〈短報〉文意にあてはまる単語の想起からみた自閉スペクトラム症児における短文意味処理の特徴

自閉スペクトラム症（autism spectrum disorder: ASD）児の単文意味処理の特徴を明らかにすることを目的に、ASD児と定型発逹（Typically Developing: TD）児、TD成人を対象として、文意にあてはまる単語の想起を求める単語想起課題を、動詞条件と目的語条件を設定し実施した。まず、単語の想起数と誤答についてTD児とTD成人の比較を行った。その後同様に、ASD児とTD児の比較を行った。その結呆、TD児とTD成人との間に結呆の差は説められなかった。ASD児はTD児と比較して、目的語条件において単語の想起数が有意に少なかった。また、ASD児は誤答において、修飾する語を加えて場面を限定したり、具体的に表現したりする特徴がみられた。以上のことから、ASD児は、単語の意味記憶を検索する段階の部分処理の亢進があること、単文全体の意味を統合することの弱さがあることが示唆された。This study examined the semantic processing of simple sentences in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Children with ASD, typically developing (TD) children, and TD adults completed a word recall task. They were asked to recall words corresponding to the blank spaces in simple sentences. The task bad a verb condition and an object condition. First, we compared tbe number of words recalled and that of wrong answers given by TD children and TD adults. Then, similarly, a comparison was made between children with ASD and TD children. We found no significant difference in the ability to recall words between TD children and TD adults. In the object condition, children with ASD recalled significantly fewer words than did TD children. Children with ASD added features to modify the scene, to limit it, or to express it concretely with features of incorrect answers. Therefore, it is suggested that children with ASD exhibit enhanced partial processing at the stage of retrieving semantic memory of words, and exhibit weaknesses in integrating the meaning of the whole sentence

A Method for Recognizing Postures and Gestures Using Foot Pressure Sensors

In this paper, we propose a method for recognizing postures and gestures by using foot pressure sensors, and we investigate optimal positions for pressure sensors on soles from the viewpoint of motion recognition accuracy. In experiments, the recognition accuracies of 22 kinds of daily postures and gestures were evaluated from foot-pressure sensor values. Furthermore, the optimum measurement points for high recognition accuracy were examined by evaluating combinations of two foot pressure measurement areas on a round-robin basis. As a result, when selecting the optimum two points for each user, the recognition accuracy was about 94.5% on average. The recognition accuracy of the averaged combinations of the best two combinations for all subjects was classified with an accuracy of about 91.9% on average. As a result of an evaluation to raise versatility, the average recognition accuracy in a three-point evaluation was 98.4%, which was almost the same with the recognition accuracy when using all 105 points. In anticipation of the applicability of this research result, two types of pressure sensing shoes were developed

System for Detecting Learner Stuck in Programming Learning

Getting stuck is an inevitable part of learning programming. Long-term stuck decreases the learner’s motivation and learning efficiency. The current approach to supporting learning in lectures involves teachers finding students who are getting stuck, reviewing their source code, and solving the problems. However, it is difficult for teachers to grasp every learner’s stuck situation and to distinguish stuck or deep thinking only by their source code. Teachers should advise learners only when there is no progress and they are psychologically stuck. This paper proposes a method for detecting when learners get stuck during programming by using multi-modal data, considering both their source code and psychological state measured by a heart rate sensor. The evaluation results of the proposed method show that it can detect more stuck situations than the method that uses only a single indicator. Furthermore, we implemented a system that aggregates the stuck situation detected by the proposed method and presents them to a teacher. In evaluations during the actual programming lecture, participants rated the notification timing of application as suitable and commented that the application was useful. The questionnaire survey showed that the application can detect situations where learners cannot find solutions to exercise problems or express them in programming

Extensible Neck: A Gesture Input Method to Extend/Contract Neck Virtually in Video See-through AR Environment

With the popularization of head-mounted displays (HMDs), many systems for human augmentation have been developed. This will increase the opportunities to use such systems in daily life. Therefore, the user interfaces for these systems must be designed to be intuitive and highly responsive. This paper proposes an intuitive input method that uses natural gestures as input cues for systems for human augmentation. We investigated the appropriate gestures for a system that expands the movements of the user’s viewpoint by extending and contracting the neck in a video see-through AR environment. We conducted an experiment to investigate natural gestures by observing the motions when a person wants to extend his/her neck. Furthermore, we determined the operation method for extending/contracting the neck and holding the position through additional experiments. Based on this investigation, we implemented a prototype of the proposed system in a VR environment. Note that we employed a VR environment since we could test our method in various situations, although our target environment is AR. We compared the operability of the proposed method and the handheld controller using our prototype. The results confirmed that the participants felt more immersed using our method, although the positioning speed using controller input was faster than that of our method

Effects of a Ketogenic Diet Containing Medium-Chain Triglycerides and Endurance Training on Metabolic Enzyme Adaptations in Rat Skeletal Muscle

Long-term intake of a ketogenic diet enhances utilization of ketone bodies, a particularly energy-efficient substrate, during exercise. However, physiological adaptation to an extremely low-carbohydrate diet has been shown to upregulate pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4 (PDK4, a negative regulator of glycolytic flux) content in skeletal muscle, resulting in impaired high-intensity exercise capacity. This study aimed to examine the effects of a long-term ketogenic diet containing medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) on endurance training-induced adaptations in ketolytic and glycolytic enzymes of rat skeletal muscle. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were placed on either a standard diet (CON), a long-chain triglyceride-containing ketogenic diet (LKD), or an MCT-containing ketogenic diet (MKD). Half the rats in each group performed a 2-h swimming exercise, 5 days a week, for 8 weeks. Endurance training significantly increased 3-oxoacid CoA transferase (OXCT, a ketolytic enzyme) protein content in epitrochlearis muscle tissue, and MKD intake additively enhanced endurance training–induced increases in OXCT protein content. LKD consumption substantially increased muscle PDK4 protein level. However, such PDK4 increases were not observed in the MKD-fed rats. In conclusion, long-term intake of ketogenic diets containing MCTs may additively enhance endurance training–induced increases in ketolytic capacity in skeletal muscle without exerting inhibitory effects on carbohydrate metabolism

Evaluating the Effects of Testing Period on Pollinosis Symptoms Using an Allergen Challenge Chamber

Background: We previously built a pollen challenge test unit (allergen challenge chamber: ACC) to collect objective data about Japanese cedar pollinosis. In this study, we investigated adequate conditions for pollen challenge using the ACC. Methods: The study consisted of two parts. The first part was conducted in November, which is not in pollen season. Subjects were exposed to Japanese cedar pollen at a concentration of 50,000 grains/m3 in the chamber for 120 min each day over the course of three consecutive days. The second part was conducted in April, which is just after pollen season. Subjects were exposed to Japanese cedar pollen at the same concentration (50,000 grains/m3) in the chamber for 90 min on a single day. Subjects recorded nasal and ocular symptoms before challenge and every 15 min after challenge initiation. The minimum cross-sectional area in the nasal cavity was measured using acoustic rhinometry before and after challenge as an indicator of nasal obstruction. Inflammatory markers in nasal lavage fluid and serum were also measured before and after challenge. Results: Nasal and ocular symptoms were significantly exacerbated after challenge on all days of the single and 3-consecutive-day challenge tests, particularly on the third day of the consecutive challenge test. Nasal and ocular symptoms were also quickly induced with challenge immediately after the end of pollen season. No significant changes in inflammatory markers were seen. Conclusions: Care is needed with regard to pollen challenge conditions in the ACC, including timing of the challenge, to induce pollinosis symptoms that accurately reflect chronic inflammation