A virtual shopping test for realistic assessment of cognitive function

BACKGROUND: Cognitive dysfunction caused by brain injury often prevents a patient from achieving a healthy and high quality of life. By now, each cognitive function is assessed precisely by neuropsychological tests. However, it is also important to provide an overall assessment of the patients’ ability in their everyday life. We have developed a Virtual Shopping Test (VST) using virtual reality technology. The objective of this study was to clarify 1) the significance of VST by comparing VST with other conventional tests, 2) the applicability of VST to brain-damaged patients, and 3) the performance of VST in relation to age differences. METHODS: The participants included 10 patients with brain damage, 10 age-matched healthy subjects for controls, 10 old healthy subjects, and 10 young healthy subjects. VST and neuropsychological tests/questionnaires about attention, memory and executive function were conducted on the patients, while VST and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) were conducted on the controls and healthy subjects. Within the VST, the participants were asked to buy four items in the virtual shopping mall quickly in a rational way. The score for evaluation included the number of items bought correctly, the number of times to refer to hints, the number of movements between shops, and the total time spent to complete the shopping. RESULTS: Some variables on VST correlated with the scores of conventional assessment about attention and everyday memory. The mean number of times referring to hints and the mean number of movements were significantly larger for the patients with brain damage, and the mean total time was significantly longer for the patients than for the controls. In addition, the mean total time was significantly longer for the old than for the young. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that VST is able to evaluate the ability of attention and everyday memory in patients with brain damage. The time of VST is increased by age

Topographic Survey of the Naga-une Mounded Tomb No. 10 in Mirasaka, Miyoshi City

The Naga-une mounded tomb No.10 is supposed to be a round or scallop shell-shaped mounded tomb located in Mirasaka-chō, Miyoshi City, Hiroshima Prefecture. As part of “Field Practice in Archaeology C” for the twenty-fifth annual class of archaeology majors at the Hiroshima University School of Letters, we conducted a topographic survey of this mound with the aim of clarifying its scale, shape and the date of its construction. This mounded tomb has been altered by land reclamation for a vineyard, however, we could reconstruct its shape according to the plan, based on some parts that so far remained in good condition. The results of this survey indicated that the Naga-une mounded tomb is a scallop shell-shaped mounded tomb of the Kofun period, 19.5m in length and was constructed in the second half of the 6th century AD (additional interment may be performed at the beginning of the 7th century). This allows the conclusion that the building of small scallop shell-shaped mounded tombs also continued in the second half of the Late Kofun period. Additionally, we assumed the possibility that this mound has a corridor-style stone chamber with horizontal side entrance because of the additional interment, and that many kinds of the Sue ware were put on the floor of this chamber, which was typical in the regions of Miyoshi and Shōbara City in the northern part of Hiroshima Prefecture and the San’in region

Topographic Survey of the Shinjō-ryūō Mounded Tomb No.1 in Shinjō-chō, Shōbara City

The Shinjō-ryūō mounded tomb No.1 is a scallop shell-shaped mound tomb located in Shinjō-chō, Shōbara City, Hiroshima Prefecture. In March 2007, as part of “Field Practice in Archaeology C” for the sixteenth annual class of archaeology majors at the Hiroshima University School of Letters, we conducted a topographic survey of this mound with the aim of creating a detailed survey map and clarifying its historical significance. The results of this survey indicated that the Shinzō-ryūō mounded tomb No.1 is a scallop shell-shaped mounded tomb of the Kofun period with 51.9m in length. In addition, according to the possibility that the mound shape is similar to that of the Maruyama-jinja mounded tomb No.1 and the change of the surface shape of the rectangular part of scallop shell-shaped mounded tombs in Hiroshima Prefecture, we draw the conclusion that the Shinjōryūō mounded tomb No.1 was constructed around the end of the 4th century to the early 5th century AD. As a result, the Shinjō-ryūō mounded tomb No.1 is the oldest among the scallop shell-shaped mounded tombs of the fifth century in the vicinity of the cities of Miyoshi and Shōbara in the northern part of Hiroshima Prefecture

