Practical Vision Research Articles

El béisbol: un deporte exigente con la función visual

Sports vision is an emerging optometric discipline that seeks to improve visual fusion to obtain better sport performance. The relevant visual skills during sport practice depend on the type of sport played and, in the case of team sports, also on the playing position and task performed. Baseball is a fast-action sport that is very visually demanding. In this work, a literature review and analysis of the studies that investigate important aspects of vision in baseball practice has been carried out. Most of the studies reviewed focus on the analysis of the visual skills of batters, as batting is a highly visually demanding task. The results of the research show that baseball players have better visual skills than the non-athlete population, with dynamic visual acuity, eye movements, eye-hand-body coordination, response time and anticipation being among the most important for a good visual performance of the athletes. Studies show significant differences in certain visual skills depending on athlete-level and/or their playing position.

Gathering around a satellite image: Visual media cycles of the nuclear nonproliferation complex.

How have Western nongovernmental experts used remote sensing to make public knowledge about Iran's nuclear program? This article recounts several episodes in which experts and journalists congregated around satellite images to uncover hidden nuclear objects in Iran. Drawing from the theoretical tradition of co-production, I describe this recurrent collective experience as an imaginative exercise that can both coordinate and transform diverse communities of knowledge. I outline common temporal and thematic structures that define these episodes, and illuminate the role of commercial satellite imagery as material anchor that threads distributed imaginings together such that broadly-shared experience and sensibility can emerge. I argue that these collective imaginative practices have fomented civic-epistemic closure, not around affirmative nuclear facts or beliefs about Iran, but around a set of persistent questions about the 'possible military dimensions' of its nuclear past. I close by exploring the broader political effects of this form of recursive inquiry within the global nuclear order.

Advocate Health works toward shared vision of pharmacy practice.

Advocate Health works toward shared vision of pharmacy practice.

Antibodies in Autoimmune Neuropathies: What to Test, How to Test, Why to Test.

Autoimmune neuropathies are a heterogeneous group of immune-mediated disorders of the peripheral nerves. Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) are the archetypal acute and chronic forms. Over the past few decades, pathogenic antibodies targeting antigens of the peripheral nervous system and driving peripheral nerve damage in selected patients have been described. Moreover, the detection of these antibodies has diagnostic and therapeutic implications that have prompted a modification of the GBS and CIDP diagnostic algorithms. GBS diagnosis is based in clinical criteria, and systematic testing of anti-ganglioside antibodies is not required. Nonetheless, a positive anti-ganglioside antibody test may support the clinical suspicion when diagnosis of GBS (GM1 IgG), Miller Fisher (GQ1b IgG), or acute sensory-ataxic (GD1b IgG) syndromes is uncertain. Anti-myelin-associated glycoprotein (MAG) IgM and anti-disialosyl IgM antibodies are key in the diagnosis of anti-MAG neuropathy and chronic ataxic neuropathy, ophthalmoplegia, M-protein, cold agglutinins, and disialosyl antibodies spectrum neuropathies, respectively, and help differentiating these conditions from CIDP. Recently, the field has been boosted by the discovery of pathogenic antibodies targeting proteins of the node of Ranvier contactin-1, contactin-associated protein 1, and nodal and paranodal isoforms of neurofascin (NF140, NF186, or NF155). These antibodies define subgroups of patients with specific clinical (most importantly poor or partial response to conventional therapies and excellent response to anti-CD20 therapy) and pathologic (node of Ranvier disruption in the absence of inflammation) features that led to the definition of the "autoimmune nodopathy" diagnostic category and to the incorporation of nodal/paranodal antibodies to clinical routine testing. The purpose of this review was to provide a practical vision for the general neurologist of the use of antibodies in the clinical assessment of autoimmune neuropathies.

‘What planners don’t do is plan’: recovering the English strategic spatial planning imagination

ABSTRACT Strategic spatial planning imagination is fundamentally distributed across private, public and third sectors within national planning systems. Drawing on stakeholder interviews, we review the practice of imagination in English strategic spatial planning post-2010, arguing that it is critically exposed in terms of both breadth and depth. We therefore make suggestions for further mobilizing dispersed imagination in England and underline the need for associated development in the education and training of planners.

Toward a new clinical pragmatism: method in clinical ethics consultation.

