108 research outputs found
Validation of the Japanese version of the Dementia Screening Questionnaire for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities
Background,
Dementia in people with intellectual disabilities (IDs) is difficult to detect because of preexisting cognitive deficits. An effective screening method is required. The Dementia Screening Questionnaire for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (DSQIID) was developed as an observer rating tool to screen dementia in people with ID. The aim of this study was to verify the screening accuracy of the DSQIID for Japanese people with ID.
Methods
Fourâhundred ninetyâthree subjects with ID participated in this study. Caregivers who had observed the participants for more than 2 years scored the Japanese version of the DSQIID (DSQIIDâJ) of the participants. Three doctors examined participants directly and diagnosed dementia using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition criteria. To identify the key screening items that predict dementia, the specificities of a single and pairs of items with 100% sensitivity were evaluated relative to the dementia diagnosis.
Results
Of 493 participants, 34 were people with Down syndrome (DS), and 459 were people without DS. Seventeen participants were diagnosed with dementia. The suitable cutâoff score of the DSQIIDâJ was 10/11 (sensitivity 100% and specificity 96.8%) for screening dementia. The interârater reliability, testâretest reliability and internal consistency of the DSQIIDâJ were excellent. Regarding key items, there was no single item with 100% sensitivity, and the best twoâitem combination was the pair of âCannot dress without helpâ and âWalks slowerâ (sensitivity 100% and specificity 93.5%).
Conclusions
We identified several important question items of the DSQIIDâJ related to the diagnosis of dementia in people with ID. The DSQIIDâJ is a useful screening tool for dementia in adults with ID
A real-time articulatory visual feedback approach with target presentation for second language pronunciation learning
International audienceArticulatory information can support learning or remediating pronunciation of a second language (L2). This paper describes an electromagnetic articulometer-based visual-feedback approach using an articulatory target presented in real-time to facilitate L2 pronunciation learning. This approach trains learners to adjust articulatory positions to match targets for a L2 vowel estimated from productions of vowels that overlap in both L1 and L2. Training of Japanese learners for the American English vowel /ae/ that included visual training improved its pronunciation regardless of whether audio training was also included. Articulatory visual feedback is shown to be an effective method for facilitating L2 pronunciation learning
In Situ SR-XPS Observation of Ni-Assisted Low-Temperature Formation of Epitaxial Graphene on 3C-SiC/Si
Low-temperature (~1073Â K) formation of graphene was performed on Si substrates by using an ultrathin (2Â nm) Ni layer deposited on a 3C-SiC thin film heteroepitaxially grown on a Si substrate. Angle-resolved, synchrotron-radiation X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (SR-XPS) results show that the stacking order is, from the surface to the bulk, Ni carbides(Ni(3)C/NiC(x))/graphene/Ni/Ni silicides (Ni(2)Si/NiSi)/3C-SiC/Si. In situ SR-XPS during the graphitization annealing clarified that graphene is formed during the cooling stage. We conclude that Ni silicide and Ni carbide formation play an essential role in the formation of graphene
Solving the Task Variant Allocation Problem in Distributed Robotics
We consider the problem of assigning software processes (or tasks) to hardware processors in distributed robotics environments. We introduce the notion of a task variant, which supports the adaptation of software to specific hardware configurations. Task variants facilitate the trade-off of functional quality versus the requisite capacity and type of target execution processors. We formalise the problem of assigning task variants to processors as a mathematical model that incorporates typical constraints found in robotics applications; the model is a constrained form of a multi-objective, multi-dimensional, multiple-choice knapsack problem. We propose and evaluate three different solution methods to the problem: constraint programming, a constructive greedy heuristic and a local search metaheuristic. Furthermore, we demonstrate the use of task variants in a real instance of a distributed interactive multi-agent navigation system, showing that our best solution method (constraint programming) improves the systemâs quality of service, as compared to the local search metaheuristic, the greedy heuristic and a randomised solution, by an average of 16, 31 and 56% respectively
Sample collection from asteroid (162173) Ryugu by Hayabusa2: Implications for surface evolution
International audienc
Collisional history of Ryugu's parent body from bright surface boulders
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