Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) for Assisted Living: Testing the Aura Object Location (AOL) Model

Systems for assisted living that support people in their own home are becoming ever more important internationally as social and economic demands change. In our system, we view everyday activity around the home as travel between landmarks, with objects deposited and collected in locations that only need to be localised in relation to those landmarks rather than in terms of a fixed frame of reference. The placement of such landmarks – implemented as Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags – can be determined by the degree of resolution required, so that areas where there is more spatial complexity may have a higher density of tags than those areas that are less complex. In this paper we describe a prototype system built around RFID tags used as fixed landmarks and attached to moveable objects along with a portable interrogator, using commercially available hardware and software. Two methods were developed: history recall, using continuous object tracking and real-time object location sensing. Usability testing of the system is described and the results reported. Future development challenges, potential applications and critical technological development points are discussed

Neuromatch Academy: a 3-week, online summer school in computational neuroscience

Neuromatch Academy (https://academy.neuromatch.io; (van Viegen et al., 2021)) was designed as an online summer school to cover the basics of computational neuroscience in three weeks. The materials cover dominant and emerging computational neuroscience tools, how they complement one another, and specifically focus on how they can help us to better understand how the brain functions. An original component of the materials is its focus on modeling choices, i.e. how do we choose the right approach, how do we build models, and how can we evaluate models to determine if they provide real (meaningful) insight. This meta-modeling component of the instructional materials asks what questions can be answered by different techniques, and how to apply them meaningfully to get insight about brain function

Emergence and spread of two SARS-CoV-2 variants of interest in Nigeria.

Identifying the dissemination patterns and impacts of a virus of economic or health importance during a pandemic is crucial, as it informs the public on policies for containment in order to reduce the spread of the virus. In this study, we integrated genomic and travel data to investigate the emergence and spread of the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.318 and B.1.525 (Eta) variants of interest in Nigeria and the wider Africa region. By integrating travel data and phylogeographic reconstructions, we find that these two variants that arose during the second wave in Nigeria emerged from within Africa, with the B.1.525 from Nigeria, and then spread to other parts of the world. Data from this study show how regional connectivity of Nigeria drove the spread of these variants of interest to surrounding countries and those connected by air-traffic. Our findings demonstrate the power of genomic analysis when combined with mobility and epidemiological data to identify the drivers of transmission, as bidirectional transmission within and between African nations are grossly underestimated as seen in our import risk index estimates

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance.

Investment in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing in Africa over the past year has led to a major increase in the number of sequences that have been generated and used to track the pandemic on the continent, a number that now exceeds 100,000 genomes. Our results show an increase in the number of African countries that are able to sequence domestically and highlight that local sequencing enables faster turnaround times and more-regular routine surveillance. Despite limitations of low testing proportions, findings from this genomic surveillance study underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic and illuminate the distinct dispersal dynamics of variants of concern-particularly Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron-on the continent. Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve while the continent faces many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

A year of genomic surveillance reveals how the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic unfolded in Africa.

The progression of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic in Africa has so far been heterogeneous, and the full impact is not yet well understood. In this study, we describe the genomic epidemiology using a dataset of 8746 genomes from 33 African countries and two overseas territories. We show that the epidemics in most countries were initiated by importations predominantly from Europe, which diminished after the early introduction of international travel restrictions. As the pandemic progressed, ongoing transmission in many countries and increasing mobility led to the emergence and spread within the continent of many variants of concern and interest, such as B.1.351, B.1.525, A.23.1, and C.1.1. Although distorted by low sampling numbers and blind spots, the findings highlight that Africa must not be left behind in the global pandemic response, otherwise it could become a source for new variants

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Roadmap to solving security and privacy concerns in RFID systems

This paper focuses on privacy and security concerns in Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) systems and paves the way towards a roadmap for solving security and privacy concerns in RFID systems. RFID systems have captured much interest around the World. The technology has many advantages and applications in a real world situation. Examples of such scenarios will be discussed in this paper. This paper reviews privacy and security concerns within the context of the advantages the technology offers and reviews solutions to overcome the privacy and security challenges. However, this research found that many proposed technological solutions are not “bullet proof” and policy regulations have to be employed as well. Few such RFID policies have been proposed. However, this paper argues that users/consumers of RFID systems should be given the mandate to have control over their products and systems and in order to fully address solution to the security concerns

Clinical Outcomes of Prosthetic Knee Joint Infection in a United States Tertiary Healthcare Center

Abstract Background The 2013 IDSA prosthetic joint infection (PJI) guidelines identified some research gaps, some of which include what factors may predict PJI outcome. We therefore conducted a retrospective single-center study with the goal of addressing some of these gaps. Objectives 1. Describe the incidence, pathogens, role of inflammatory markers, and treatment outcomes of knee PJI. 2. Identify correlations between joint aspiration (JA) and intraoperative (IO) cultures. Methods We retrospectively analyzed all adult knee PJI that were diagnosed and managed at our institution between 1/1/2005 and 12/31/2015. Statistical analysis was done using the paired t-test, Fisher exact and McNemar χ 2 tests as applicable. Results Forty-six subjects met the inclusion criteria and were analyzed. See table below. The incidence rate of PJI for the study period was 5.4%.. Staph. aureus was the commonest pathogen accounting for 11(65%) JA and 13(40%) of IO cultures. Low virulence organisms [Staph. epidermidis n = 8 (25%) and Corynebacterium spp. n =1 (3%)] were only recovered from IO cultures. Gram-negative bacilli accounted for 5(30%) JA and 7(28%) IO cultures.. JA correlates well with IO cultures using paired sample correlations (t-test); (correlation 0.61, P = 0.027).. 97% of subjects had elevated ESR while 96% had elevated CRP.. Concerning outcome, there was no statistically significant difference between groups based on implant duration (P = 0.98), symptom onset (P = 0.23), pathogen type (P = 0.83), and treatment options (P = 0.39). Conclusion 1. JA culture is a good predictor of IO culture in knee PJI. 2. Yield of low virulence organisms from JA culture is poor. 3. Elevated ESR and CRP can support diagnosis of knee PJI. 4. Implant duration, pathogen type, duration of symptoms and treatment type do not appear to affect outcome. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures