343 research outputs found
Spor Bilimlerinde Hareket Yakalama Teknolojisi: Kinect ile Üç Boyutlu Sanal Spor Platformu
Düzenli spor yapmanın yaşam ve sağlık kalitesi için yararlı olduğu kabul edilmektedir. Fakat düzenli spor yapma olanaklarının özellikle gelişmekte olan ülkelerde yeterince yaygınlaşmadığı gözlenmektedir. İnternet ve Kinect gibi güncel ve gelişmiş teknolojilerin sağladığı olanaklar ile, spor yapamayanlara fiziksel olarak aynı ortamda bulunmaksızın, sanal eğitmen kontrolünde spor yapabilme olanağı sunmanın alternatif bir çözüm yaratabileceği düşünülmektedir. Bu doğrultudaki çalışmalarla, Kinect üç boyutlu sanal spor platformu tasarlanıp geliştirilmiştir. Geliştirilen platformun özellikleri, yeni teknolojilerin avantajlarının kullanıldığı platformlar ile alternatif spor yapma olanakları gözden geçirilmektedirRegular sports activity is considered to be beneficial for life quality and health. On the other hand, regular sporting opportunities are not widespread, especially in developing countries. It may be possible to provide an alternative solution for physical activity in the control of a virtual instructor, without being physically in the same place, thanks to the facilities provided by technologies such as Internet and Kinect. In this respect, the three dimensional virtual sports platform Kinect was designed and developed. The different features of the platform are described, and the advantages of new technology achievement and possibilities of alternative sports practice are give
The Critical Finite Size Scaling Relation of the Order-Parameter Probability Distribution for the Three-Dimensional Ising Model on the Creutz Cellular Automaton
We study the order parameter probability distribution at the critical point
for the three-dimensional spin-1/2 and spin-1 Ising models on the simple cubic
lattice with periodic boundary conditions. The finite size scaling relation for
the order parameter probability distribution is tested and verified numerically
by microcanonical Creutz cellular automata simulations. The state critical
exponent \delta, which characteries the far tail regime of the scaling order
parameter probability distribution, is estimated for 3-d Ising models using the
cellular automaton simulations at the critical temperature. The results are in
good agreement with the monte carlo calculations.Comment: 8 pages 5 figure
Transport Phenomena at a Critical Point -- Thermal Conduction in the Creutz Cellular Automaton --
Nature of energy transport around a critical point is studied in the Creutz
cellular automaton. Fourier heat law is confirmed to hold in this model by a
direct measurement of heat flow under a temperature gradient. The thermal
conductivity is carefully investigated near the phase transition by the use of
the Kubo formula. As the result, the thermal conductivity is found to take a
finite value at the critical point contrary to some previous works. Equal-time
correlation of the heat flow is also analyzed by a mean-field type
approximation to investigate the temperature dependence of thermal
conductivity. A variant of the Creutz cellular automaton called the Q2R is also
investigated and similar results are obtained.Comment: 27 pages including 14figure
The application of precisely controlled functional electrical stimulation to the shoulder, elbow and wrist for upper limb stroke rehabilitation: a feasibility study.
