Older people’s use of mobility aids in the built environment

The world population is ageing, by both number and share of older people (WHO 2013), leading to ageing issues being increasingly discussed within transport and mobility fields (Murray 2016; Schwanen & Paez, 2010). As those over 70 are the group most likely to have mobility and accessibility issues, there is a need to look at the wider relationship between mobility and ageing in relation to health and well-being (Musselwhite 2016). The social model of disability and resulting accessibility legislation has heralded a great deal of improvement for the inclusion of those with disabilities, but there seems to be little attention paid to emotional or psychological needs of people with physical impairments (Oliver, 2013), or disability and mobility aid use by older people (Jönson & Taghizadeh Larsson, 2009; Minkler & Fadem, 2002; Phillips, Ajrouch, & Hillcoat-Nallétamby, 2010; Raymond, Grenier, & Hanley, 2014). From the perspective of mobility aid provision, outcomes are measured in terms of independence for user, without considering the impact of this functionality on mobility aid user or carer, family or social life (Hammel et al, 2013). This study has taken an ethnographic grounded theory approach using observation, sound recording, photography, storytelling and discussion as methods for data collection. People who use mobility aids (n=11) were recruited to give accounts of mobility aid use during daily routine activities, along with the accounts of some of their family members and carers (n=6). Constant comparative analysis through coding and revisiting the field on an iterative basis was employed to describe and begin to understand mobility aid use by older people in the built environment. A complex and interlinking array of experiences and obstacles to inclusion was found for this group of people on individual, relational and infrastructural levels, with themes of identity, relationships and infrastructure and interlinking systems emerging from the data. The findings contribute information regarding a complex relationship between mobility aid use and ageing. The impact of reduced mobility and mobility aid use on identity and relationships is exacerbated by ineffective or inconsistent policies and systems. Social, psychological, emotional and physical costs of unequal access are being met by older mobility aid users and their carers. The implications of these findings are that this area requires more attention from both research and policy and planning arenas to ensure older people who use mobility aids are appropriately accommodated in the built environment. Policy and planning are found to not consistently provide a cohesively supportive environment for older people who use mobility aids to effectively participate socially

Canadian Music and American Culture: Get Away From Me – edited by Tristanne Connolly and Tomoyuki Iino (Book Review)

[no abstract

Research-Creation in Music and the Arts: Towards a Collaborative Interdiscipline – by Sophie Stévance and Serge Lacasse (Book review)

[no abstract

PathoScope 2.0: a complete computational framework for strain identification in environmental or clinical sequencing samples.

BACKGROUND: Recent innovations in sequencing technologies have provided researchers with the ability to rapidly characterize the microbial content of an environmental or clinical sample with unprecedented resolution. These approaches are producing a wealth of information that is providing novel insights into the microbial ecology of the environment and human health. However, these sequencing-based approaches produce large and complex datasets that require efficient and sensitive computational analysis workflows. Many recent tools for analyzing metagenomic-sequencing data have emerged, however, these approaches often suffer from issues of specificity, efficiency, and typically do not include a complete metagenomic analysis framework. RESULTS: We present PathoScope 2.0, a complete bioinformatics framework for rapidly and accurately quantifying the proportions of reads from individual microbial strains present in metagenomic sequencing data from environmental or clinical samples. The pipeline performs all necessary computational analysis steps; including reference genome library extraction and indexing, read quality control and alignment, strain identification, and summarization and annotation of results. We rigorously evaluated PathoScope 2.0 using simulated data and data from the 2011 outbreak of Shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli O104:H4. CONCLUSIONS: The results show that PathoScope 2.0 is a complete, highly sensitive, and efficient approach for metagenomic analysis that outperforms alternative approaches in scope, speed, and accuracy. The PathoScope 2.0 pipeline software is freely available for download at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/pathoscope/

Sensate sovereignty : A dialogue on Dylan Robinson's hungry lIstening

Dylan Robinson's Hungry Listening: Resonant Theory for Indigenous Sound Studies emerges from encounters between Indigenous sound performance and Western art music. The book takes aim at the pernicious tendency for the latter to insist upon aesthetic assimilation as the end-goal of these encounters, which far too often means derogating the former’s ontologies and protocols of song. In this dialogue-review, members from the The Culture and Technology Discussion and Working Group (The CATDAWG) situate the book within sound studies and critiques of settler colonial listening, reflecting on the major conceptual contributions of the book such as sensate sovereignty, hungry listening, and critical listening positionality

PathoScope 2.0: a complete computational framework for strain identification in environmental or clinical sequencing samples.

