Home Activities Research Articles

Understanding How Home Conditions Shape Early Grade Learners Literacy Acquisition Skills: A Tanzanian Perspective

Literacy skills are essential in children’s future learning and development. Studies indicate that literacy skills among early grade learners in Tanzania are below the required standards. This study explored the contribution of home factors that hinder acquisition of reading and writing skills among early grades learners in Tanzania. The study was informed by a qualitative methodology which involved a total of 92 participants, including 80 parents and 12 standard one and two teachers from four primary schools in two districts of Morogoro region. The study employed purposive sampling technique to select teachers and convenience sampling technique to obtain parents who were involved in interview and focus group discussion. Data was collected using semi-structured interview, focused group discussion and documentary review. The data were analysed thematically based on themes and sub-themes emerged in the study. The findings revealed that most factors that hinder early grade learners from acquiring reading and writing skills included (poor parents follow up, engaging children in many home activities, low parents’ education and parent’s income) It was suggested that there should be cooperation between parents and teachers to assist the children in developing their reading and writing skills. The study concludes that parents and teachers should work collaboratively to develop reading and writing in children. Lastly, it is recommended that parents should buy materials like books, and assist their children to practice reading and writing skills at home.

Implementation of Remote Activity Sensing to Support a Rehabilitation Aftercare Program: Observational Mixed Methods Study With Patients and Health Care Professionals.

Physical activity is central to maintaining the quality of life for patients with complex chronic conditions and is thus at the core of neurorehabilitation. However, maintaining activity improvements in daily life is challenging. The novel Stay With It program aims to promote physical activity after neurorehabilitation by cultivating self-monitoring skills and habits. We examined the implementation of the Stay With It program at the Valens Rehabilitation Centre in Switzerland using the normalization process theory framework, focusing on 3 research aims. We aimed to examine the challenges and facilitators of program implementation from the perspectives of patients and health care professionals. We aimed to evaluate the potential of activity sensors to support program implementation and patient acceptance. Finally, we aimed to evaluate patients' engagement in physical activity after rehabilitation, patients' self-reported achievement of home activity goals, and factors influencing physical activity. Patients were enrolled if they had a disease that was either chronic or at risk for chronicity and participated in the Stay With It program. Patients were assessed at baseline, the end of rehabilitation, and a 3-month follow-up. The health care professionals designated to deliver the program were surveyed before and after program implementation. We used a mixed methods approach combining standardized questionnaires, activity-sensing data (patients only), and free-text questions. This study included 23 patients and 13 health care professionals. The diverse needs of patients and organizational hurdles were major challenges to program implementation. Patients' intrinsic motivation and health care professionals' commitment to refining the program emerged as key facilitators. Both groups recognized the value of activity sensors in supporting program implementation and sustainability. Although patients appreciated the sensor's ability to monitor, motivate, and quantify activity, health care professionals saw the sensor as a motivational tool but expressed concerns about technical difficulties and potential inaccuracies. Physical activity levels after patients returned home varied considerably, both within and between individuals. The self-reported achievement of activity goals at home also varied, in part because of vague definitions. Common barriers to maintaining activity at home were declining health and fatigue often resulting from heat and pain. At the 3-month follow-up, 35% (8/23) of the patients withdrew from the study, with most citing deteriorating physical health as the reason and that monitoring and discussing their low activity would negatively affect their mental health. Integrating aftercare programs like Stay With It into routine care is vital for maintaining physical activity postrehabilitation. Although activity trackers show promise in promoting motivation through monitoring, they may lead to frustration during health declines. Their acceptability may also be influenced by an individual's health status, habits, and technical skills. Our study highlights the importance of considering health care professionals' perspectives when integrating new interventions into routine care.

Timed Activity to Minimize Sleep Disturbance in People With Cognitive Impairment.