In this paper, I leverage the pragmatist tradition in philosophy, the collective wisdom of scholarship in clinical ethics consultation, and earlier attempts to apply pragmatism in clinical ethics to develop a new vision of clinical ethics practice called New Clinical Pragmatism. It argues that clinical ethics methodology, from the New Clinical Pragmatist's perspective, amounts to the recommendation that consultants should customize a methodological approach, drawing on the various available methods, depending on the demands of the specific case, and should avoid attempts to identify a 'true' methodology but to the incoherence and inevitable failure of those attempts. I argue that pragmatism's emphasis on practical wisdom and experimentation allow the New Clinical Pragmatist to do this while avoiding irrationality in choosing methods. I discuss how the New Clinical Pragmatist gives a unique, constructive perspective on key aspects of clinical ethics consultation such as the choice of common morality vs. internal morality of medicine approaches, process standards, bioethics mediation, and narrative ethics, and suggest how New Clinical Pragmatism's relaxed approach to choice of methodology encourages consultants to balance attention to the particulars of the case with knowledge of what the many insightful scholars of clinical ethics methodology have found useful in the past. I also argue that New Clinical Pragmatism is consistent with efforts to professionalize clinical ethics consultation.

CFNet: An infrared and visible image compression fusion network

Image fusion aims to acquire a more complete image representation within a limited physical space to more effectively support practical vision applications. Although the currently popular infrared and visible image fusion algorithms take practical applications into consideration. However, they did not fully consider the redundancy and transmission efficiency of image data. To address this limitation, this paper proposes a compression fusion network for infrared and visible images based on joint CNN and Transformer, termed CFNet. First of all, the idea of variational autoencoder image compression is introduced into the image fusion framework, achieving data compression while maintaining image fusion quality and reducing redundancy. Moreover, a joint CNN and Transformer network structure is proposed, which comprehensively considers the local information extracted by CNN and the global long-distance dependencies emphasized by Transformer. Finally, multi-channel loss based on region of interest is used to guide network training. Not only can color visible and infrared images be fused directly but more bits can be allocated to the foreground region of interest, resulting in a superior compression ratio. Extensive qualitative and quantitative analyses affirm that the proposed compression fusion algorithm achieves state-of-the-art performance. In particular, rate–distortion performance experiments demonstrate the great advantages of the proposed algorithm for data storage and transmission. The source code is available at https://github.com/Xiaoxing0503/CFNet.

Making With Place: Community Artists Theorizing Change

This article confronts tensions of “risk” and “change” in youth engagement and community arts, towards insights for alternate world-building. We problematize overly instrumental approaches, by examining aesthetic and inductive theories of change arising from Making With Place, a research creation initiative based in Toronto, Canada. From Spring 2020 to Fall 2022, we engaged diverse young people as artist-researchers in community arts production experiments exploring concepts of place from individual and collective perspectives. We draw here on resulting public artworks, discussions with the artists, and our own field notes to surface the theories of change arising from this work. We identify three emergent metaphors—the garden, the bridge, the margins—and the ways in which they resist dominant discourses in favor of new practices of imagination and repair. We explore how these creative explorations articulate theories of change that refuse forgetting and call forth desire.

Teacher educators as knowledge brokers: reframing knowledge co-construction with school partners

ABSTRACT This paper explores the contention that teacher educators are especially well placed to help teachers bridge between practical experience and wider forms of knowledge. In its focus on issues derived from practice, knowledge co-construction and professional judgement, the paper articulates an alternative, but complementary, vision of evidence-informed practice to set alongside prevailing ‘What Works’ approaches. The paper uses the concept of knowledge brokering to analyse the ways that teachers collaborated with one English school of education’s teacher educators in five different projects in the course of a single academic year. Drawing on data from semi-structured interviews, common brokering mechanisms are identified, yielding a set of principles for creating conditions, boundary crossing and reciprocal working which cut across subjects and age phases. Four distinctive attributes of teacher educators are proposed as part of reframing such collaborative relationships. The paper adds to debates about the need to reconfigure university-school partnerships for professional learning in order to identify more clearly the distinctive contribution of the university teacher educator, respond to the role tensions of teacher educators and support teachers’ critical professionalism.

