Children’s improvement of a motor response during backward falls through the implementation of a safe fall program

The World Health Organization has warned that, in children, the second cause of death from unintentional injuries are falls. The objective of this study was to analyze the motor response of primary schoolchildren when a backwards fall occurs. These analyses occurred before and after interventions of the Safe Fall program, which aims to teach safe and protected ways of backward falling. A quasi-experimental research design was used, with a sample of 122 Spanish (Sevillian) schoolchildren in the 10–12 age bracket. The INFOSECA ad-hoc observation scale was used for data collection: this scale registers 5 essential physical reactions throughout the process of a safe and protected backwards fall. After that, a number of descriptive, correlational and contrast statistics were applied. The value used in the McNemar test to establish statistical significance was p < 0.05. Results showed that over 85% of students had developed the competence to correctly perform all five physical motions that allow for a safer backward fall. The teaching of safe and protected techniques for falling backwards in child population in Primary Education is possible through the implementation of the Safe Fall program in Physical Education classes, which can help making falls safer, diminishing the risk and severity of the injuries they cause

The Effect of Adapted Utilitarian Judo, as an Educational Innovation, on Fear-of-Falling Syndrome

Background: The aim of the research was to analyze the effects of an intervention program based on Adapted Utilitarian Judo (AUJ) to teach fall control, over fear of falling syndrome (FOF) in a group of older adults. Method: A quasi-experimental design (pre–post measurement) was adopted, with a healthy and pre-fragile sample of 19 subjects in the experimental group and 11 subjects in the control group (65–85 years), chosen using non-probabilistic-incidental accessibility sampling. The intervention program was conducted over six weeks, with two 60-minute sessions each week. To evaluate FOF, it was applied (pretest and post-test) the 16-item version of the Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I). Results: The data show significant differences between pre- and post-test in reducing FOF into both specific variables (do the shopping, walk on a slippery surface, walk in a crowded place, walk on an uneven surface, and go up and down a ramp), as in the overall score (the global values of the experimental group decreased six points in the perceived fear scale, while the global values of the group increased three points). Conclusion: The application of the AUJ program meant significant improvements in subjects’ perception of FOF

Effect of the Safe Fall Programme on Children’s Health and Safety: Dealing Proactively with Backward Falls in Physical Education Classes

The aim of this study is to show that the implementation of the Safe Fall programme in physical education classes can help to reduce the negative effects of unintentional backward falls in the adolescent population, by teaching them how to protect themselves when falling. A quasi-experimental research design was applied in a sample of 120 children (M = 15.1 years, SD = 2.45), attending a secondary school in Seville (Spain). Data was collected on an ad hoc observation scale INFOSECA (which records five basic elements during a backward fall: position of the neck, the hands, the trunk, the hips, and the knees), applying descriptive, correlational, and contrast statistics. The criteria for considering statistical significance was p < 0.05 in McNemar’s test. The data indicates that learning safe and protected ways of falling backward is possible through the implementation of the Safe Fall programme, and no differences were found in terms of gender

A Configurable Event-Driven Convolutional Node with Rate Saturation Mechanism for Modular ConvNet Systems Implementation