Sleep disturbances occur in >60% of persons living with cognitive impairment, affecting their quality of life (QOL). Regulating the sleep-wake cycle through engaging cognitive, physical, and sensory-based activities delivered at strategic times may reduce sleep disturbances and be a feasible nonpharmacological treatment for sleep problems. The objective of this trial was to test the efficacy of a timed-activity intervention in improving QOL and sleep disturbances in persons living with cognitive impairment. Randomized 2-group parallel design involving 209 dyads of community-residing persons living with cognitive impairment and care partners. Dyads were randomly assigned (1:1) to 1-hr home activity sessions administered weekly in the morning, afternoon, or evening over 4 weeks (the Healthy Patterns Sleep Program), or to an attention-control condition consisting of sleep hygiene training plus education on home safety and health promotion. QOL, objective and subjective sleep quality, and neuropsychiatric symptoms were assessed at baseline and 4 weeks later. QOL was significantly improved in the intervention group compared to control (p = .0491). There were no significant effects on objective or subjective sleep or neuropsychiatric symptoms. In a subgroup analysis, subjective sleep as measured by the PROMIS (Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System) Sleep-Related Impairment survey was significantly improved in the intervention group compared to the control group for individuals with symptoms of depression (p = .015) or poor observed sleep at baseline (p = .005). The Healthy Patterns Intervention may benefit QOL for persons living with cognitive impairment and those with poor subjective sleep. A longer dose may be necessary to elicit improvement in actigraphically measured sleep-wake activity. NCT0368218 5.

Outlining a ‘Semantic Anthropology of Data Science’

Abstract This work intends to describe the humanitarian response to the cholera epidemic carried out by the international health non-governmental organisation Doctors with Africa CUAMM in the provinces of Zambezia, Sofala and Tete in Mozambique. The knowledge and practices of applied medical anthropology have proved to be fundamental in the management of prevention and monitoring activities in homes where cases of cholera have been identified and confirmed. The collection and management of data relating to the epidemiological curve has represented a challenge in the field and pose considerable theoretical problems with respect to the representation, public discourse and policies of local government and large international donors in response to health emergencies caused by the ecological crisis-climate, especially in Africa and Mozambique.

Dyadic Parent-Child Creative Activities and Early Childhood Resilience: Audio-recordings and Home Activities as Methodological Propositions

Abstract This commentary invites creativity researchers to address an area that, to date, has received little attention: the effects of dyadic creative activities on early childhood resilience. There is, indeed, a growing body of work on how creative behaviour can contribute to resilience in older children, adolescents, and adults. There is less research on this topic for populations of children aged 3 to 6 years. Yet, young children are particularly dependent upon the bonds they form with their caregivers, notably their parents. The quality of the ties they maintain with them can promote, or on the contrary hinder, their resilience. After presenting the need to foster resilience among young children through dyadic creative activities, the commentary proposes audio recording as a method of investigating this phenomenon. It presents perspectives on the analysis of momentary processes. It concludes with perspectives creative activities at home that researchers can propose to parents and children to address their effects on young children’s resilience.

Home Cognitive Stimulation Activity in Thai Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Mild Dementia