Functional electrical stimulation (FES) during repetitive practice of everyday tasks can facilitate recovery of upper limb function following stroke. Reduction in impairment is strongly associated with how closely FES assists performance, with advanced iterative learning control (ILC) technology providing precise upper-limb assistance. The aim of this study is to investigate the feasibility of extending ILC technology to control FES of three muscle groups in the upper limb to facilitate functional motor recovery post-stroke
Photonic quantum state transfer between a cold atomic gas and a crystal
Interfacing fundamentally different quantum systems is key to build future
hybrid quantum networks. Such heterogeneous networks offer superior
capabilities compared to their homogeneous counterparts as they merge
individual advantages of disparate quantum nodes in a single network
architecture. However, only very few investigations on optical
hybrid-interconnections have been carried out due to the high fundamental and
technological challenges, which involve e.g. wavelength and bandwidth matching
of the interfacing photons. Here we report the first optical quantum
interconnection between two disparate matter quantum systems with photon
storage capabilities. We show that a quantum state can be faithfully
transferred between a cold atomic ensemble and a rare-earth doped crystal via a
single photon at telecommunication wavelength, using cascaded quantum frequency
conversion. We first demonstrate that quantum correlations between a photon and
a single collective spin excitation in the cold atomic ensemble can be
transferred onto the solid-state system. We also show that single-photon
time-bin qubits generated in the cold atomic ensemble can be converted, stored
and retrieved from the crystal with a conditional qubit fidelity of more than
. Our results open prospects to optically connect quantum nodes with
different capabilities and represent an important step towards the realization
of large-scale hybrid quantum networks
Adaptogenic and nootropic activities of aqueous extract of Vitis vinifera (grape seed): an experimental study in rat model
BACKGROUND: The aerial parts of Vitis vinifera (common grape or European grape) have been widely used in Ayurveda to treat a variety of common and stress related disorders. In the present investigation, the seed extract of V. vinifera was evaluated for antistress activity in normal and stress induced rats. Furthermore, the extract was studied for nootropic activity in rats and in-vitro antioxidant potential to correlate its antistress activity. METHODS: For the evaluation of antistress activity, groups of rats (n = 6) were subjected to forced swim stress one hour after daily treatment of V. vinifera extract. Urinary vanillylmandelic acid (VMA) and ascorbic acid were selected as non-invasive biomarkers to assess the antistress activity. The 24 h urinary excretion of vanillylmandelic acid (VMA) and ascorbic acid were determined by spectrophotometric methods in all groups under normal and stressed conditions. The nootropic activity of the extract as determined from acquisition, retention and retrieval in rats was studied by conditioned avoidance response using Cook's pole climbing apparatus. The in vitro antioxidant activity was determined based on the ability of V. vinifera to scavenge hydroxyl radicals. RESULTS: Daily administration of V. vinifera at doses of 100, 200 and 300 mg/kg body weight one hour prior to induction of stress inhibited the stress induced urinary biochemical changes in a dose dependent manner. However, no change in the urinary excretion of VMA and ascorbic acid was observed in normal animals at all the doses studied. The cognition, as determined by the acquisition, retention and recovery in rats was observed to be dose dependent. The extract also produced significant inhibition of hydroxyl radicals in comparison to ascorbic acid in a dose dependent manner. CONCLUSION: The present study provides scientific support for the antistress (adaptogenic), antioxidant and nootropic activities of V. vinifera seed extract and substantiate the traditional claims for the usage of grape fruits and seeds in stress induced disorders
Religious Officials' knowledge, attitude, and behavior towards smoking and the new tobacco law in Kahramanmaras, Turkey
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Tobacco control effort should be first started in people that are looked upon as role models for the general population. We aimed to determine the knowledge, attitude, and behavior of religious officials towards smoking and the new tobacco law.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>The study group was comprised of 492 Imams and 149 Quran course instructors working in Kahramanmaras city of Turkey, 641 religious officials in total, and our survey form was applied on 406 (63.3%) of those religious officials who agreed to participate in the study.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Twenty-eight (6.9%) participants were current smokers and 35 (8.6%) were ex-smokers. 