Validation of a recommender system for prompting omitted foods in online dietary assessment surveys

Recall assistance methods are among the key aspects that improve the accuracy of online dietary assessment surveys. These methods still mainly rely on experience of trained interviewers with nutritional background, but data driven approaches could improve cost-efficiency and scalability of automated dietary assessment. We evaluated the effectiveness of a recommender algorithm developed for an online dietary assessment system called Intake24, that automates the multiple-pass 24-hour recall method. The recommender builds a model of eating behavior from recalls collected in past surveys. Based on foods they have already selected, the model is used to remind respondents of associated foods that they may have omitted to report. The performance of prompts generated by the model was compared to that of prompts hand-coded by nutritionists in two dietary studies. The results of our studies demonstrate that the recommender system is able to capture a higher number of foods omitted by respondents of online dietary surveys than prompts hand-coded by nutritionists. However, the considerably lower precision of generated prompts indicates an opportunity for further improvement of the system

Development of food photographs for use with children aged 18 months to 16 years:comparison against weighed food diaries – The Young Person’s Food Atlas (UK)

Traditional dietary assessment methods, used in the UK, such as weighed food diaries impose a large participant burden, often resulting in difficulty recruiting representative samples and underreporting of energy intakes. One approach to reducing the burden placed on the participant is to use portion size assessment tools to obtain an estimate of the amount of food consumed, removing the need to weigh all foods. An age range specific food atlas was developed for use in assessing children’s dietary intakes. The foods selected and portion sizes depicted were derived from intakes recorded during the UK National Diet and Nutrition Surveys of children aged 1.5 to 16 years. Estimates of food portion sizes using the food atlas were compared against 4-day weighed intakes along with in-school / nursery observations, by the research team. Interviews were conducted with parents the day after completion of the diary, and for children aged 4 to 16 years, also with the child. Mean estimates of portion size consumed were within 7% of the weight of food recorded in the weighed food diary. The limits of agreement were wide indicating high variability of estimates at the individual level but the precision increased with increasing age. For children 11 years and over, agreement with weighed food diaries, was as good as that of their parents in terms of total weight of food consumed and of intake of energy and key nutrients. The age appropriate food photographs offer an alternative to weighed intakes for dietary assessment with children

A systematic review of how researchers characterize the school environment in determining its effect on student obesity

BACKGROUND: Obesity in early childhood is a robust predictor of obesity later in life. Schools provide unparalleled access to children and have subsequently become major intervention sites. However, empirical evidence supporting the effectiveness of school-based interventions against childhood obesity is of limited scope and unknown quality. The aim of this systematic review is to critically assess how researchers have characterized the school environment in determining its effect on childhood weight status in order to improve the quality and consistency of research in this area. We conducted a narrative review with a systematic search of the literature in line with PRISMA guidelines (2009). Original peer-reviewed research articles in English were searched from Medline, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL and PsycINFO databases from earliest record to January 2014. We included empirical research that reported at least one measure of the primary/elementary school environment and its relationship with at least one objective adiposity-related variable for students aged 4-12 years. Two authors independently extracted data on study design, school-level factors, student weight status, type of analysis and effect. RESULTS: Five studies met the inclusion criteria. Each study targeted different parts of the school environment and findings across the studies were not comparable. The instruments used to collect school-level data report no validity or reliability testing. CONCLUSIONS: Our review shows that researchers have used instruments of unknown quality to test if the school environment is a determinant of childhood obesity, which raises broader questions about the impact that schools can play in obesity prevention

Exercise for lower limb osteoarthritis : systematic review incorporating trial sequential analysis and network meta-analysis