AbstractBackgroundThis study aims to investigate the characteristics of home cognitive stimulation activities for Thai patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild dementia.MethodA cross‐sectional, questionnaire‐based study was conducted on Thai patients with the diagnosis of MCI and mild dementia. Patients’ characteristics, ability to use IT device or telecommunication technology, and home cognitive stimulation activities were collected. All activities were divided and calculated into sub‐scores of cognitive, religion‐related, and physical activities according to its frequency.ResultThere were 157 patients with a mean age of 76.2±7.9 years, 65.6% were female. 46.5% were diagnosed with MCI, and 53.5% with mild dementia. 47.1% had a graduate or higher degree. The mean MoCA score was 20.8±4.7. 51% of patients were able to use IT devices (smartphones, tablets, or computers). Patients with MCI were able to use IT devices more than patients with mild dementia (79.5% vs. 26.2%, p<0.001). As many as 29.3% of them were able to use a teleconference technology such as video call or Zoom application. Among the 25 home cognitive stimulation activities collected (excluding watching television), only 7 activities that participants ≥30% rated as frequent (≥3 days per week) were doing chores (63.1%), working out (51.0%), listening to music (50.3%), praying (43.3%), reading (38.2%), cooking (33.1%), and texting via mobile (31.8%). The activities they engaged the least were playing cards, board games, doing crossword puzzles, and drawing (rated as frequent 0.6%). Compared with patients with mild dementia, patients with MCI exhibited higher scores in all sub‐scores (all p<0.01). The cognitive activity sub‐score had an inverse correlation with the patient’s age and geriatric depression scale (r = ‐0.340 and ‐0.171, both p<0.05). Patients who were able to use smart devices or video call/conference applications were found to be more likely to have higher scores in every activity sub‐scores (all p<0.01).ConclusionIn this study, Thai patients had limited home activities, particularly those with dementia. However, about half of them were able to use IT devices, which may correlate with a higher cognitive activity score. Thai individuals with MCI or mild dementia may have room for improvement in the cognitive intervention delivered at home via teleconference.

Implementation of Home Parenting Activities as an Effort to Prepare Early Childhood Growth and Development

Parents have an essential role in caring for, educating, and meeting the needs of a child, especially in the aspect of growth and development. How parents educate is very important for the growth and development of early childhood. Education and upbringing at home must be harmonized with education at school so that children grow up to be intelligent, independent, and have character, growing into strong and rugged individuals. This research was motivated by a need for parental awareness of children's learning activities at school, inappropriate parenting patterns, and the importance of children's education. This research aims to determine children's development as a communication tool and the model for implementing learning programs in collaboration with parents in early childhood education, especially in Blora Regency. This research was conducted using a qualitative approach obtained through interviews, documentation data, and observation data regarding the implementation of home parenting programs or activities. This research shows that home parenting activities can be carried out through reporting on children's learning progress at school, knowledge of early detection of growth and development, parents' skills in creating work, and involvement of parents as resource persons. Parenting methods are usually carried out at school and sometimes only once a semester; for home parenting, this is done once a month. Implementing home parenting activities can make it easier for parents to provide parenting lessons and learn more about their children's activities.

Dynamic and Real-Time Object Detection Based on Deep Learning for Home Service Robots

Home service robots operating indoors, such as inside houses and offices, require the real-time and accurate identification and location of target objects to perform service tasks efficiently. However, images captured by visual sensors while in motion states usually contain varying degrees of blurriness, presenting a significant challenge for object detection. In particular, daily life scenes contain small objects like fruits and tableware, which are often occluded, further complicating object recognition and positioning. A dynamic and real-time object detection algorithm is proposed for home service robots. This is composed of an image deblurring algorithm and an object detection algorithm. To improve the clarity of motion-blurred images, the DA-Multi-DCGAN algorithm is proposed. It comprises an embedded dynamic adjustment mechanism and a multimodal multiscale fusion structure based on robot motion and surrounding environmental information, enabling the deblurring processing of images that are captured under different motion states. Compared with DeblurGAN, DA-Multi-DCGAN had a 5.07 improvement in Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) and a 0.022 improvement in Structural Similarity (SSIM). An AT-LI-YOLO method is proposed for small and occluded object detection. Based on depthwise separable convolution, this method highlights key areas and integrates salient features by embedding the attention module in the AT-Resblock to improve the sensitivity and detection precision of small objects and partially occluded objects. It also employs a lightweight network unit Lightblock to reduce the network’s parameters and computational complexity, which improves its computational efficiency. Compared with YOLOv3, the mean average precision (mAP) of AT-LI-YOLO increased by 3.19%, and the detection precision of small objects, such as apples and oranges and partially occluded objects, increased by 19.12% and 29.52%, respectively. Moreover, the model inference efficiency had a 7 ms reduction in processing time. Based on the typical home activities of older people and children, the dataset Grasp-17 was established for the training and testing of the proposed method. Using the TensorRT neural network inference engine of the developed service robot prototype, the proposed dynamic and real-time object detection algorithm required 29 ms, which meets the real-time requirement of smooth vision.

