Use of commercial gaming console WII for rehabilitation of hand impairments in young adults with Cerebral Palsy

Abstract The purpose of this study examined the feasibility of using a low-cost, commercially available gaming platform, the Wii® on improving the hand dexterity impairments in young adults with cerebral palsy. The study included 5 young adults with spastic cerebral palsy with a score of 1-3 on the GMFCS scale and a score of 1-2 on the MACS scale. The participants underwent an 8-week training intervention using the Wii™ for approximately 30 min/day 2 times a week. Training was performed using the Wii™ sports games software, including boxing, tennis, bowling, and archery. Three outcomes measures for hand impairments were used and tested during the study: such as the Hand dynamometer for the grip strength, Purdue peg board for the fine finger dexterity and the Box and Block test for the manual gross dexterity pre-and post- intervention as well as the family-reported activities of daily living before and after the interventions. A student’s t-test was used to analyse the pre- and the post-test results. The feasibility of using the virtual reality (Wii™) in the rehabilitation settings for young adults with CP showed positive outcomes in improving their hand impairments and manual ability. Additional hypotheses were proposed from the study for additional research

Hierarchical Structure, Properties and Bone Mechanics at Macro, Micro, and Nano Levels

This research focuses on the hierarchical structure of bone and associated mechanical properties at different scales to assess damage accumulation leading to premature failure, with or without instrumentation. In this work, an attempt was made to develop a framework of macro, micro, and nano damage accumulation models and implementing them to derive mechanical behavior of the bone. At macrolevel, retrospective evaluation of 313 subjects was conducted, and the damage of bone tissue was investigated with respect to subject demography including age, gender, race, body mass index (BMI), height and weight, and their role in initiating fracture. Experimental data utilized 28 human femoral bones implanted with cephalomedullary nails were used to develop damage prediction models. Investigation of three real life medical device failures identified the mechanical and clinical bases of bone failure. At the micro level, microdamage accumulation of the bone was investigated in 307 subjects and new effective morphological parameters at microscale were proposed. At the nano level, molecular dynamics simulation was performed to investigate the effect of interaction, orientation, and hydration on the atomic models of the bone composed of collagen helix and hydroxyapatite crystal. The results showed that bone density and maximum von Mises stress decreased drastically in elderly patients, implying fixation devices and implants used by the young cannot be used. The results also showed that the two-dimensional representation of the morphological parameters of the bone at microscale does not provide a realistic description of bone structure. Therefore, in this work, three-dimensional representations at microscale indicated that bone interconnectivity is higher in female patients than in male patients. Gender has a significant effect on microdamage distribution in the bone. More precautions should be taken into consideration for older female patients. Race should also be considered during modeling implants or suggesting therapeutic techniques. Caucasian subjects are more susceptible to bone fatigue failure than other races. The mechanical properties of bone are affected significantly by the orientation of the collagen fibril, which varies between ethnicities. Any change in the structure of the collagen-hydroxyapatite composite leads to variable bone diseases. There is significant difference in the ultimate tensile strength and toughness of the bone with respect to the orientation of the hydrated and un-hydrated collagen fibrils. Water content also influences the bone tissues’ elastic properties. The force in longitudinal direction (0°) provides more strength compared with the collagen fibril in the perpendicular direction (90°). Substituting Glycine with other amino acids affects the mechanical properties and strength of the collagen helix, collagen-hydroxyapatite interface, and eventually affecting hydroxyapatite crystal. Appropriate models developed in each category showing experimental and computational relationships and their application in selecting implant materials

Rapid Seismic Vulnerability Assessment of Buildings in the Old Algiers

The selection of an appropriate seismic vulnerability method to evaluate buildings stock in urban area depends essentially on the available information. Information about buildings can be obtained essentially from field visual inspection. In this context, rapid visual procedure to collect buildings data can be used to identify vulnerable buildings based their structural characteristics. In this study, which aims to evaluate the seismic vulnerability of existing buildings in the old part of Algiers (Algeria), including Casbah and Bab El Oued areas, buildings data has been collected using rapid visual exterior examination. Then, with the main purpose to evaluate the physical damage and its relationship with the seismic intensity, empirical method using the vulnerability index, previously developed during the European project Risk-UE, is used. Results and conclusions of this work could be useful to define appropriate measures to upgrade seismic performance of existing buildings

