A new multisensor software architecture for movement detection: Preliminary study with people with cerebral palsy

A five-layered software architecture translating movements into mouse clicks has been developed and tested on an Arduino platform with two different sensors: accelerometer and flex sensor. The archi-tecture comprises low-pass and derivative filters, an unsupervised classifier that adapts continuously to the strength of the user's movements and a finite state machine which sets up a timer to prevent in-voluntary movements from triggering false positives. Four people without disabilities and four people with cerebral palsy (CP) took part in the experi-ments. People without disabilities obtained an average of 100% and 99.3% in precision and true positive rate (TPR) respectively and there were no statistically significant differences among type of sensors and placement. In the same experiment, people with disabilities obtained 97.9% and 100% in precision and TPR respectively. However, these results worsened when subjects used the system to access a commu-nication board, 89.6% and 94.8% respectively. With their usual method of access-an adapted switch- they obtained a precision and TPR of 86.7% and 97.8% respectively. For 3-outof- 4 participants with disabilities our system detected the movement faster than the switch. For subjects with CP, the accelerometer was the easiest to use because it is more sensitive to gross motor motion than the flex sensor which requires more complex movements. A final survey showed that 3-out-of-4 participants with disabilities would prefer to use this new technology instead of their tra-ditional method of access

Evaluación del estado nutricional y su relación con los Hábitos alimentarios y estilos de vida en pacientes diagnosticadas con cáncer cérvico uterino de 40 a 60 años de edad, internadas en el albergue del Hospital Bertha Calderón Roque, Noviembre 2014

El presente estudio es descriptivo de corte transversal; en el que se recolectó información para determinar el estado nutricional y su relación con los hábitos alimentarios y estilos de vida en pacientes diagnosticadas con cáncer cérvico uterino de 40 a 60 años de edad, internadas en el albergue del hospital Bertha Calderón Roque, noviembre 2014.Los objetivos del estudio se enfocan en caracterizar socio-demográficamente, describir las características socio-económicas, analizar del expediente clínico los estudios de laboratorios, imágenes, y estadíos, clasificar el estado nutricional, determinar los hábitos alimentarios e identificar los estilos de vida de las pacientes. La información se obtuvo mediante una entrevista para lo cual se diseñó una lista de preguntas abordando los objetivos del estudio; se realizó de manera personal a cada una de las participantes,una vez obtenida la información se rosiguió a procesar la información para luego plasmarla debidamente en tablas y gráficos estadísticos. Los principales hallazgos encontrados en este estudio son: el 100% presenta antecedentes familiares de esta enfermedad, en la escolaridad el 45 % son analfabeta; el ingreso económico mensual oscila entre 2500 y 3499 córdobas destinando para la compra de alimentos menos de 1000 córdobas al mes. El estado nutricional en un 45% esta normal según el IMC. El patrón alimentario de las pacientes en estudio es el siguiente: los grupos de alimentos que más consumen son los cereales (Arroz, Tortilla, Frijoles y pan), grasas (Aceite Vegetal) y azúcares (Azúcar), cabe recalcar que el consumo de estos alimentos son proporcionados por el hospital; por lo que no tienen acceso a consumir los otros grupos de alimentos por su situación socio – económica, y por qué se les prohíbe la entrada de alimentos al albergue. En cuanto al estilo de vida, en un 65% son sedentarias, el 95% no consume bebidas alcohólicas y el 100% no fuma cigarrillos

A Hardware/Software Platform to Acquire Bioelectrical Signals. A Case Study: Characterizing Computer Access through Attention

This paper describes a hardware/software platform to acquire human body signals. In the field of physiological computing it is desirable to have a system that allows the synchronized acquisition of signals coming from different sources. Here is described how to unify the whole process of acquiring signals from both customized hardware and low cost commercial devices such as Neurosky’s mindwave. A case study using this platform is also shown: studying the feasibility of using sustained attention to access a computer. In order to do that brain activity was measured using Neurosky’s mindwave. The participants in this study were asked to keep their attention high/low for as long as possible during several trials. Experimentation was performed by 7 normally developed subjects and 3 people with cerebral palsy (CP). Our preliminary work shows that 60% of participants might be potential users of this technology. Eventually, modulating the attention to access a communication board needs a scanning period greater than 5.76s

Sintomatologia, etiología y algunos factores que inciden en la caída de plántulas de algodonero en Andalucía Occidental