Exploring the Development of Preservice Teachers’ Visions of Equity through Science and Mathematics Integration

AbstractThis paper details an integrated inquiry-based mathematics and science method course for preservice teachers designed around STEM problem-based learning. It documents how problem-based learning (PBL) activities supported PSTs’ envisioning of equitable approaches for diverse children. The overarching research question was: How did preservice teacher learning and lesson design experiences within integrated STEM inquiry translate to their vision of equity-based STEM practice? The data included PSTs course reflections, STEM PBL 5E units, and reflections as they watched recordings of their teaching their units. This facilitated mapping the development of PSTs’ vision for equitable teaching across the field mediated experiences in teaching and learning STEM. Our findings revealed how visions of equitable STEM practices emerged from the PST's own experience as being a learner in an integrated STEM environment and from being a teacher who planned and enacted an equity focused STEM unit in a diverse classroom context. The dual teacher-learner experience of the mediated field experience was critically important to provide experiencing and witnessing the high level of motivation during the meaning-making process and provided evidence that rigorous math and science learning is possible in diverse contexts.

Energy Sector Evolution: Perspectives on Energy Platforms and Energy Transition

Digital platforms are becoming more important in transforming the energy industry and altering the way we produce, distribute, and use energy. This paper explores the role of energy platforms in the transition towards renewable energy. We highlight, through real-life examples, that these platforms foster a participatory approach, convert consumers into proactive participants, democratize energy production, and encourage innovation in areas such as storage, electric mobility, and renewable project investments. Through a comprehensive review of the current literature, technological advancements, and emerging business models, we identify the possible key contributions of digital platforms to the energy sector. These platforms offer personalized user experiences, mutual benefits for users and companies, adaptability to market changes, support for peer-to-peer trade, and a reduction in bureaucracy. We then present a pioneering conceptual model by Liu et al. (2022), which integrates the energy cloud, digital platform, and transaction platform and we explore the business model of energy platforms. This business model is characterized by connectivity, innovative pricing, and revenue strategies independent of physical asset ownership. Advanced technologies like artificial intelligence and blockchain facilitate peer-to-peer energy trading, dynamic pricing, and a focus on transaction and access fees over traditional cost structures. Drawing on the business model and previous analysis we update the conceptual model for energy platforms to present a practical vision through a holistic approach.

Pierwszy szczebel

Leo Tolstoy’s essay, The First Step (Первая ступень) written in 1891, is a multi-dimensional text whose purpose was not only to try to convert people to the righteous path of living through consistently followed restraint and self-control over one’s desires, but its author also encouraged people – in a rather convincing way – to become vegetarians. Tolstoy claimed that meat-free diet closely relates to healthy nutrition and consi­derably limits or even eliminates the suffering of animals being slaughtered on a mass scale for consumption in pain and death factories, as he referred to mechanised slaughterhouses. Using naturalistic images, the writer describes horrifying scenes he witnessed at the abattoir in Tula. The text is filled with drastic imagery, sounds and foul odours wafting from the slaughterhouse and the vision of inhumane practices of butchers, young and old, devoid of any sympathy towards the animals being killed. In hindsight it must be regretfully noted that Tolstoy’s essay has not changed people’s dietary habits and vegetaria­nism has not managed to supplant the traditional, mostly meat-based menu.

The role of platform ecosystem configuration toward performance bifurcation

The prevalence of digital ecosystems and platforms underscores the need for a deeper understanding of the factors that influence performance variations within these platforms. This study introduced a multidimensional model to examine the platform ecosystem characteristics that affect performance outcomes. To this end, it adopted the Lotka-Volterra complex system theory. The model was simplified into a one-dimensional framework, enabling the examination and prediction of the relationship between performance bifurcation and configurations of platform characteristics. This study provides practical insights and implications that extend beyond academia. The results reveal that high network threshold values indicate robust platform performance, suggesting resilience against collapse. Additionally, increasing the network effect influences platform performance by shifting competition strength toward prominent tipping-point locations, which is considered a desirable regime. The results further confirm that competition dampens a platform's exponential growth; however, cross-network effects enhance it. These insights have significant implications for investors, offering a practical vision that can inform managers' strategic decision-making. These findings provide a solid foundation for developing informed strategies to enhance platform performance. In a world in which digital ecosystems play a pivotal role, the implications of this study empower stakeholders to make data-driven decisions, fostering success in a dynamic and competitive digital business environment.