99.8% of the religious officials believed that smoking was harmful and/or prohibited in terms of religion. While 43.6% respondents thought smoking was "<it>haram</it>" (forbidden by Islam), 56.2% believed it was "<it>makruh</it>" (something regarded as reprehensible, though not forbidden by God according to Islam). 85.2% of the participants were aware of the recent tobacco law. 55.5% of the respondents, who were aware of the recent tobacco law, evaluated their knowledge level on the law as adequate, whereas 44.5% evaluated it as inadequate 92.4% of the participants noted that religious officials should play active roles in tobacco control effort.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Smoking rate among religious officials is much lower than that of general public. In order to help religious officials to take a more active role on this issue, they should be trained on the subject and appropriate platforms should be established.</p
Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Protects Human Islets against Cytokine-Mediated β-Cell Dysfunction and Death: A Proteomic Study of the Pathways Involved
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) has been shown to protect pancreatic β-cells against cytokine-induced dysfunction and destruction. The mechanisms through which GLP-1 exerts its effects are complex and still poorly understood. The aim of this study was to analyze the protein expression profiles of human islets of Langerhans treated with cytokines (IL-1β and IFN-γ) in the presence or absence of GLP-1 by 2D difference gel electrophoresis and subsequent protein interaction network analysis to understand the molecular pathways involved in GLP-1-mediated β-cell protection. Co-incubation of cytokine-treated human islets with GLP-1 resulted in a marked protection of β-cells against cytokine-induced apoptosis and significantly attenuated cytokine-mediated inhibition of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. The cytoprotective effects of GLP-1 coincided with substantial alterations in the protein expression profile of cytokine-treated human islets, illustrating a counteracting effect on proteins from different functional classes such as actin cytoskeleton, chaperones, metabolic proteins, and islet regenerating proteins. In summary, GLP-1 alters in an integrated manner protein networks in cytokine-exposed human islets while protecting them against cytokine-mediated cell death and dysfunction. These data illustrate the beneficial effects of GLP-1 on human islets under immune attack, leading to a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms involved, a prerequisite for improving therapies for diabetic patients.status: publishe
Search for Dark Matter Axions with CAST-CAPP
The CAST-CAPP axion haloscope, operating at CERN inside the CAST dipole
magnet, has searched for axions in the 19.74 eV to 22.47 eV mass
range. The detection concept follows the Sikivie haloscope principle, where
Dark Matter axions convert into photons within a resonator immersed in a
magnetic field. The CAST-CAPP resonator is an array of four individual
rectangular cavities inserted in a strong dipole magnet, phase-matched to
maximize the detection sensitivity. Here we report on the data acquired for
4124 h from 2019 to 2021. Each cavity is equipped with a fast frequency tuning
mechanism of 10 MHz/min between 4.774 GHz and 5.434 GHz. In the present work,
we exclude axion-photon couplings for virialized galactic axions down to
at the 90% confidence
level. The here implemented phase-matching technique also allows for future
large-scale upgrades.Comment: 24 pages, 5 figures, Published version available with Open Access at
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-33913-
Caspase-3 dependent nitrergic neuronal apoptosis following cavernous nerve injury is mediated via RhoA and ROCK activation in major pelvic ganglion
Axonal injury due to prostatectomy leads to Wallerian degeneration of the cavernous nerve (CN) and erectile dysfunction (ED). Return of potency is dependent on axonal regeneration and reinnervation of the penis. Following CN injury (CNI), RhoA and Rho-associated protein kinase (ROCK) increase
in penile endothelial and smooth muscle cells. Previous studies indicate that nerve regeneration is hampered by activation of RhoA/ROCK pathway. We evaluated the role of RhoA/ROCK pathway in CN regulation following CNI using a validated rat model. CNI upregulated gene and protein expression of RhoA/ROCK and caspase-3 mediated apoptosis in the major pelvic ganglion (MPG). ROCK inhibitor (ROCK-I) prevented upregulation of RhoA/ROCK pathway as well as activation of caspase-3 in the MPG. Following CNI, there was decrease in the dimer to monomer ratio of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) protein and lowered NOS activity in the MPG, which were prevented by ROCK-I. CNI lowered intracavernous pressure and impaired non-adrenergic non-cholinergic-mediated relaxation in the penis, consistent with ED. ROCK-I maintained the intracavernous pressure and non-adrenergic non-cholinergic-mediated relaxation in the penis following CNI. These results suggest that activation of RhoA/ROCK pathway mediates caspase-3 dependent apoptosis of nitrergic neurons in the MPG following CNI and that ROCK-I can prevent post-prostatectomy ED
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