Se describen los resultados de dos prospecciones sobre Caída de plántulas de algodonero efectuadas en 1999 en 28 parcelas con historia de incidencia de la enfermedad en Andalucía occidental. En la prospección temprana se recogieron 401 plantas de rodales con problemas y se encontró una mayor incidencia de Rhizoctonia solani. En la tardía se recogieron 976 plantas al azar y Thielaviopsis basteóla fue el que se encontró con más frecuencia, notándose un incremento de la importancia de este hongo en los suelos arcillosos al sur de Sevilla. Se ha estudiado la sintomatologia presente y encontrado una asociación entre los aislamientos de R. solani y la muerte de las plántulas y entre T. basicola y las necrosis más oscuras y negras, comprobándose además que un elevado número de síndromes estuvieron causados por agentes abióticos. Se presentan datos previos de las relaciones entre la frecuencia de aislamientos de estos patógenos y algunas prácticas culturales como fueron el quemado de los restos del cultivo anterior y las dosis del abonado de fondo. En este trabajo se realizaron análisis de la germinación de la semilla sembrada por los agricultores y se hacen consideraciones sobre el "vigor" de la semilla empleadaResults of two cotton surveys on cotton damping-off realized in west Andalucía (Spain) are described. Twenty eight cotton fields known as disease prone were sampled. At first survey 401 plants were collected from infected areas of the fields and Rhizoctonia solani was the fungus most frequently recovered. One month later, the same fields were randomly sampled and 976 plants were collected founding a higher incidence of Thielaviopsis basicola, specially on clay soils southern Seville. Plants were classified by symptoms and related to isolated fungi. R. solani was associated with seedling death and T. basicola with dark brown or black necrosis. A high percentage of syndromes had an abiotic origin. Preliminary conclusions on relationships between both fungi and fertilization management and previous crops stubble are presented. Germination of seeds planted by farmers was studied and some considerations about their vigor are made

Impact of preharvest and postharvest treatment combinations on increase of stilbene content in grape

Aims : Stilbene-enriched grape is an interesting new food product with numerous health-promoting properties, mainly due to its high added-value compound content, notably resveratrol. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of different elicitors, alone or in combination with ultraviolet C light (UVC) postharvest treatment, on stilbene concentration in grapes. Methods and results : Three preharvest treatments were tested, namely benzothiadiazole, (BTH), methyl jasmonate (MEJA) and chitosan (CHIT). After harvesting, these treatments were combined with UVC postharvest treatment. The stilbene extraction method was validated method. Moreover, and grape quality was evaluated. Of the preharvest treatments, only BTH significantly increased trans-resveratrol concentration in grape, but this appears to be linked to a ripening delay. When pre- and postharvest treatments were combined, only the MEJA-UVC combination was successful in reducing by three days the day of maximum induction of stilbenes (trans resveratrol and piceatannol). Conclusion: The MEJA-UVC combination reached similar grape trans-resveratrol contents than UVC alone, but additionally the time to reach maximum trans-resveratrol after the UVC treatment was reduced by three days and therefore grape quality was preserved. Significance and impact of the study: The achieved results provide a potential treatment combination that allows functional grapes to be obtained in a shorter period than with UVC light alone, making it more applicable

A smart power electronic multiconverter for the residential sector

El futuro de la red incluye la generación distribuida y las tecnologías de red inteligente. Los sistemas de gestión del lado de la demanda (DSM) también serán esenciales para lograr un alto nivel de confiabilidad y robustez en los sistemas de energía. Para hacer eso, es necesario expandir la Infraestructura de medición avanzada (AMI) y los Sistemas de gestión de energía (EMS). La dirección de la tendencia es hacia la creación de centros de recursos energéticos, como el concepto de comunidad inteligente. Este documento presenta un sistema multiconvertidor inteligente para el sector residencial / vivienda con un Sistema de Almacenamiento de Energía Híbrido (HESS) que consta de supercapacitador y batería, y con integración de fuente de energía fotovoltaica (PV) local. El dispositivo funciona como una unidad de energía distribuida ubicada en cada casa de la comunidad, recibiendo puntos de ajuste de energía activos proporcionados por una comunidad inteligente EMS. Este SGA central es responsable de administrar los flujos de energía activa entre la red eléctrica, las fuentes de energía renovables, los equipos de almacenamiento y las cargas existentes en la comunidad. El multiconvertidor propuesto es responsable de cumplir con los puntos de referencia de potencia activa de referencia con la calidad de potencia adecuada; garantizando que los módulos fotovoltaicos locales funcionen con un algoritmo de seguimiento del punto de máxima potencia (MPPT); y prolongando la vida útil de la batería gracias a un funcionamiento cooperativo del HESS. Se ha desarrollado un modelo de simulación para mostrar el funcionamiento detallado del sistema. Finalmente, se implementó un prototipo de la plataforma de multiconversores y se realizaron algunas pruebas experimentales para validarlo.The future of the grid includes distributed generation and smart grid technologies. Demand Side Management (DSM) systems will also be essential to achieve a high level of reliability and robustness in power systems. To do that, expanding the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) and Energy Management Systems (EMS) are necessary. The trend direction is towards the creation of energy resource hubs, such as the smart community concept. This paper presents a smart multiconverter system for residential/housing sector with a Hybrid Energy Storage System (HESS) consisting of supercapacitor and battery, and with local photovoltaic (PV) energy source integration. The device works as a distributed energy unit located in each house of the community, receiving active power set-points provided by a smart community EMS. This central EMS is responsible for managing the active energy flows between the electricity grid, renewable energy sources, storage equipment and loads existing in the community. The proposed multiconverter is responsible for complying with the reference active power set-points with proper power quality; guaranteeing that the local PV modules operate with a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) algorithm; and extending the lifetime of the battery thanks to a cooperative operation of the HESS. A simulation model has been developed in order to show the detailed operation of the system. Finally, a prototype of the multiconverter platform has been implemented and some experimental tests have been carried out to validate it.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (España) y Fondos FEDER: Proyecto TEC2013-47316-C3-3-PpeerReviewe