東アジアの離島集落に見る住まいの変容と生活文化/―台湾金門島及び八重山諸島石垣島を事例に―

　本研究では、福佬（Ho-lo）人の移住文化を対象に、その歴史と暮らしの変遷、居住環境について分析・考察した。研究対象地は周囲を海に囲まれた環境下にあり、独自の伝統文化や習俗、空間構造を継承している。このような地理的・文化的環境の中で、東アジアの結節点となる台湾領域中国福建省金門島及び八重山諸島石垣島を主対象に捉え、研究を展開した。　金門島では、血縁による結びつきが重視され、同一氏族により形成された宗族的つながりを強く持つ単姓村と、多数の氏により形成される複姓村に分類される。対象集落は、海岸線に沿った緩やかな台地に立地し、1315 年頃に福建省厦門からの移住者が開墾した農漁村集落である。住居は四合院で構成され、一定の領域内で中規模な空間を形成しているが、宗族ごとに住居の向きが異なり、それぞれに方向軸を持っているため各時代の空間形成の発展性を読み取ることができる。　また、集落は明確な境界域を定めず、人口増加に対応しながら空間を拡張している。これは、島に福佬人しか居住していないこと、地形条件に対する制限が少ないことが要因として考えられる。台湾本島や石垣島では、住居の周囲は自然地形や植栽などにより空間を補っている場合が多い。The study targets the migration culture of ho-lo and analyzes and examines the evolution of the history and life,and the cross-border nature of their living environment.The target area of the research is located in an environment surrounded by sea and that has inherited a unique and traditional culture, and customs and spatial structure. In Kinmen Island, ties based on blood relationships are valued and the villages are classified into two types: villages with a single family name where there are strong ties in the family line formed by the same clan and villages with multiple family names where family lines are formed by diverse clans. The targeted settlement is located in a moderate plateau land along the coastline and is a fishing and agrarian village established on reclaimed land in 1315 by migrants from Amoy in the Fujian province. The residences are of the Si-he-yuan structure (an enclosed square yard with houses on four sides) but the direction of the houses of each family line is different and one can see the nature of the development of the spatial formation in each period

The relationship between emotional understanding and social skills in young children <Research papers>

This study investigated the relationships between emotional understanding and social skills in young children. Participants were 111 children (4-6 years old), 59 of whom were boys and 52 were girls. The investigator told a story and asked each child to answer with what kind of emotion (happy, sad, or angry) the protagonist would feel. The results showed that there was a significant correlation between children’s emotional understanding and social skills in the elder age group (ages 61-72 months), but no equivalent significant correlation in the younger age group (ages 48-60 months). These results suggest that the relationship between emotional understanding and social skills in children could be distinguished according to age group

東南アジアにおける生活デザインのハイブリッド性についての調査研究/－プラナカン・デザインの現代的役割を探る試み－(2)

　本報告は、東南アジアの生活デザインにみられるハイブリッド性を探る試みとして、「プラナカン様式」という東洋(中国、マレー)と西洋を折衷、融合させたデザインに焦点をあて、その歴史的背景、建築、服飾、インテリア、生活用品等の生活全般におよぶデザインの特色および近年になって再評価されている現代的な意味について検討するものである。　2018 年度は、2017 年度の研究成果を補足しさらに、深化させることを目的に、マラッカで再度現地調査を実施した。調査研究のテーマを、ショップハウスの街並み構成と装飾デザイン、伝統的な装身具と現代のデザイン、密集する多様な宗教施設の3 つに絞り、マラッカのプラナカン文化について理解を深めた。　これらの一連の調査分析を通じて、プラナカンがつくりだしたショップハウスの融合的折衷的な景観は、点在する宗教施設の多様性とともに、植民地の歴史を踏まえたマラッカの独自性に大きな貢献を果たしている。また、プラナカン女性の装身具にみられる文化的複合性は、現代ではマレー文化のアイデンティティと結びつけられて語られていることが明らかになった。今後は、マラッカをはじめとして、ペナン等の他の地域での具体的な生活のありようを探り、プラナカンの生活の全体像を把握することが必要である。This report attempts to make clear the hybridness ofeveryday cultural designs in Southeast Asia, through focusing on the Peranakan designs, which made compromise between Eastern cultures (Chinese, Malay) and Western ones. Peranakan designs including architecture, fashion and interior, are reevaluated as cultural heritage of national unity and tourism in Malaysia and Singapore. In this year, we carried out intensive researches at Malacca again on the townscape and façade of shophouses, accessories including beads sandal and breastpin for Peranakan lady and various religious facilities from viewpoint of cultural complexity and merging design. We could understand the fusional and eclectic townscape of shophouse arranging Chinese motifs and European motifs which is characteristic of Peranakan, have been contributing the uniqueness of Malacca as historical town. We would like to study the wholeness of everyday life of Peranakan from researching at other Peranakan town in Southeast Asia

