Cloud-Induced Uncertainty for Visual Navigation

This research addresses the numerical distortion of features due to the presence of clouds in an image. The research aims to quantify the probability of a mismatch between two features in a single image, which will describe the likelihood that a visual navigation system incorrectly tracks a feature throughout an image sequence, leading to position miscalculations. First, an algorithm is developed for calculating transparency of clouds in images at the pixel level. The algorithm determines transparency based on the distance between each pixel color and the average pixel color of the clouds. The algorithm is used to create a dataset of cloudy aerial images. Matching features are then detected between the original and cloudy images, which allows a direct comparison between features with and without clouds. The transparency values are used to segment the detected features into three categories, based on whether the features are located in the regions without clouds, along edges of clouds, or with clouds. The error between features on the cloudy and cloud-free images is determined, and used as a basis for generating a synthetic dataset with statistically similar properties. Lastly, Monte Carlo techniques are used to find the probability of mismatching

Gardner-Webb Honor Society Students Excel at National Convention

Gardner-Webb University students have long prided themselves on their academic fitness. Recently, members of the Alpha Chi Honor Society flexed those muscles at the Alpha Chi 2014 National Convention held in St. Louis, Mo. For the first time in Alpha Chi’s 92-year history, the organization offered a $5,000 prize for the best collaborative, interdisciplinary project on the assigned topic of “The Future of Water.” The Gardner-Webb team took first place.https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gardner-webb-newscenter-archive/2413/thumbnail.jp

GWU Mission Trips Help Spread the Word of God Across the Globe

As a university with a large-scale commitment to service in both the local and global communities, Gardner-Webb places a particular emphasis on missions. The call to help others was answered this semester, when four separate groups set out from Boiling Springs during the Spring Break holiday. With trips to Jamaica, Nicaragua and Honduras, Gardner-Webb students relished the opportunity to spread the Word of God and also help with various projects in the towns and villages in which they stayed.https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gardner-webb-newscenter-archive/2415/thumbnail.jp

Free to be Me: A Closer Look at GWU Student Deanna Ramsey

Gardner-Webb University sophomore Deanna Ramsey stands only three-feet and six-inches tall. Yet, she is the living definition of the phrase, “Big things come in small packages.” Although she lives a vibrant life now, it was not always bright for Ramsey who was born with a form of dwarfism called spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenital (SED).https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gardner-webb-newscenter-archive/2401/thumbnail.jp

Brothers by Chance, Friends by Choice

Family is one of the most important bonds a person can have in life, and for the Bennett brothers, nothing rings more true. Hailing from Franklin, Tenn., Zach, a junior and his freshman brothers, Alex and Andy, all call Gardner-Webb home during the school year and are beginning to leave their mark at GWU. Zach, who was the first Bennett to step on campus, transferred from The Citadel, a military college located in Charleston, S.C., in January 2013.https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gardner-webb-newscenter-archive/2429/thumbnail.jp

Life Coach, Counselor to Speak at Dimensions on Tuesday, Oct. 14

The Dimensions program at Gardner-Webb University announces its 10th guest for the 2014-2015 academic year. Author and addiction recovery coach Mike Reis will share his story of overcoming the battle of alcoholism and other addictive behaviors on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 9:25 a.m. in the Paul Porter Arena, located inside the Lutz-Yelton Convocation Center (LYCC). The event is free and open to the public.https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gardner-webb-newscenter-archive/3072/thumbnail.jp

Dr. Hebert Palomino Helps Spread Baptist Faith in Communist Cuba

Although the Cold War ended over 22 years ago, a long-standing view against religious practice is finally beginning to thaw in the island nation of Cuba, due in part to the efforts of one Gardner-Webb University professor. For several years now, Dr. Hebert Palomino has been teaching and preparing Cuban citizens to become pastors, and has taken over 10 trips in the past several years to the capitol city of Havana to offer his services and the help spread the Word. While the prevailing religion in the country before the Communist takeover was Catholicism, the nation, who became almost totally secularized, is now hungry for the Gospel and has seen a rise in Baptist affiliated churches and congregations.https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gardner-webb-newscenter-archive/2515/thumbnail.jp

From Good to Grace

“I knew my life was going to change as soon as that first test came back positive,” said Katlyn Scruggs, who recently graduated with a degree in psychology at Gardner-Webb University. “I was in complete denial, so I took another test and another test and still every single one came back with what I already knew—I was pregnant.” Growing up in a strict Christian household, Scruggs was fully aware of the high expectations that her parents had for her which included no partying and moral purity when it came to boys.https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gardner-webb-newscenter-archive/2434/thumbnail.jp

What Are the Correlations Between Muscle Strength, Motor Coordination, and Daily Function of the Upper Extremities in Older Adults?

poster abstractMuscle strength is a basic body function needed to perform everyday activities. Therefore, age-related decline in muscle strength may impair older adults’ independence at home. Age-related decline in muscle strength occurs in the lower and upper extremities. The literature has shown a strong correlation between the loss of muscle strength in the lower extremities and mobility disability. However, little is known about the loss of muscle strength in the upper extremities and daily function. The purpose of this study is to estimate how muscle strength relates to motor coordination and daily function in the upper extremities of older adults. We plan to recruit 50 community dwelling older adults without major neurological disorders in a cross-sectional study. We have tested 18 participants (36% of our expected total) with an average age of 69 (SD = 4.5). Participants tested so far include 6 males and 12 females, in which 7 were African American and 11 were Caucasian. The average grip strength was 23.6 kg (SD = 10.1). The average number of arm curls done in 30 seconds were 12.7 (SD = 4.4). The average score from the Purdue Pegboard was 9.7 (SD = 1.9). The average score of the upper extremity function measure by the Late Life Function & Disability was 74.1 (SD = 13.8). The correlations among variables will be calculated when we reach the recruitment goal of 50 participants

EFFECTIVENESS OF AN AT-HOME BASED PHYSICAL ACTIVITY INTERVENTIONS FOR FAMILIES WHO HAVE CHILDREN WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES

poster abstractThis study was conducted to determine whether an at-home based activity intervention for families who have a child with an intellectual disability was an effective mean to increase motor skill ability and activity adherence. Purpose: Specifically, investigators were interested in 1) determining whether weekly home-based visits improves motor skills (intervention group) more than those whose families received only weekly phone calls (attention group) and 2) determining factors that affected a family’s adherence to the program. Physical activity literature involving children with intellectual disabilities suggests that behavior management, directed activity programming, and family intervention enhance adherence as well as sustainability of a new program. The authors anticipated that the intervention group would have greater adherence to an exercise program and exhibit improved scores on the gross motor quotient (GMQ), which is a numeric representation of the participant’s overall score on the assessment. Methods: The study was conducted with 16 families, eight in the intervention group and eight in attention group. Measures of efficacy include activity adherence (self-report) and pre/post motor skill performance on an assessment examining motor skills. Results: An independent t-test was conducted comparing scores from the pre- to the post- assessments between the attention and intervention groups. There were no significant differences between the scores for the attention group (M=11.25 SD=9.177) and the intervention group M=20.25, SD=21.737; t (14) =-1.079, p=.3 (two-tailed). However, the magnitude of the differences in the means (mean difference=-9.0, 95% Cl: 26.892 to 8.892) showed that there was a moderate effect. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that there were no statistical significances between the improvements in the scores between both groups. However, although not statistically significant the intervention did have a moderate effect on the groups. The investigators were encouraged by the moderate effect of the intervention