Objective: To determine whether there is sufficient evidence to conclude that exercise interventions are more effective than no exercise control and to compare the effectiveness of different exercise interventions in relieving pain and improving function in patients with lower limb osteoarthritis. Data sources: Nine electronic databases searched from inception to March 2012. Study selection: Randomised controlled trials comparing exercise interventions with each other or with no exercise control for adults with knee or hip osteoarthritis. Data extraction: Two reviewers evaluated eligibility and methodological quality. Main outcomes extracted were pain intensity and limitation of function. Trial sequential analysis was used to investigate reliability and conclusiveness of available evidence for exercise interventions. Bayesian network meta-analysis was used to combine both direct (within trial) and indirect (between trial) evidence on treatment effectiveness. Results: 60 trials (44 knee, two hip, 14 mixed) covering 12 exercise interventions and with 8218 patients met inclusion criteria. Sequential analysis showed that as of 2002 sufficient evidence had been accrued to show significant benefit of exercise interventions over no exercise control. For pain relief, strengthening, flexibility plus strengthening, flexibility plus strengthening plus aerobic, aquatic strengthening, and aquatic strengthening plus flexibility, exercises were significantly more effective than no exercise control. A combined intervention of strengthening, flexibility, and aerobic exercise was also significantly more effective than no exercise control for improving limitation in function (standardised mean difference −0.63, 95% credible interval −1.16 to −0.10). Conclusions: As of 2002 sufficient evidence had accumulated to show significant benefit of exercise over no exercise in patients with osteoarthritis, and further trials are unlikely to overturn this result. An approach combining exercises to increase strength, flexibility, and aerobic capacity is likely to be most effective in the management of lower limb osteoarthritis. The evidence is largely from trials in patients with knee osteoarthritis

Exposure of harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) to Brucella in declining populations across Scotland

The authors acknowledge the NERC National Capability Funding grant number SMRU 10001 for the fundingSince 2000 there have been major declines in the abundance of Scottish harbour seals (Phoca vitulina). The causes of the declines remain uncertain. The aim of this study was to establish the extent to which the seals in the regions of greatest decline have been exposed to Brucella, a bacterial pathogen that causes reproductive failure in terrestrial mammalian hosts. Tissues from dead seals collected between 1992 and 2013 were cultured for Brucella (n=150). Serum samples collected from live capture-released seals (n=343) between 1997 and 2012 were tested for Brucella antibodies using the Rose Bengal plate agglutination test (RBT) and a competitive Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). 16% of seals cultured had Brucella isolated from one or more tissues but there were no pathological signs of infection. The cELISA results were more sensitive than the RBT results showing that overall, 25.4% of seals were seropositive with the highest seroprevalence in juveniles. As there was no evidence of either a higher seroprevalence, or higher circulating antibody levels in seropositive animals in the areas with the greatest declines, it was concluded that Brucella infection is likely not a major contributing factor to recent declines. However, the consistently high proportion of seals exposed to Brucella indicates possible endemicity in these populations, likely due to B. pinnipedialis, which has demonstrated a preference for pinniped hosts. Importantly, given the close proximity between seals, humans and livestock in many areas, there is the potential for cross-species infections.Peer reviewe

Testing self-report time-use diaries against objective instruments in real time

This study provides a new test of time-use diary methodology, comparing diaries with a pair of objective criterion measures: wearable cameras and accelerometers. A volunteer sample of respondents (n = 148) completed conventional self-report paper time-use diaries using the standard UK Harmonised European Time Use Study (HETUS) instrument. On the diary day, respondents wore a camera that continuously recorded images of their activities during waking hours (approximately 1,500–2,000 images/day) and also an accelerometer that tracked their physical activity continuously throughout the 24-hour period covered by the diary. Of the initial 148 participants recruited, 131 returned usable diary and camera records, of whom 124 also provided a usable whole-day accelerometer record. The comparison of the diary data with the camera and accelerometer records strongly supports the use of diary methodology at both the aggregate (sample) and individual levels. It provides evidence that time-use data could be used to complement physical activity questionnaires for providing population-level estimates of physical activity. It also implies new opportunities for investigating techniques for calibrating metabolic equivalent of task (MET) attributions to daily activities using large-scale, population-representative time-use diary studies

Rancang Bangun Mobile Robot Pengikut Manusia Berdasarkan Warna Menggunakan Metode Template Matching Berbasis Mini Pc