Convolutional Neural Networks (ConvNets) are a particular type of neural network often used for many applications like image recognition, video analysis or natural language processing. They are inspired by the human brain, following a specific organization of the connectivity pattern between layers of neurons known as receptive field. These networks have been traditionally implemented in software, but they are becoming more computationally expensive as they scale up, having limitations for real-time processing of high-speed stimuli. On the other hand, hardware implementations show difficulties to be used for different applications, due to their reduced flexibility. In this paper, we propose a fully configurable event-driven convolutional node with rate saturation mechanism that can be used to implement arbitrary ConvNets on FPGAs. This node includes a convolutional processing unit and a routing element which allows to build large 2D arrays where any multilayer structure can be implemented. The rate saturation mechanism emulates the refractory behavior in biological neurons, guaranteeing a minimum separation in time between consecutive events. A 4-layer ConvNet with 22 convolutional nodes trained for poker card symbol recognition has been implemented in a Spartan6 FPGA. This network has been tested with a stimulus where 40 poker cards were observed by a Dynamic Vision Sensor (DVS) in 1 s time. Different slow-down factors were applied to characterize the behavior of the system for high speed processing. For slow stimulus play-back, a 96% recognition rate is obtained with a power consumption of 0.85mW. At maximum play-back speed, a traffic control mechanism downsamples the input stimulus, obtaining a recognition rate above 63% when less than 20% of the input events are processed, demonstrating the robustness of the networkEuropean Union 644096, 687299Gobierno de España TEC2016-77785- P, TEC2015-63884-C2-1-PJunta de Andalucía TIC-6091, TICP120

Development and analysis of a model based on chirped fiber Bragg gratings employed for cracks characterization in materials

In this work a model was developed that allows to understand the behavior of a chirped fiber Bragg grating for the detection and characterization of cracks in materials. In addition to the amplitude response, we show that the group delay of the grating provides useful information for the characterization of the crack. The position of the crack can be determined thanks to the linear chirp of the grating that fixes a correlation between the spatial position and both, the wavelength and the group delay. However, our analysis shows that this simple approach has a source of error, which can be overcome if a controllable external strain can be applied to the embedded grating, additional to the strain generated by the embedding process. Thus, the width of the crack can be also estimated. The effect of the appearance of a crack on the grating generates simple o multiple transmission peaks that are analyzed considering the behavior of a Fabry–Perot fiber cavity. This simple model was experimentally tested and preliminary results were in good agreement with the simulations.Centro de Investigaciones Óptica

Educajudo: Innovación educativa y de salud en mayores. Aprendiendo a caerse (Yoko-Ukemi)

El envejecimiento de la población española es una realidad incipiente debido al aumento de la esperanza de vida. Sin embargo, el proceso de envejecimiento puede convertir a las personas mayores en frágiles y dependientes. Una de las causas de fragilidad es el alto número de caídas que sufren las personas mayores y las consecuencias que conllevan. El objetivo del presente trabajo es presentar un diseño de intervención para aplicar el Judo en esta población como elemento educativo en la enseñanza del control de la caída, para minimizar los daños producidos por el impacto del cuerpo contra el suelo. La intervención va dirigida a sujetos sanos y prefrágiles de cualquier sexo. Para llevar a cabo la enseñanza de las caídas en las personas mayores se plantean dos secuencias de aprendizaje: una asistida autónoma con implementos y otra asistida colaborativa con compañero (con o sin implementos).The aging of the Spanish population is an emerging reality due to an increase in life expectancy. However, the aging process can make the elderly frail and dependent. One of the causes of fragility is the high number of falls suffered by seniors and their implications. Therefore, the objective of this communication is to present an intervention design to apply Judo in this population as an educational tool in teaching fall control to minimize damage from the impact of the body against the floor. The intervention is aimed at healthy subjects and pre-fragile of either sex. To carry out the teaching of falls in older people two learning sequences are proposed: autonomous assisted with equipment and assisted with other collaborative partner (with or without equipment)

Variabilidad del índice de conicidad en la adolescencia: Análisis comparativos de poblaciones de Argentina, Venezuela y España

El objetivo del presente trabajo –que se enmarca en un proyecto común denominado “Condición nutricional y biodiversidad en las poblaciones humanas”- es determinar el modelo de distribución de grasa corporal existente durante las edades de la adolescencia, y si existen diferencias entre poblaciones española e iberoamericanas. La muestra está formada por 1452 jóvenes entre 12 y 17 años, argentinos (Catamarca y Jujuy), españoles (Comunidad de Madrid), y venezolanos (Caracas y Mérida). Se analizó la distribución de grasa corporal haciendo especial énfasis en el Índice de Conicidad (IC). Al analizar este índice respecto a edad se observa que cambia en mayor grado que otros indicadores de adiposidad. Cada serie presenta, además, su propio patrón de variación. Los resultados obtenidos se interpretan en función de parámetros geográficos y socioeconómicos en los que se desenvuelven las poblaciones analizadas.Simposio: Nutrición en la globalización.Asociación de Antropología Biológica de la República Argentin

Relación entre la imagen corporal y los trastornos del comportamiento alimentario en una serie de jóvenes españoles y argentinos

Se analizó la conformidad con la imagen corporal y prevalencia de trastornos del comportamiento alimentario (TCA) en una muestra de 517 jóvenes españoles y 490 argentinos. Se calculó el índice de masa corporal (IMC) y se relacionó la imagen real con la estimada mediante un método gráfico de siluetas. Para conocer la conducta alimentaria se utilizó un el test psicométrico de respuesta múltiple. Respecto a la autopercepción no existen diferencias significativas en función del país de origen pero si hay diferencias de género. También se tuvieron en cuenta las preferencias por el sexo contrario, así como la imagen considerada más saludable. La insatisfacción con la propia imagen aparece como probable factor de predisposición al desarrollo de TCA, que presenta una frecuencia mas elevada en la serie femenina española.Simposio: Nutrición en la globalización.Asociación de Antropología Biológica de la República Argentina (AABRA

Relación entre la imagen corporal y los trastornos del comportamiento alimentario en una serie de jóvenes españoles y argentinos

Se analizó la conformidad con la imagen corporal y prevalencia de trastornos del comportamiento alimentario (TCA) en una muestra de 517 jóvenes españoles y 490 argentinos. Se calculó el índice de masa corporal (IMC) y se relacionó la imagen real con la estimada mediante un método gráfico de siluetas. Para conocer la conducta alimentaria se utilizó un el test psicométrico de respuesta múltiple. Respecto a la autopercepción no existen diferencias significativas en función del país de origen pero si hay diferencias de género. También se tuvieron en cuenta las preferencias por el sexo contrario, así como la imagen considerada más saludable. La insatisfacción con la propia imagen aparece como probable factor de predisposición al desarrollo de TCA, que presenta una frecuencia mas elevada en la serie femenina española.Simposio: Nutrición en la globalización.Asociación de Antropología Biológica de la República Argentina (AABRA

Subscapular and triceps skinfolds reference values of Hispanic American children and adolescents and their comparison with the reference of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Introduction: the assessment of the skinfold thickness is an objective measure of adiposity. Therefore, it is a useful tool for nutritional diagnosis and prevention of metabolic risk associated with excess fat in chilhood and adolescence. Objective: to provide percentiles of subscapular and triceps skinfolds for Hispanic American schoolchildren and compare them with those published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from United States, that it have been commonly used as a reference in most of these countries. Methods: subscapular and triceps skinfolds were measured in 9.973 schoolchildren 4-19 aged from Spain, Argentina, Cuba, Venezuela and Mexico with Holtain caliper with 0.2 mm accuracy. Percentiles were obtained with the LMS statistical method and were presented in tables divided in stages of 6 months and in curves graphics. The difference between Hispanic American and CDC mean values were provided for P3, P50 and P97 in mm and also were graphically represented. Results: skinfolds measurements obviously increased with age in both sexes but, in boys, this increase is much more marked in highest percentiles between 8 and 13 years; this maximum is reached earlier than what occurs in CDC reference. In both sexes, all percentiles analized in Hispanic American schoolchildren were higher than the CDC reference except P97 up to 10 or 13 years that was notably smaller. Conclusions: the skinfolds percentiles of Hispanic American children and adolescents differ from CDC that are usually used as reference. The values of subscapular and triceps skinfolds provided in this study, could be applied to populations of a similar ethnic background, especially in comparative studies of body composition