BACKGROUND: Recent innovations in sequencing technologies have provided researchers with the ability to rapidly characterize the microbial content of an environmental or clinical sample with unprecedented resolution. These approaches are producing a wealth of information that is providing novel insights into the microbial ecology of the environment and human health. However, these sequencing-based approaches produce large and complex datasets that require efficient and sensitive computational analysis workflows. Many recent tools for analyzing metagenomic-sequencing data have emerged, however, these approaches often suffer from issues of specificity, efficiency, and typically do not include a complete metagenomic analysis framework. RESULTS: We present PathoScope 2.0, a complete bioinformatics framework for rapidly and accurately quantifying the proportions of reads from individual microbial strains present in metagenomic sequencing data from environmental or clinical samples. The pipeline performs all necessary computational analysis steps; including reference genome library extraction and indexing, read quality control and alignment, strain identification, and summarization and annotation of results. We rigorously evaluated PathoScope 2.0 using simulated data and data from the 2011 outbreak of Shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli O104:H4. CONCLUSIONS: The results show that PathoScope 2.0 is a complete, highly sensitive, and efficient approach for metagenomic analysis that outperforms alternative approaches in scope, speed, and accuracy. The PathoScope 2.0 pipeline software is freely available for download at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/pathoscope/

A systematic review of older adults’ travel behaviour and mobility during COVID-19 pandemic : lessons learned for sustainable transport provision and healthy aging

The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions to the travel and mobility of various population groups worldwide. These impacts were more pronounced for older adults, who, in various countries around the world, were instructed to quarantine for prolonged periods and avoid contact with others. The impact of these disruptions has been differently experienced between countries and geographical regions with levels of economic development and transport infrastructures playing a role. The aim of this article is firstly, to critically synthesise scientific literature about changes in travel behaviour and transport choices of older adults caused by the responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in various countries, secondly, highlight the main gaps in the literature and finally, provide avenues for future research and transport policies. Findings indicate inequalities in access to transport explained by built environment design and policies adopted by governments to control the pandemic, as well as socio-economic and developmental factors. The implications of these findings for transport provision and increased mobility for older adults in the post-pandemic world are outlined. Finally, we discuss the importance of active aging policies, which could create more transportation options to support older adults’ mobility needs and access in the post-COVID-19 era in both high- and low-income countries

Understanding older adults' travel behaviour and mobility needs during the COVID-19 pandemic through the lens of the hierarchy of travel needs : a systematic review

The aim of this article is to critically review the scientific literature about the changes in travel behaviour and mobility amongst older adults caused by the COVID-19 pandemic across various countries, identify unmet travel needs and highlight patterns of inequalities in older adults' mobility. We have collected articles from four academic databases: PubMed, Scopus, Transportation Research International Documentation (TRID) and Web of Science. Papers were considered for inclusion if they were published online in 2020 or later, written in English, and referred to urban or rural changes in travel behaviour and mobility of older adults over 50 years old. We examined the pre-existing models developed before the outbreak and classified the articles based on Musselwhite and Haddad's hierarchy of older adults' travel needs. The synthesis of the selected 25 articles shows a general decline in literal mobility amongst older adults, an increased share of virtual travel and their decreased capacity to fulfil different levels of travel needs. Findings also indicate an increased gap in older adults' mobility across geographical regions with various levels of transport infrastructure and digital capital. We conclude the paper with the lessons learned, the opportunities ahead, and the challenges that must be overcome to achieve sustainable development and the United Nations Decades of Healthy Ageing goals in the post-pandemic world

Doppler monitoring of five k2 transiting planetary systems

In an effort to measure the masses of planets discovered by the NASA K2 mission, we have conducted precise Doppler observations of five stars with transiting planets. We present the results of a joint analysis of these new data and previously published Doppler data. The first star, an M dwarf known as K2-3 or EPIC 201367065, has three transiting planets (“b,” with radius 2.1 R⊕; “c,” 1.7 R⊕; and “d,” 1.5 R⊕). Our analysis leads to the mass constraints: Mb = 8.1 -1.9 to +2.0 M⊕ and Mc < 4.2 M⊕ (95% confidence). The mass of planet d is poorly constrained because its orbital period is close to the stellar rotation period, making it difficult to disentangle the planetary signal from spurious Doppler shifts due to stellar activity. The second star, a G dwarf known as K2-19 or EPIC 201505350, has two planets (“b,” 7.7 R⊕; and “c,” 4.9 R⊕) in a 3:2 mean-motion resonance, as well as a shorter period planet (“d,” 1.1 R⊕). We find Mb = 28.5 -5.0 to +5.4 M⊕, Mc = 25.6 -7.1 to + 7.1 M⊕ and Md < 14.0M⊕ (95% conf.). The third star, a G dwarf known as K2-24 or EPIC 203771098, hosts two transiting planets (“b,” 5.7 R⊕; and “c,” 7.8 R⊕) with orbital periods in a nearly 2:1 ratio. We find Mb = 19.8 -4.4 to +4.5 M⊕ and Mc = 26.0 -6.1 to +5.8 M⊕. The fourth star, a G dwarf known as EPIC 204129699, hosts a hot Jupiter for which we measured the mass to be 1.857 +0.081 to -0.081 MJup. The fifth star, a G dwarf known as EPIC 205071984, contains three transiting planets (“b,” 5.4 R⊕; “c,” 3.5 R⊕; and “d,” 3.8 R⊕), the outer two of which have a nearly 2:1 period ratio. We find Mb = 21.1 -5.9 to +5.9 M⊕, Mc < 8.1 M⊕ (95% conf.) and Md < 35M⊕ (95% conf.)