The multidimensional assessment of interoceptive awareness, version 2 (MAIA-2)

Interoception, the process by which the nervous system senses, interprets, and integrates signals originating from within the body, has become major research topic for mental health and in particular for mind-body interventions. Interoceptive awareness here is defined as the conscious level of interoception with its multiple dimensions potentially accessible to self-report. The Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA) is an 8-scale state-trait questionnaire with 32 items to measure multiple dimensions of interoception by self-report and was published in November 2012. Its numerous applications in English and other languages revealed low internal consistency reliability for two of its scales. This study’s objective was to improve these scales and the psychometrics of the MAIA by adding three new items to each of the two scales and evaluate these in a new sample. Data were collected within a larger project that took place as part of the Live Science residency programme at the Science Museum London, UK, where visitors to the museum (N = 1,090) completed the MAIA and the six additional items. Based on exploratory factor analysis in one-half of the adult participants and Cronbach alphas, we discarded one and included five of the six additional items into a Version 2 of the MAIA and conducted confirmatory factor analysis in the other half of the participants. The 8-factor model of the resulting 37-item MAIA-2 was confirmed with appropriate fit indices (RMSEA = 0.055 [95% CI 0.052–0.058]; SRMR = 0.064) and improved internal consistency reliability. The MAIA-2 is public domain and available (www.osher.ucsf.edu/maia) for interoception research and the evaluation of clinical mind-body interventions

Exploring the multidimensional assessment of interoceptive awareness in youth aged 7–17 years

Objective This study aimed to adapt the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA) questionnaire for younger respondents. Method The language of the MAIA was revised and children aged 7–10 years (n = 212) and adolescents aged 11–17 years (n = 217) completed the questionnaire. Results The original eight‐factor model was tested for fit using confirmatory factor analysis. The model had an acceptable fit in the total sample and younger subsample and overall fit in the older subsample was adequate following modification. Internal consistency was good, except for the Noticing, Not‐Distracting and Not‐Worrying scales. Results also demonstrated a negative linear relationship between the trusting scale and age, suggesting that youths may lose trust in their body as they age. Conclusion The adapted MAIA can be used with a younger population and, depending on the research question, individual MAIA scales may be selected. The survey is available at https://osher.ucsf.edu/maia

Improved measurement technique for the characterization of organic and inorganic phase change materials using the T-history method

In the past decade, the interest in phase change materials (PCMs) has grown significantly due to their ability to store large amounts of thermal energy in relatively small temperature intervals. Accurate knowledge of thermo-physical properties is a prerequisite for any reliable utilization of these materials. The T-history method is widely used for the investigation of PCM. This paper presents an improved measurement technique for the characterization of PCM using the T-history method. The suggested improvements include the arrangements made in three different prospects: the experimental setup, data processing and data representation. T-history measurements of organic RT21 and inorganic SP22 A17 (RUBITHERM® GmbH) PCM were performed. The applied arrangements resulted in the temperature accuracy of ±0.3 °C and the reduction of uncertainty associated with heat stored/released between the cooling and heating measurements. The obtained results showed some important aspects of the T-history PCM investigation and could provide more effective design and development process of the thermal energy storage systems based on the investigated materials

Planar torsion spring

A torsion spring comprises an inner mounting segment. An outer mounting segment is located concentrically around the inner mounting segment. A plurality of splines extends from the inner mounting segment to the outer mounting segment. At least a portion of each spline extends generally annularly around the inner mounting segment

Significant reduction in helicobacter pylori load in humans with non-viable lactobacillus reuteri DSM17648: A pilot study

Reducing the amount of Helicobacter pylori in the stomach by selective bacterial-bacterial cell interaction was sought as an effective and novel method for combating the stomach pathogen. Lactobacillus reuteri DSM17648 was identified as a highly specific binding antagonist to H. pylori among more than 700 wild-type strains of Lactobacillus species. Applying a stringent screening procedure, the strain DSM17648 was identified as selective binder to H. pylori cells under in vivo gastric conditions. The strain DSM17648 co-aggregates the pathogen in vivo and in vitro. The specific co-aggregation occurs between Lact. reuteri DSM17648 and different H. pylori strains and serotypes, as well as H. heilmannii, but not with Campylobacter jejuni or other commensal oral and intestinal bacteria. Lact. reuteri DSM17648 was shown in a proof-of-concept single-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled pilot study to significantly reduce the load of H. pylori in healthy yet infected adults. Reducing the amount of H. pylori in the stomach by selective bacterial-bacterial cell interaction might be an effective and novel method for combating the stomach pathogen. Lact. reuteri DSM17648 might prove useful as an adhesion blocker in antibiotic-free H. pylori therapies

Method and apparatus for electromagnetically braking a motor

An electromagnetic braking system and method is provided for selectively braking a motor using an electromagnetic brake having an electromagnet, a permanent magnet, a rotor assembly, and a brake pad. The brake assembly applies when the electromagnet is de-energized and releases when the electromagnet is energized. When applied the permanent magnet moves the brake pad into frictional engagement with a housing, and when released the electromagnet cancels the flux of the permanent magnet to allow a leaf spring to move the brake pad away from the housing. A controller has a DC/DC converter for converting a main bus voltage to a lower braking voltage based on certain parameters. The converter utilizes pulse-width modulation (PWM) to regulate the braking voltage. A calibrated gap is defined between the brake pad and permanent magnet when the brake assembly is released, and may be dynamically modified via the controller

P05.61. The multidimensional assessment of interoceptive awareness (MAIA)

This paper describes the development of a multidimensional self-report measure of interoceptive body awareness. The systematic mixed-methods process involved reviewing the current literature, specifying a multidimensional conceptual framework, evaluating prior instruments, developing items, and analyzing focus group responses to scale items by instructors and patients of body awareness-enhancing therapies. Following refinement by cognitive testing, items were field-tested in students and instructors of mind-body approaches. Final item selection was achieved by submitting the field test data to an iterative process using multiple validation methods, including exploratory cluster and confirmatory factor analyses, comparison between known groups, and correlations with established measures of related constructs. The resulting 32-item multidimensional instrument assesses eight concepts. The psychometric properties of these final scales suggest that the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA) may serve as a starting point for research and further collaborative refinement