Perimenstrual Asthma and Premenstrual Disorders in Adolescents with Asthma

IntroductionAsthma is a common chronic disease in pediatric patients, and perimenstrual asthma (PMA) refers to the worsening of asthma symptoms during the perimenstrual period, mainly reported in adult women. However, there is limited information regarding the exacerbation of symptoms in the presence of premenstrual disorders (PMDs) in adolescents. This pilot observational study aims to investigate the frequency and potential association of PMA and PMDs in a clinical sample of adolescents with asthma. Patients and MethodsThe study included 50 adolescents (aged 12-18 years, mean 16.08 ± 2.35) with asthma and at least 2 years of gynecological age. The participants completed the Asthma Control Test (ACT) to assess asthma control (considered pathological if ACT score<20) and the modified Premenstrual Symptoms Screening Tool for Adolescents (PSST-A) to evaluate PMDs. ResultsA total of 75.5% of adolescents reported PMA. The prevalence of premenstrual symptoms did not significantly differ between the PMA and no-PMA group. Among the study sample, 38.7% experienced symptoms indicative of moderate/severe premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and 8.1% exhibited symptoms of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). Compared to no-PMA group, patients with PMA showed a significant impairment in daily and home activities (p=0.03 and p=0.02, respectively) and exhibited a difference in the frequency of asthma symptoms (p<0.001) and medication use (p=<0.01). ConclusionsPerimenstrual worsening of asthma symptoms may be common in adolescents with severe form of asthma. Prospective data collection through menstrual diaries is necessary to further explore the association between PMA and PMDs. Identifying early risk factors for PMA could facilitate the development of preventive strategies and early interventions for adolescents with asthma.

The Effect of Home Care Poverty on the Activities of Daily Living among Older Adults in China: A Propensity Score Matching Study.

In the context of home care being valued by the Chinese government and the increasing number of disabled older adults, it is of great significance to explore the effect of home care poverty of the older adults on their ability to perform activities of daily living. A research sample of 2583 older adults from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey data in 2018 was adopted. There were 422 participants in the treatment group and 2161 participants in the control group. According to the framework of counterfactual analysis, the kernel matching method was used to match the treatment and control groups to calculate the values of average treatment effects on treated (ATT). The results of the kernel matching method showed that the factual ADL score of the treatment group was 6.886, the counterfactual ADL score of the control group was 8.520, and the ATT value was -1.634 (P<0.05). There were gender and urban-rural differences in the relationship between home care poverty and activities of daily living among older people. In gender samples, there was a significant correlation between the two, and the absolute value of ATT in male samples was higher than that in female samples (P<0.05). In the rural samples, there was a significant correlation between the two variables (P<0.05). But in the urban samples, there was no significant correlation between the two variables. Home care poverty could significantly reduce the ability to perform activities of daily living among older adults in China. Based on the conclusions, the study puts forward several suggestions to solve the home care poverty for the older adults in China.

Long-term Participation and Functional Status in Children Who Experience Traumatic Brain Injury.

To evaluate the effect of child and family factors on children's participation outcomes 2 to 3 years following traumatic brain injury (TBI). Two level 1 pediatric trauma centers. Children aged 0 to 15 years with TBI at all severity levels or an orthopedic injury. Prospective cohort. Caregivers completed the Child and Adolescent Scale of Participation (CASP) at 2- and 3-year follow-ups. The CASP was categorized as more than 90 or 90 or less on a 100-point scale, with 90 or less representing the 10th percentile and below in this sample. Modified Poisson regression models were used to describe relative risk of the CASP at 90 or less at 2 to 3 years postinjury, adjusting for preinjury family environment variables and injury group. A secondary analysis only included children who were 31 months or older at injury ( n = 441) to determine whether changes in functional outcome (Pediatric Injury Functional Outcome Scale, PIFOS) and executive functions (Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function, BRIEF) from preinjury to 1 year after injury predicted CASP scores at the 2- or 3-year follow-up. Seventy-eight percent (596/769) of children who had a completed preinjury survey had a completed CASP. In the adjusted model, children with severe TBI had a nearly 3 times higher risk (RR = 2.90; 95% CI, 1.43-5.87) of reduced participation than children with an orthopedic injury. In the secondary analysis, lower functional skills (5-point increase in 1-year postinjury PIFOS score) (RR = 1.36; 95% CI, 1.18-1.57) and less favorable family function (RR = 1.46; 95% CI, 1.02-2.10) were associated with reduced participation in both girls and boys. Participation in home, school, and community activities after TBI is related to multiple biopsychosocial factors. Participation-focused interventions are needed to reduce barriers to involvement and assist children and families to close the participation gap across settings.