Rapid Seismic Vulnerability Assessment of Buildings in the Old Algiers

The selection of an appropriate seismic vulnerability method to evaluate buildings stock in urban area depends essentially on the available information. Information about buildings can be obtained essentially from field visual inspection. In this context, rapid visual procedure to collect buildings data can be used to identify vulnerable buildings based their structural characteristics. In this study, which aims to evaluate the seismic vulnerability of existing buildings in the old part of Algiers (Algeria), including Casbah and Bab El Oued areas, buildings data has been collected using rapid visual exterior examination. Then, with the main purpose to evaluate the physical damage and its relationship with the seismic intensity, empirical method using the vulnerability index, previously developed during the European project Risk-UE, is used. Results and conclusions of this work could be useful to define appropriate measures to upgrade seismic performance of existing buildings

Effect of water-jet flossing on surface roughness and color stability of dental resin-based composites

The purpose of this in vitro study was to investigate the effects of water-jet flossing on the color stability and surface roughness of five resin-based composites. Five commercially available composite resins were studied. Nine disc-shaped specimens (6x2mm) were fabricated from each composite. The specimens were randomly allocated into three groups and three different treatments were performed on each group: storage in water (control group), water-jet flossing using 50 Psi water pressure, and water-jet flossing using 100 Psi water pressure. The water-jet flossing was performed in a standardized manner using a Waterpik® Aquarius® water flosser. Color and roughness were measured at baseline and at the end of 30 minutes of treatment, which is approximately equivalent to 5 years of simulated water-jet flossing for 1 minute once a day. The data were statistically analyzed using two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Bonferroni and Tukey?s post-hoc tests. No significant color change was found after 5 simulated years of water-jet flossing, irrespective of composite type and water-flossing pressure setting (p > 0.05). Furthermore, none of composite specimens showed any significant surface roughness changes except for the two composites with spherical filler specimens in the 100 Psi treatment group. These composites exhibited a significant increase in surface roughness compared with the nano-filled composite (p = 0.001 and p = 0.006). However, the differences were clinically acceptable (?0.2 µm). In terms of surface roughness and color, water-jet flossing is safe to be used on composite restorations within the settings of this study

Detection of some virulence genes (esp, agg, gelE, CylA) in Enterococcus faecalis isolated from different clinical cases at Baghdad

The virulent genes are the key players in the ability of the bacterium to cause disease. The products of such genes that facilitate the successful colonization and survival of the bacterium in or cause damage to the host are pathogenicity determinants. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of virulence factors (esp, agg, gelE, CylA) in E. faecalis isolated from diverse human clinical collected in Iraqi patient , as well as to assess their ability to form biofilm and to determine their haemolytic and gelatinase activities. Thirty-two isolates of bacteria Enterococcus faecalis were obtained, including 15 isolates (46.87%) of the urine, 6 isolates (18.75%) for each of the stool and uterine secretions, and 5 isolates (15.62%) of the wounds from various hospitals in Baghdad, including (Central Children's Hospital, Educational Laboratories, Ibn Al-Baladi Hospital).The isolates were confirmed to belong to the genus E.faecalis after performing morphological and biochemical microscopic examinations and for final diagnosis using the VITEC 2 system. The virulence genes viz. cylA, esp, gelE and agg were recognized in the E. faecalis, and the consequences appeared that the bacteria had eps gene in 32 isolates (100%). As for the agg gene, 32 isolates (100%) were carriers of this gene, which was responsible for these isolates' aptitude to form the biofilm. While for the gelE gene, 27 isolates (84.37%) of the isolates carried this gene, responsible for gelatinase activity whereas, the gene responsible for hemolysis cyl, there were 29 isolates (90.62%) of the total isolates.   The presemce of genes in the isolates would be helpful to determine the colonization and survival of the bacterium in or causing damage to the host

