Relationship between behaviors for purchasing OTC medicines and literacy of consumers

The rapid development of e-commerce and impact of the pandemic may affect consumers' healthy behavior in purchasing OTC medicines. This study aimed to examine the relationship between Japanese consumers’ current behaviors of purchasing OTC medicines and literacy through exploring the digital experience of purchasing based on tablets. An online questionnaire was conducted in the Kanto region of Japan, which included questions on purchasing behaviors and medication literacy, and the Japanese version of the eHealth Literacy Scale. Of the participants who had experience in purchasing OTC medicines, 89.47% preferred to buy them at pharmacies or stores, whereas 9.47% tended to purchase them online (χ2(2) = 271.50, p < .01); 64.24% accepted choosing medicines through a digital screen (χ2(3) = 102.36, p < .01) and 85.26% obtained information through smartphones while purchasing OTC medicines at pharmacies or stores. Young consumers aged 20-29 years used smartphones significantly more frequently than those aged 30-49 years (p <. 01). There was a positive correlation between eHealth literacy and smartphone use (r = .24, p < .01). The results suggest that Japanese consumers prefer to visit a pharmacy or drug store to purchase OTC medicines. They also prefer to search for information about OTC medicines on-site with a digital device, such as a smartphone, rather than buying OTC medicines from online stores. The digital experience of a tablet-based purchasing system would be useful and acceptable for young consumers and those with high eHealth literacy

Negative attitudes towards robots vary by the occupation of robots

The "negative attitudes towards robots scale" (NARS) has been widely applied in the field of robot-human interaction. However, the various occupations and roles of robots have not been discussed when studying negative attitudes towards robots. This study explores whether the occupation of robots could influence people's negative attitudes towards them. For the first time, two types of robots that may be widely used were used in a NARS-related study. We conducted online questionnaire research, covering three separate parts: negative attitudes towards robots, negative attitudes towards service robots, and negative attitudes towards security robots. The results of the online survey collected from 114 participants (54 females and 60 males) highlighted differences among the scores of people's negative attitudes towards service robots and the negative attitudes towards robots or security robots. People showed the lowest negative attitudes towards service robots. There were no significant differences between the negative attitudes towards robots and security robots. This study supports the hypothesis that people show different levels of negative attitudes towards different types of robots in terms of occupational division. These results provide a helpful indicator for the study and design of robots in various occupations in the robotics industry

An Educational Intervention to Foster Interest in Sustainable Design

Issues compromising the educational role of video social networks include individual, social and structural factors. We propose an educational intervention using online videos and implementation intentions, copying with these issues to foster interest on Sustainable Design. Based on semantic and sentiment analysis on top YouTube videos related to Sustainable Design, we created a recommendation system in English and Spanish. We compared the system\u27s performance with a YouTube search and with participants divided in three groups. One group used YouTube while the other two used the recommendation system. The third group practiced implementation intentions activity and some participants used an eye-tracking device. Precision and recall in English were slightly lower for the system in comparison to YouTube, but the variety of recommended videos increased. In Spanish, precision and recall were higher for the system, increasing the number of videos from Spanish speaking countries. After two months, there was a significant difference in number of Sustainable Design projects from subjects of the full intervention group and the control group, while interest post intervention was a significant predictor of projects. Testing with a bigger number of participants during longer periods of time is recommended.Art and Design Research for Sustainable Development ; September 22, 2018Conference: Tsukuba Global Science Week 2018Date: September 20-22, 2018Venue: Tsukuba International Congress Center Sponsored: University of TsukubaThis research was founded by the Rotary Yoneyama Scholarship Association

On the Evaluation of a Huggable Interface to Mediate Remote Affective Communication

Art and Design Research for the Future: Innovation and Art & Design ; September 26, 2017Conference: Tsukuba Global Science Week 2017Date: September 25-27, 2017Venue: Tsukuba International Congress CenterSponsored: University of Tsukub

The Effects of Aroma on Relaxation During the Group Calligraphy Activity of Elderly People: Case Studies in China and Japan

Previous research has found that aromatherapy has positive effects on ability and mood. However, only a limited number of studies have focused on the effects of aroma on elderly people when they are engaged in group activities, although it has proven to be beneficial to the elderly. Consequently, we studied the effects of aroma on the relaxation of elderly participants of a group activity by conducting an experiment in which we used orange oil to provide an "aroma environment" and plain water to provide a "without-aroma environment." Our results suggest that citrus aromas have an effect on the physiological and psychological relaxation of elderly people when they are participating in group activities. Further studies are required focusing on the observation of different kinds of aromas and the sustainability of the same aroma.Art and Design Research for Sustainable Development ; September 22, 2018Conference: Tsukuba Global Science Week 2018Date: September 20-22, 2018Venue: Tsukuba International Congress Center Sponsored: University of Tsukub

Design Proposals for People with Sensory Hypersensitivity Based on Survey and Interview

Although there are many types of designs for people with declining sensory abilities (Baldwin C L., 2002), there are only a few examples of designs for people with sensory hypersensitivity. Therefore, we have tried to develop designs for people with sensory hypersensitivity. We conducted a survey and some interviews on hypersensitivity, and based on this research, we proposed various product designs, service designs, and visual designs for people with sensory hypersensitivity.Art and Design Research for Sustainable Development ; September 22, 2018Conference: Tsukuba Global Science Week 2018Date: September 20-22, 2018Venue: Tsukuba International Congress Center Sponsored: University of Tsukub

Rice yield and soil carbon dynamics over three years of applying rice husk charcoal to an Andosol paddy field

Rice husk charcoal (RC) produced from the pyrolysis of rice husk (RH) can be one of the cost-effective biochars for use in rice-based farming systems. This study investigated changes in rice yield and soil carbon sequestration over three years of RC application to an Andosol paddy field. The treatments were RC application at 0.02, 0.2, and 2 kg m−2 (RC0.02, RC0.2, and RC2, respectively), RH application at 0.2 kg m−2 (RH0.2), and a control with no RC or RH application (CONT). The results showed that RC2 increased culm length by 4% and straw weight by 14% on average over the three years. These increases in plant growth coincided with a higher level of silicon uptake by the rice plants, although they did not significantly affect grain yield. The soil carbon content was progressively increased by RC2 over the three years, whereas it was not significantly affected by RC0.02 or RC0.2. A considerable amount (>72%) of the applied carbon with RC2 remained in the soil by taking account of its downward movement below the 10 cm layer of the paddy field after three consecutive years of RC application. We conclude that rice husk charcoal application to Andosol paddy fields is an effective option for increasing carbon sequestration. Furthermore, the increase in silicon uptake by rice plants suggests that rice husk charcoal can also be functioning as a silicon fertilizer