Characterizing Computer Access Using a One-Channel EEG Wireless Sensor

This work studies the feasibility of using mental attention to access a computer. Brain activity was measured with an electrode placed at the Fp1 position and the reference on the left ear; seven normally developed people and three subjects with cerebral palsy (CP) took part in the experimentation. They were asked to keep their attention high and low for as long as possible during several trials. We recorded attention levels and power bands conveyed by the sensor, but only the first was used for feedback purposes. All of the information was statistically analyzed to find the most significant parameters and a classifier based on linear discriminant analysis (LDA) was also set up. In addition, 60% of the participants were potential users of this technology with an accuracy of over 70%. Including power bands in the classifier did not improve the accuracy in discriminating between the two attentional states. For most people, the best results were obtained by using only the attention indicator in classification. Tiredness was higher in the group with disabilities (2.7 in a scale of 3) than in the other (1.5 in the same scale); and modulating the attention to access a communication board requires that it does not contain many pictograms (between 4 and 7) on screen and has a scanning period of a relatively high tscan 10 s. The information transfer rate (ITR) is similar to the one obtained by other brain computer interfaces (BCI), like those based on sensorimotor rhythms (SMR) or slow cortical potentials (SCP), and makes it suitable as an eye-gaze independent BCI

Implementación de un procesador académico simple así como de un entorno de programación y depuración para el mismo

En este trabajo se desarrolla un procesador académico para su uso en la asignatura Estructura de Computadores de primer curso de las nuevas titulaciones de Grado en Ingeniería Informática. En las prácticas de la asignatura se aplicarán los conceptos de sistemas digitales que ya poseen los alumnos al diseño e implementación de este procesador con el objetivo de que interactúen con una instancia real del mismo desde distintos puntos de vista: modificándola para aumentar su funcionalidad, programándola para comprobar su funcionamiento y analizando su estado interno a medida que ejecuta instrucciones. La posibilidad de que el alumno traslade el diseño teórico a una implementación funcional es fundamental para incrementar su motivación en el aprendizaje.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TEC2011-27936 (HIPERSYS

An information literacy approach within the "Guided weekly reflection papers"

INTED 2015, 9 th International Technology, Education and Development Conference, March 2 nd-4 th, 2015-Madrid, SpainA group of lecturers from diverse areas of knowledge of the University of Alcalá have implemented an experience of teaching innovation based on “reflective diaries”. The students hand in to the lecturer every week their “Weekly Reflection Papers” (WRP), in which they schematically express the most important ideas related with the topic presented during the classes of the previous week. They must include their reflections about the aspects they found especially interesting. After having applied this tool for some academic years we introduced a modification called “Guided Weekly Reflection Papers” (GWRP), where the professors suggest a series of questions on which the students must apply the most significant concepts studied each week. This modification enhances student’s motivation, encourages them to achieve more significant and reflective knowledge and generates interest in emergent topics. However, we often detect that the information management needed to solve the proposed questions in the GWRP is not the most suitable one. Therefore our present work is aimed at helping students develop the necessary skills and acquire a searching criterion in the framework of the information literacy. The strategy was focussed on some important items for the acquisition of information competencies. In this communication we analyze the progress of the GWRP tool and we explore the response of students to the information literacy approach

Artificial intelligence in medicine and healthcare: a review and classification of current and near-future applications and their ethical and social Impact

This paper provides an overview of the current and near-future applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Medicine and Health Care and presents a classification according to their ethical and societal aspects, potential benefits and pitfalls, and issues that can be considered controversial and are not deeply discussed in the literature. This work is based on an analysis of the state of the art of research and technology, including existing software, personal monitoring devices, genetic tests and editing tools, personalized digital models, online platforms, augmented reality devices, and surgical and companion robotics. Motivated by our review, we present and describe the notion of 'extended personalized medicine', we then review existing applications of AI in medicine and healthcare and explore the public perception of medical AI systems, and how they show, simultaneously, extraordinary opportunities and drawbacks that even question fundamental medical concepts. Many of these topics coincide with urgent priorities recently defined by the World Health Organization for the coming decade. In addition, we study the transformations of the roles of doctors and patients in an age of ubiquitous information, identify the risk of a division of Medicine into 'fake-based', 'patient-generated', and 'scientifically tailored', and draw the attention of some aspects that need further thorough analysis and public debate