Face Recognition Using Fuzzy Moments Discriminant Analysis

In this work, an enhanced feature extraction method for holistic face recognition approach of gray intensity still image, namely Fuzzy Moment Discriminant Analysis is used. Which is first, based on Pseudo-Zernike Moments to extract dominant and significant features for each image of enrolled person, then the dimensionality of the moments features vectors is further reduced into discriminant moment features vectors using Linear Discriminant Analysis method, for these vectors the membership degrees in each class have been computed using Fuzzy K-Nearest Neighbor, after that, the membership degrees have been incorporated into the redefinition of the between-classes and within-classes scatter matrices to obtain final features vectors of  known persons. The test image is then compared with the faces enrollment images so that the face which has the minimum Euclidean distance with the test image is labeled with the identity of that image. Keyword: Zernike Moments, LDA, Fuzzy K-Nearest Neighbor

Nurturing a Literary Revival: The ISTAID Center's Endeavors in Harnessing Islamic Thought and Information for Da'wah in Medan City, North Sumatra (1993-2022)

ISTAID Center is an institution active in the fields of da'wah, education, and thought. The ISTAID movement adheres to the principle of literacy based on the Islamic worldview and the ta'dib pattern as its main foundation. This research employs a historical research approach encompassing heuristics, verification, interpretation, and historiography. The findings of this study reveal that ISTAID focuses on promoting literacy in mosques. Mosques are chosen due to their significant role as centers for social and religious activities and their potential in da'wah and literacy efforts. ISTAID spreads newsletters using accessible language that is easily understood by the community. In conclusion, the current presence of ISTAID Center in fostering literacy among the people of Medan City has proven to be highly effective. Through the consistent efforts of the ISTAID movement, the dissemination of Islam can be improved. This research offers a deeper understanding of the development of Islamic literacy through ISTAID Center, with a specific emphasis on the advancement of literacy civilization within mosques

Gas Barrier Properties of Biodegradable Polymer Nanocomposites Films

Bionanocomposites from biopolymers and inorganic nanoparticles are of great interest for packaging materials due to their enhanced physical, thermal, mechanical, and processing characteristics. In this study polylactic acid and titanium oxide ( PLA/TiO2 ) films were prepared by casting method. The effect of structural, mechanical , thermal, and barrier  properties of  the nanocomposites were studied . Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed that no change in bonds of  PLA /TiO2. Increased glass transition temperature and thermal stability, compared with pure PLA. Mechanical properties (Tensile strength, Young Modulus) increased when add 1, 3,and 5wt% TiO2 compare with PLA(2.3, 2.5, 2.8 and 3)Gpa. Barrier properties (oxygen transmission rate) was decrease when the concentration of TiO2 is increased in  PLA/TiO2 film as (18, 16, and 14) cm3.mm/m2.day.atm, compare with neat PLA was 20 cm3.mm/m2.day.atm Key Words: Biodegradable, polylactic acid , titanium oxide ,  mechanical properties , thermal , and barrier properties

TIME MANAGEMENT, SOCIAL SUPPORT, PERSONALITY AND BURNOUT AMONG POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS

Time management performs an important role in performing tasks in time without getting any burnout. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of time management, social support, personality and burnout among postgraduate students. In the section of literature review reveals that personality and social support defense the negative effects of time management of burnout. There were 214 respondents who have participated in the online survey consisting of six sections which have work experience, time management, personality, social support, and burnout as their demographic. A descriptive statistics, Pearson Correlation, T-test for Independent Sample Means, and Multiple Regression were used to analyze the data. . There are inconsistencies in the findings obtained by previous researchers on the relationship between time management and burnout among students indicate that research into the effects of time management, personality and social support on students’ burnout is not conclusive. This study attempts to fill the gap by investigating the relationship of time management, social support, personality and to reduce burnout among postgraduate students with proper usage of the skills of time management. Time management has a significant relationship with burnout; however, burnout has no significant relationship with personality were the results of Co-relation statistics