Intrinsic Value of Arctic Cooperation for Future Generations

During last 30 years Arctic scientific cooperation has created both tangible and intangible assets. Tangibles are the institutes and intergovernmental fora like Arctic Council. Intangibles are the knowledge networks, relationships, and pool of shared expertise of Arctic researchers from around the globe, built on principles of trust and respect for scientific rigor. The Arctic cooperation via the Arctic Council, is on pause. The following questions need to be addressed: Why do we have Arctic cooperation in the first place? What is at stake? How do we continue? As the international scientific community, we are the holders of the intrinsic value of Arctic cooperation, and we need to act and come up with solutions to be accountable to future generations and preserve our planet and all life

Neuromusculoskeletal Arm Prostheses: Personal and Social Implications of Living With an Intimately Integrated Bionic Arm

People with limb loss are for the first time living chronically and uninterruptedly with intimately integrated neuromusculoskeletal prostheses. This new generation of artificial limbs are fixated to the skeleton and operated by bidirectionally transferred neural information. This unprecedented level of human–machine integration is bound to have profound psychosocial effects on the individuals living with these prostheses. Here, we examined the psychosociological impact on people as they integrate neuromusculoskeletal prostheses into their bodies and lives. Three people with transhumeral amputations participated in this study, all of whom had been living with neuromusculoskeletal prostheses in their daily lives between 2 and 6 years at the time of the interview. Direct neural sensory feedback had been enabled for 6 months to 2 years. Participants were interviewed about their experiences living with the neuromusculoskeletal prostheses in their home and professional daily lives. We analyzed these interviews to elucidate themes using an interpretive phenomenological approach that regards participants’ own experiences as forms of expertise and knowledge-making. Our participant-generated results indicate that people adapted and integrated the technology into functional and social arenas of daily living, with positive psychosocial effects on self-esteem, self-image, and social relations intimately linked to improved trust of the prostheses. Participants expressed enhanced prosthetic function, increased and more diverse prosthesis use in tasks of daily living, and improved relationships between their prosthesis and phantom limb. Our interviews with patients also generated critiques of the language commonly used to describe human-prosthetic relations, including terms such as “embodiment,” and the need for specificity surrounding the term “natural” with regard to control versus sensory feedback. Experiences living with neuromusculoskeletal prostheses were complex and subject-dependent, and therefore future research should consider human–machine interaction as a relationship that is constantly enacted, negotiated, and deeply contextualized

The Power of Connectivity in the Arctic: Citizen Participation in Arctic Institutions

Increasing business opportunities in the Arctic in the spheres of tourism, transport, mining, oil and gas and creative industries require efficient connectivity. Arctic territories offer an attractive place for data servers running on green energy. The subsea fiber cable connecting European High North territories with the US and Asia is an opportunity to improve connectivity in the Arctic. The opening of the Arctic sea creates preconditions for such a project. In this paper, I study existing Arctic institutions that deal with connectivity issues in the Arctic. As theoretical frameworks, I use Gaventa’s (1982) framework of power and powerlessness and stakeholder participation model. The power and powerlessness and modes of participation of stakeholders at the national and regional levels are investigated. I use secondary data, such as the EU and regional policies, statistical data on the topic of connectivity in the Arctic. The study contributes to the understanding of power structure and citizen participation in the Arctic institutions by using an example of connectivity in the Arctic. The findings suggest that Arctic institutions have very limited citizen participation opportunities due to their composition, working formats, and governance structures. Several suggestions for opening-up closed spaces to be inclusive of Arctic citizens perspectives are suggested

Scenarios for sustainable development in the Arctic until 2050

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Out of the clinic, into the home: The in-home use of phantom motor execution aided by machine learning and augmented reality for the treatment of phantom limb pain

Purpose: Phantom motor execution (PME) facilitated by augmented/virtual reality (AR/ VR) and serious gaming (SG) has been proposed as a treatment for phantom limb pain (PLP). Evidence of the efficacy of this approach was obtained through a clinical trial involving individuals with chronic intractable PLP affecting the upper limb, and further evidence is currently being sought with a multi-sited, international, double blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial in upper and lower limb amputees. All experiments have been conducted in a clinical setting supervised by a therapist. Here, we present a series of case studies (two upper and two lower limb amputees) on the use of PME as a self-treatment. We explore the benefits and the challenges encountered in translation from clinic to home use with a holistic, mixed-methods approach, employing both quantitative and qualitative methods from engineering, medical anthropology, and user interface design. Patients and Methods: All patients were provided with and trained to use a myoelectric pattern recognition and AR/VR device for PME. Patients took these devices home and used them independently over 12 months. Results: We found that patients were capable of conducting PME as a self-treatment and incorporated the device into their daily life routines. Use patterns and adherence to PME practice were not only driven by the presence of PLP but also influenced by patients’ perceived need and social context. The main barriers to therapy adherence were time and availability of single-use electrodes, both of which could be resolved, or attenuated, by informed design considerations. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that adherence to treatment, and thus related outcomes, could be further improved by considering disparate user types and their utilization patterns. Our study highlights the importance of understanding, from multiple disciplinary angles, the tight coupling and interplay between pain, perceived need, and use of medical devices in patient-initiated therapy

