

Concrete Language and Sexual Prejudice

This paper examines the role of concrete terminology in survey research and its relationship to prejudicial response. Using data from the 2004 National Annenberg Election Study, I examine responses to two similarly worded items about same-sex marriage. The two questions had near-identical wording, with the only exception being the terms used to refer to describe same-sex couples. The first wording asked about "gays and lesbians," whereas the second asked about "two men" or "two women." Drawing on research in cognitive psychology, I hypothesize that opposition to the second wording will be higher and more extreme because the wording is more concrete and thus more likely to evoke visualization. Additionally, I hypothesize that respondents from sociodemographic groups associated with heightened sexual prejudice will be disproportionately affected by the concrete wording. The results confirm both hypotheses. Implications for survey response and limitations of the current study are discussed

Periodization Strategies in Older Adults: Impact on Physical Function and Health

This study compared the effect of periodized versus nonperiodized (NP) resistance training (RT) on physical function and health outcomes in older adults. METHODS: Forty-one apparently healthy untrained older adults (women = 21, men = 20; 70.9 ± 5.1 yr; 166.3 ± 8.2 cm; 72.9 ± 13.4 kg) were recruited and randomly stratified to a NP, block periodized, or daily undulating periodized training group. Outcome measures were assessed at baseline and after a 22-wk × 3 d·wk RT intervention, including; anthropometrics, body composition, blood pressure and biomarkers, maximal strength, functional capacity, balance confidence, and quality of life. RESULTS: Thirty-three subjects satisfied all study requirements and were included in analyses (women = 17, men = 16; 71.3 ± 5.4 yr; 166.3 ± 8.5 cm; 72.5 ± 13.7 kg). The main finding was that all three RT models produced significant improvements in several physical function and physiological health outcomes, including; systolic blood pressure, blood biomarkers, body composition, maximal strength, functional capacity and balance confidence, with no between-group differences. CONCLUSIONS: Periodized RT, specifically block periodization and daily undulating periodized, and NP RT are equally effective for promoting significant improvements in physical function and health outcomes among apparently healthy untrained older adults. Therefore, periodization strategies do not appear to be necessary during the initial stages of RT in this population. Practitioners should work toward increasing RT participation in the age via feasible and efficacious interventions targeting long-term adherence in minimally supervised settings