Unmanned Aircraft/Aerial System (UAS) Noise Compilation

Unmanned aircraft/aerial systems (UASs) can be used for many purposes, for example, in servicing delivery, recreational activities, utility inspection, and film industries. Use of UAS vehicles is limited, with more widespread use pending approval. For some applications, use of UAS vehicles can expose communities to a type of noise not currently experienced, with current noise sources typically related to transportation systems (e.g., aircraft, rail, and road or highway noise sources), home activities (e.g., air conditioning units and lawn car), and industrial noise sources. It is important to understand the type of noise communities will experience with UAS operations.

Cerebral Palsy – Early Diagnosis and Intervention Trial: protocol for the prospective multicentre CP-EDIT study with focus on diagnosis, prognostic factors, and intervention

BackgroundEarly diagnosis of cerebral palsy (CP) is important to enable intervention at a time when neuroplasticity is at its highest. Current mean age at diagnosis is 13 months in Denmark. Recent research has documented that an early-diagnosis set-up can lower diagnostic age in high-risk infants. The aim of the current study is to lower diagnostic age of CP regardless of neonatal risk factors. Additionally, we want to investigate if an early intervention program added to standard care is superior to standard care alone.MethodsThe current multicentre study CP-EDIT (Early Diagnosis and Intervention Trial) with the GO-PLAY intervention included (Goal Oriented ParentaL supported home ActivitY program), aims at testing the feasibility of an early diagnosis set-up and the GO-PLAY early intervention. CP-EDIT is a prospective cohort study, consecutively assessing approximately 500 infants at risk of CP. We will systematically collect data at inclusion (age 3–11 months) and follow a subset of participants (n = 300) with CP or at high risk of CP until the age of two years. The GO-PLAY early intervention will be tested in 80 infants with CP or high risk of CP.Focus is on eight areas related to implementation and perspectives of the families: early cerebral magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), early genetic testing, implementation of the General Movements Assessment method, analysis of the GO-PLAY early intervention, parental perspective of early intervention and early diagnosis, early prediction of CP, and comparative analysis of the Hand Assessment for Infants, Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination, MRI, and the General Movements method.DiscussionEarly screening for CP is increasingly possible and an interim diagnosis of “high risk of CP” is recommended but not currently used in clinical care in Denmark. Additionally, there is a need to accelerate identification in mild or ambiguous cases to facilitate appropriate therapy early. Most studies on early diagnosis focus on identifying CP in infants below five months corrected age. Little is known about early diagnosis in the 50% of all CP cases that are discernible later in infancy. The current study aims at improving care of patients with CP even before they have an established diagnosis.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov ID 22013292 (reg. date 31/MAR/2023) for the CP-EDIT cohort and ID 22041835 (reg. date 31/MAR/2023) for the GO-PLAY trial.