東南アジアにおける生活デザインのハイブリッド性についての調査研究／－プラナカン・デザインの現代的役割を探る試み－

　本報告は、東南アジアの生活デザインにみられるハイブリッド性を探る試みとして、「プラナカン様式」という東洋(中国、マレー)と西洋を折衷、融合させたデザインに焦点をあて、その歴史的背景、建築、服飾、インテリア、生活用品等の生活全般におよぶデザインの特色および近年になって再評価されている現代的な意味について検討するものである。　2017年度はプラナカンの現状把握を目的として、マレーシア・マラッカおよびシンガポールにおいてプラナカン・デザインを代表するショップハウスの実態調査を中心に現地調査をおこなった。ショップハウスは1階を店舗等の商用、2階を住居として用いる長屋式の建築で、東南アジア各地の沿岸部にみられる。マラッカは17世紀中頃から華人の住居として建築され、20世紀後半に至るまで多様な様式のショップハウスが保存されている。そのファサードにみられる装飾の分析から多様な文化的伝統を組みあわせ、融合させていることが確認できた。シンガポールではショップハウスの修復整備が国家レベルでおこなわれている状況を確認するとともに、かつての経済的繁栄に対応した豪華で色鮮やかな装飾が特徴であることを理解した。　これを踏まえて継続的に調査研究をおこない、プラナカンの理解を深めることにする。This report attempts to make clear the hybridness of everyday cultural designs in Southeast Asia, through focusing on the Peranakan designs, which made compromise between Eastern cultures (Chinese, Malay) and Western ones. Peranakan designs including architecture, fashion and interior, are reevaluated as cultural heritage of national unity and tourism in Malaysia and Singapore. In this year, we carried out overseas researches on shophouses of Malacca and Singapore, in order to understand the actual conditions of Peranakan Design today. We could understand the variety of patterns of shophouses in Malacca, built from 17 to 20CE, which are reflected in decorative designs of façade of shophouses arranging Chinese motifs and European motifs We got very useful insights from these researches for deep understanding about design cultures of Peranakan

DESIGN APPROACH TO URBAN SPACE TRANSFORMATION BASED ON OPEN SPACE TYPOLOGY

　社会・産業の構造的変化と都市空間の変容が同時に進むときに、ドイツや日本などの脱産業化が進む地域においては、持続可能な開発が求められている。このとき、オープンスペースは、地域や広域の生活環境をより豊かにしていくための要になる。人口減少などによる地域の縮退を前提としつつ環境再生を実現するには、開発管理や計画調整においてオープンスペースの機能を積極的に活かしていく必要がある。　近年の研究やケーススタディにもとづき、都市の空間変容におけるオープンスペースの質とは何かを議論するワークショップを行い、デザインとプランニングの観点からオープンスペースの可能性を検討し、新たな研究の枠組みを構築することをめざした。　ワークショップでの議論を通じて、オープンスペースからの計画デザイン論を展開するために、以下の3つの論点を見いだした：1）地域性（Eigenart）、自然や生き物との共生システムの持続、相互包括性（Inclusion）が、オープンスペースの質をとらえるときの分析・評価の軸となりうること。2）動的な都市変容の過程におけるオープンスペースの多機能性。3）計画デザインにおける2つのスケール（身近な地域空間と広域性）の相互作用。In the process of the spatial transformation and structural change due to social and industrial alteration, the sustainable developments is commonly required in both post-industrial regions of Germany and Japan. In this context, open space becomes one of the keystones of the common interests to enhance both local and regional living quality, and thus should be given more positive functions to manage the development for the smart shrinking with environmental regeneration

The ASTRO-H X-ray Observatory

The joint JAXA/NASA ASTRO-H mission is the sixth in a series of highly successful X-ray missions initiated by the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS). ASTRO-H will investigate the physics of the high-energy universe via a suite of four instruments, covering a very wide energy range, from 0.3 keV to 600 keV. These instruments include a high-resolution, high-throughput spectrometer sensitive over 0.3-2 keV with high spectral resolution of Delta E < 7 eV, enabled by a micro-calorimeter array located in the focal plane of thin-foil X-ray optics; hard X-ray imaging spectrometers covering 5-80 keV, located in the focal plane of multilayer-coated, focusing hard X-ray mirrors; a wide-field imaging spectrometer sensitive over 0.4-12 keV, with an X-ray CCD camera in the focal plane of a soft X-ray telescope; and a non-focusing Compton-camera type soft gamma-ray detector, sensitive in the 40-600 keV band. The simultaneous broad bandpass, coupled with high spectral resolution, will enable the pursuit of a wide variety of important science themes.Comment: 22 pages, 17 figures, Proceedings of the SPIE Astronomical Instrumentation "Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2012: Ultraviolet to Gamma Ray

Search for the Higgs boson in events with missing transverse energy and b quark jets produced in proton-antiproton collisions at s**(1/2)=1.96 TeV

We search for the standard model Higgs boson produced in association with an electroweak vector boson in events with no identified charged leptons, large imbalance in transverse momentum, and two jets where at least one contains a secondary vertex consistent with the decay of b hadrons. We use ~1 fb-1 integrated luminosity of proton-antiproton collisions at s**(1/2)=1.96 TeV recorded by the CDF II experiment at the Tevatron. We find 268 (16) single (double) b-tagged candidate events, where 248 +/- 43 (14.4 +/- 2.7) are expected from standard model background processes. We place 95% confidence level upper limits on the Higgs boson production cross section for several Higgs boson masses ranging from 110 GeV/c2 to 140 GeV/c2. For a mass of 115 GeV/c2 the observed (expected) limit is 20.4 (14.2) times the standard model prediction.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let