Penerapan teknologi di bidang robotika telah banyak dimanfaatkan oleh kalangan industri di dunia kerja dalam rangka meningkatkan efisiensi dan efektivitas berbagai aktivitas kerja manusia. Sebuah mobile robot dibuat agar dapat mengikuti pergerakan objek berupa manusia berdasarkan warna menggunakan webcam. Mobile robot yang dibuat dapat melakukan proses pengolahan citra dari warna objek yang ditangkap oleh webcam, sehingga dapat mengenali warna objek yang diikuti. Proses pengolahan citra akan di proses di dalam Raspberry Pi sebagai pusat kontrol, yang akan menggerakkan motor pada mobile robot. Ada beberapa proses pengolahan citra untuk mengikuti pergerakan objek, yaitu: mencari nilai HSV masing-masing warna pada kondisi pencahayaan yang berbeda, menganalisa warna objek yang akan diikuti dengan membandingkan nilai HSV yang didapat dengan nilai HSV pada proses sebelumnya, dan mendeteksi warna lingkaran pada objek yang tujuan dengan menggunakan metode template matching. Mobile robot akan mengikuti pergerakan objek yang telah ditangkap oleh webcam, Dari penelitian yang dilakukan, didapatkan nilai HSV yang tepat untuk semua keadaan pencahayaan untuk masing-masing warna yaitu: nilai H (Hue) untuk warna, merah: 0-66, nilai S (Saturation): 64-169, dan nilai V (Value): 75-124. Dari 11 kali pengujian sistem yang dilakukan pada semua kondisi pencahayaan, diperoleh 5 kali kegagalan dengan persentase kegagalan sebesar 45.4 % dan 6 kali keberhasilan dengan persentase keberhasilan sebesar 54.6 %

A History of Falls is Associated with a Significant Increase in Acute Mortality in Women after Stroke

Background and Purpose: The risks of falls and fractures increase after stroke. Little is known about the prognostic significance of previous falls and fractures after stroke. This study examined whether having a history of either event is associated with poststroke mortality. Methods: We analyzed stroke register data collected prospectively between 2003 and 2015. Eight sex-specific models were analyzed, to which the following variables were incrementally added to examine their potential confounding effects: age, type of stroke, Oxfordshire Community Stroke Project classification, previous comorbidities, frailty as indicated by the prestroke modified Rankin Scale score, and acute illness parameters. Logistic regression was applied to investigate in-hospital and 30-day mortality, and Cox proportional-hazards models were applied to investigate longer-term outcomes of mortality. Results: In total, 10,477 patients with stroke (86.1% ischemic) were included in the analysis. They were aged 77.7±11.9 years (mean±SD), and 52.2% were women. A history of falls was present in 8.6% of the men (n=430) and 20.2% of the women (n=1,105), while 3.8% (n=189) of the men and 12.9% of the women (n=706) had a history of both falls and fractures. Of the outcomes examined, a history of falls alone was associated with increased in-hospital mortality [odds ratio (OR)=1.33, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.03–1.71] and 30-day mortality (OR=1.34, 95% CI=1.03–1.73) in women in the fully adjusted models. The Cox proportional-hazards models for longer-term outcomes and the history of falls and fractures combined showed no significant results. Conclusions: The history of falls is an important factor for acute stroke mortality in women. A previous history of falls may therefore be an important factor to consider in the short-term stroke prognosis, particularly in women

The Irish Theology: Formation of Celtic Christianity in Ireland (5th to 9th Century)

The conversion process of Ireland resulted in a culture that reflected both its pagan, Celtic roots and the new Christian ontology. From the fifth to ninth century, Ireland’s learned elite began to be converted to Christianity and created the early monastic settlements that shaped how Christianity was introduced. The interactions between the early Irish monastic founders and the pre-Christian Irish influenced the ways in which early monasteries were established and why Christianity was introduced the way it was. By establishing the Christian faith on the basis of Irish learning, the early church worked with the learned men to establish a written vernacular language and develop an education system. This paper explores the way in which those education centers produced Irish myths, hagiographies and illuminated manuscripts, preserving the pre-Christian past within the Christian era. Ultimately, the two cultures adapted to each other, through varying levels of incorporation regarding different aspects of society, creating a culture which was both Christian and native to Ireland

Lindy And Rastus

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-vp/4741/thumbnail.jp