Relationship Between Work Family Conflict with Commitment Organization

Female lecturers play dual roles as both mothers responsible for home activities and family management and as workers responsible for their job performance. Balancing these roles is crucial for optimal functioning. Organizational commitment is essential for lecturers to actively engage, maintain their involvement, and achieve organizational goals. However, this dual role also makes them susceptible to work-family conflicts when they struggle to strike a balance between their roles as mothers and workers. This study aims to examine the impact of work-family conflict on the organizational commitment of female lecturers in higher education. It is a non-experimental quantitative research, and the data will be analyzed using multiple linear regression. The work-family conflict scale by Carlosn &amp; Kacmar, adapted by Kuntari, and the organizational commitment measurement tool developed by Ingarianti were used for data collection. The research output will be published in the Psikostudia psychology journal of Mulawarman University.&#x0D; Keywords: work family conflict, organizational commitment, female lecturer, universities

Metode dan Strategi Guru PAI dalam Penanaman Nilai-Nilai Pendidikan Karakter (Studi Kasus di SMPN 6 Taman Kabupaten Pemalang)

This article was written with the aim of describing the strategies used by Islamic religious education teachers at SMP Negeri 6 Taman, Pemalang Regency in instilling character education values. Apart from that, various supporting and inhibiting factors are also described in instilling character education values for class VIII students at SMP Negeri 6 Taman, Pemalang Regency. This is because character development is an important thing that must be done by teachers, especially Islamic religious education (PAI) teachers. This is because through religious education (Islam), teachers can introduce students to and at the same time instill social values that live and are maintained in people's lives which are part of good human character and personality. This article uses a type of field research by applying a qualitative approach. Data collection techniques are carried out through observation, interviews and documentation. Meanwhile, the data analysis technique goes through three stages, namely data reduction, data presentation process, and conclusion drawing process. The results of the study in this article show that the PAI teacher's strategy in instilling character education values in class VIII students at SMP Negeri 6 Taman, Pemalang Regency uses several strategies, namely through habituation activities, being a model and role model, mentor and motivator, and giving punishment. The supporting factors in instilling character education values in students are teachers who can be role models, parental education at home, school facilities, routine and extracurricular school activities. Meanwhile, the inhibiting factors are lack of teacher competence, lack of parental education, environmental and social factors.

The Epidemiology of Domain-Specific Physical Activity in New Zealand Adults: A Nationally Representative Cross-Sectional Survey.

Surveillance of domain-specific physical activity (PA) helps to target interventions to promote PA. We examined the sociodemographic correlates of domain-specific PA in New Zealand adults. A nationally representative sample of 13,887 adults completed the International PA Questionnaire-long form in 2019/20. Three measures of total and domain-specific (leisure, travel, home, and work) PA were calculated: (1)weekly participation, (2)mean weekly metabolic energy equivalent minutes (MET-min), and (3)median weekly MET-min among those who undertook PA. Results were weighted to the New Zealand adult population. The average contribution of domain-specific activity to total PA was 37.5% for work activities (participation = 43.6%; median participating MET-min = 2790), 31.9% for home activities (participation = 82.2%; median participating MET-min = 1185), 19.4% for leisure activities (participation = 64.7%; median participating MET-min = 933), and 11.2% for travel activities (participation = 64.0%; median MET-min among participants = 495). Women accumulated more home PA and less work PA than men. Total PA was higher in middle-aged adults, with diverse patterns by age within domains. Māori accumulated less leisure PA than New Zealand Europeans but higher total PA. Asian groups reported lower PA across all domains. Higher area deprivation was negatively associated with leisure PA. Sociodemographic patterns varied by measure. For example, gender was not associated with total PA participation, but men accumulated higher MET-min when taking part in PA than women. Inequalities in PA varied by domain and sociodemographic group. These results should be used to inform interventions to improve PA.