Sarcopenia and cognitive ageing: investigating their interrelationship, biological correlates and the role of glucocorticoids

Background Sarcopenia and age-related cognitive decline (ARCD) are important age-related conditions which significantly impact upon the quality of life of older adults. ARCD is a well-established research area, whereas sarcopenia is a relatively new field. Research into the inter-relationships between them and possible common underlying mechanistic processes is lacking. Methods Several research techniques were used: a large systematic review; the development of an image analysis technique to measure neck muscle size on volumetric MR brain scans; the subsequent use of the technique in elderly cohort studies; statistical modelling to investigate the role of glucocorticoids in sarcopenia; and an invasive clinical study to develop a novel technique to measure the activity of 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11βHSD1) in the human brain in vivo. Results I consistently found a relationship between: some measures of brain structure and muscle size; markers of brain structure and muscle function, mostly grip strength and gait speed; and cognition and muscle function. However, I found no relationship between current cognition and muscle size in any of the above studies. Cortisol was identified as a possible explanatory factor in the relationship between both cognition and brain volume with gait speed. I found an association between markers of immunosenescence and sarcopenia (neck muscle CSA and grip strength) and an association between expression of the cortisol amplifying enzyme 11βHSD1 and quadriceps strength. I developed a technique to measure 11βHSD1 activity across the human brain, which found that the amount of cortisol produced within the brain was not detectable and highlighted the asymmetries within the cerebrovascular venous system. Conclusions Further longitudinal studies looking at the association between sarcopenia and ARCD are now required to investigate these important relationships further and hopefully this will lead to improved therapeutic options

THE ACUTE EFFECTS OF A GRIP-CONSTRAINT TOOL ON UPPER BODY AND RACKET KINEMATICS DURING TENNIS FOREHANDS

The purpose of this study was to compare the acute effect of a grip-constraint tool on upper body and racket kinematics during tennis single-handed forehand strokes. Upper-body and racket kinematics for two grip conditions, Preferred (self-selected) and Grip-constraint tool (fixed semi-western forehand grip) were captured for eleven tennis players using a 22-camera Vicon motion capture system (240 Hz). Using a grip-constraint tool resulted in a more closed racket face tilt (~4°) at ball impact while having variations in joint rotations across the shoulder, elbow and wrist. This possibly demonstrates the participant’s ability to self-organise compensatory angular rotations across the upper limb to achieve similar impact orientations. Collectively, these data demonstrate the acute responses to modifying grip technique using a grip-constraint tool during single-handed down-the-line forehands

Sudden Hearing Loss: WRS Importance and Timing of Medical Intervention

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate recovery in hearing acuity of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL) based on timing of onset to determine how late is too late to medically intervene. Study Design: A retrospective chart review was conducted in patients previously treated for primary complaint of sudden hearing loss (HL). Participants meeting inclusion criteria were analyzed based on timing of onset to service date, age, gender, associated ear, associated symptoms as well as recovery in pure tone average (PTA) and recovery in word recognition scores (WRS). Setting: All patients seeking treatment for SSNHL were seen in a hospital/medical setting by otolaryngologists/otologists. Methods: Utilizing the hospital’s medical record system, an initial sample of 696 participants treated for ISSNHL from 2016-2019 was collected. Of the 696 participants, 161 met the inclusion criteria and were analyzed. Results: Timing of symptoms onset to treatment initiation as well as recovery detail were statistically significant in recovery anticipation. Conclusion: Pure tone average (PTA) and word recognition score (WRS) recovery two variables analyzed as part of hearing recovery based on symptom onset to treatment initiation. Of the recovered participants, 14.9% and 42.2% experienced with BothRecovery or EitherReocvery respectively. Recovery detail, especially WRS recovery, is a key variable which should be analyzed when anticipating recovery of symptoms. WRS recovery was also identified in participants who sought treatment after 42 days of onset, suggesting recovery is possible beyond clinical guidelines set by the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (AAO).https://jdc.jefferson.edu/ariaposters/1002/thumbnail.jp

Perspectives and practices of accredited tennis coaches when developing stroke technique

The purpose of this study was to understand current international tennis coaching standards related to the development of specific grip positions in tennis and to explore tennis coaches’ opinions on using physically constraining training tools for effective skill development. Accredited tennis coaches (n = 237) from 33 countries completed an anonymous online survey about their perspectives on the importance of grip positions for effective stroke development, and opinions on using physically constraining training tools for skill development. In the early stages of a player’s technical development, training grip positions was ranked as the second most important aspect of foundational technique. This preliminary research indicates that while it is important for tennis players to develop a variety of grip techniques, the most commonly used are the Semi-Western (forehand), the combination of Continental/Eastern forehand (double-handed backhand), and Continental for the serve. It also demonstrated that 65.2 ± 23.7% of coaches would utilise a physically constraining tool to assist in developing tennis-specific skills. Using this information can guide future evidence-based biomechanical investigations to assess the effects of acute and longitudinal biomechanics of using physically constraining tools for tennis-specific skills