Parent-reported environmental factors and strategies to support home and community participation in children on the autism spectrum

Purpose Participating in home and community activities can be influenced by environmental factors and parent strategies. Children on the autism spectrum are reported to participate less in home and community activities than their neurotypical peers. Little is known about environmental factors that may influence their participation, and ways parents support their child’s participation. Materials and methods Parents of children on the autism spectrum aged 5–6 years (n = 72) and 10–11 years (n = 94) completed the Participation and Environment Measure for Children and Youth. This study reports on the perceived support, barriers, and resources in the home and the community environment. Parents reported strategies they used to support their child’s participation in home and the community. Results Home environmental factors were identified as more supportive by the parents of younger children. The sensory quality of activities and social demands were factors identified as making community participation harder for both groups. Parents used a range of different strategies in the home and the community to support their child’s participation. Conclusions Identifying environmental barriers and supports to participation can assist in developing interventions to support meaningful participation in activities for children on the autism spectrum. Implications for rehabilitation Skills required for the activity and preferences of children on the autism spectrum are important considerations when supporting their participation in activities. When exploring a child’s level of participation, it may be helpful to ask parents about what their child can do with or without their support. The sensory quality of the environment is a consideration when supporting the participation of children on the autism spectrum in community activities. As sensory processing is an individual experience, the impact of sensory elements of the environment may differ for individuals.

Empirical analysis of South African's urbanization growth and export demands: implications for environmental sustainability.

South African economy is widely known to contribute significantly to the carbon emissions due to usage of heavy machinery and equipment involved in production process. This study examines the linkage among carbon emissions, export, gross domestic product, and urban population growth in South Africa. The study employs the Autoregressive Distributed Lag model to evaluate the linkage among outlined variables, using annual data from 1981 to 2021. The findings indicate that a 1% increase in urban population leads to 1% decrease in carbon emissions. Furthermore, a 1% increase in economic activities (GDP) leads to a rise in carbon emissions. This corroborates rising exports with GDP that is rising thereby resulting in carbon emissions. The study recommends platforms that educate the populace, especially the youth on the management of carbon emissions in their daily home and business activities should be encouraged. More investment into clean technologies should be provided for energy efficiency machinery, and more research into such activities should be pursued by all relevant stakeholders.

Development and Testing of a Daily Activity Recognition System for Post-Stroke Rehabilitation.

Those who survive the initial incidence of a stroke experience impacts on daily function. As a part of the rehabilitation process, it is essential for clinicians to monitor patients' health status and recovery progress accurately and consistently; however, little is known about how patients function in their own homes. Therefore, the goal of this study was to develop, train, and test an algorithm within an ambient, in-home depth sensor system that can classify and quantify home activities of individuals post-stroke. We developed the Daily Activity Recognition and Assessment System (DARAS). A daily action logger was implemented with a Foresite Healthcare depth sensor. Daily activity data were collected from seventeen post-stroke participants' homes over three months. Given the extensive amount of data, only a portion of the participants' data was used for this specific analysis. An ensemble network for activity recognition and temporal localization was developed to detect and segment the clinically relevant actions from the recorded data. The ensemble network, which learns rich spatial-temporal features from both depth and skeletal joint data, fuses the prediction outputs from a customized 3D convolutional-de-convolutional network, customized region convolutional 3D network, and a proposed region hierarchical co-occurrence network. The per-frame precision and per-action precision were 0.819 and 0.838, respectively, on the test set. The outcomes from the DARAS can help clinicians to provide more personalized rehabilitation plans that benefit patients.

Children and youth’s participation at home, school and community: differences between socioeconomic status

Background: Environmental factors such as family socioeconomic status (SES) can influence the participation of children and youth in different contexts. Objective: Investigate the effect of SES on the participation of Brazilian children and adolescents in home, school and community activities. Methods: Parents/caregivers of 198 Brazilians aged 6-17 years from different SES answered the Participation and Environment Measure for Children and Youth and the Brazilian Criteria of Economic Classification. Unpaired Student t test or Mann-Whitney tests were used to compare two independent SES groups: middle-high/high (MHH) and middle-low/low (MLL). Results: The MLL presented greater involvement in all contexts. School provided greater participation equality for both groups. On the other hand, reduced participation by both groups was observed in community. Conclusion: Despite the financial disadvantage limiting/preventing access to different types of resources in lower-SES families. On contrary, it seems to have positive effects on the participation of children and youth in the MLL group.