Learning to view golfing bodies: developing professional vision through video analysis and embodied reenactments

ABSTRACT Inspired by recent research that investigates how coaches interpret performance through the support of video tools and analysis, this article explores how the embodied reenactments of a golf coach shape their student’s interpretation of golfing bodies. More specifically, this research investigates a pedagogical encounter a Professional Golf Association (PGA) coach has with their golf student while engaging in collective in-the-moment video analysis of their student’s performance. Using Goodwin’s (1994) notion of professional vision, this article shows how a golf coach’s embodied methods attune their student’s observation of golfing practices to modern and standard methods for viewing and analyzing golfing bodies. I leverage interaction analysis to unearth and interpret the embodied and interactional nature of their pedagogical encounter, and to better understand how the golf coach’s reenactments shape their student’s professional vision. This research suggests that the body is a fundamental element in teaching and developing professional vision in athletic and performance-based contexts, and provides an avenue for better understanding how coaches, and experts in other professional settings, can apprentice novices’ interpretation and professional vision of practices.

Our ancestors: the Cimbri, Goths and Sarmatians. Three ethnogenetic legends in early modern Europe

ABSTRACT The study presented here is an attempt at a comparative analysis of three early modern phenomena in the history of ideas and culture: three ethnogenetic theories about the origins of the Swedish (Gothic) and Polish (Sarmatian) nations and states, as well as that of the Danes, originating from the ancient Cimbri. First, they will be compared as historiographic concepts characteristic of early modern knowledge. The next part of the paper concerns modifications to these theories made in national historiographies and the broader visions of the history of the respective countries based on them. The last part of the study presents how these ideas function at the political level, both in relation to broader visions of political reality and political practice. The analysis suggests that while in the case of the 16th-century historical concepts of origo gentis, there are more similarities than differences, the subsequent stages of development show increasing differentiation: the ideas of Sarmatian ethnogenesis underwent greater changes than others. However, there are similarities in the way Gothic and Sarmatian ideas functioned in political life and politics during that period in Sweden and Poland, respectively. The weakest point is the influence of Cimbrian ethnogenesis on the politics of Denmark at that time.

Home office as an ESG practice: benefits and humanization of work as perceived by employees

Brazilians came across the COVID-19 health crisis in 2020 that broke with market and business standards, technologies and models, directly affecting people’s way of relating, working and living, reshaping social, cultural and economic contexts. Among these changes, remote work has never been more evident in the day-to-day lives of companies and their professionals. In this context, the question that guides this work is: what is the impact of the home office on the management of people in companies from the point of view of human resources. The objective of the work was to verify the perception of people about this mode of work, which can constitute a practice of ESG, since it contributes to the mitigation of a series of social and environmental problems of the modern world. The theoretical reference of the work is based mainly on the plural vision of ESG practices (ROMARO; SERRALVO, 2022) and on the humanization of people management (BARROS NETO, 2022; LIMONGI-FRANCE, 2012). This study is an exploratory survey, carried out by means of an online questionnaire, whose sample consisted of the response of 121 participants. The results indicate that teleworking can be a more humane way of working and a solution to numerous challenges that are being faced by organizations and society today in the environmental, social and governance aspects. As practical implications the study shows that home office adoption, widely endorsed by workers, is a way for companies to increase their employees’ motivation and commitment while contributing to building a better world for all. The originality and value of research lies in demonstrating that the benefits of good HR practices, such as home office deployment, can go beyond the internal scope of organizations.

How to Start and Build a Practice in Microsurgical Breast Reconstruction: Success and Sustainability in a Private Practice Setting.

The aim of this article is to provide a template for building and sustaining a microsurgical breast reconstruction practice in a private practice setting. The target audience including residents, microsurgical fellows, and reconstructive microsurgeons were currently employed in an academic setting, and reconstructive microsurgeons were currently employed in a private group entity. We present five pillars that initiate, support, and sustain a successful practice in microsurgical breast reconstruction. The five key concepts are (1) establishing a practice vision and culture, (2) obtaining funding, (3) assembling staff, (4) negotiating insurance and other contracts, and (5) striving for efficiency and sustainability. These concepts have been at the core of Plastic, Reconstructive and Microsurgical Associates of South Texas-a private practice eight-physician group based in San Antonio, Tex.-since its inception. However, these concepts have evolved as the practice has grown and as the economic landscape has changed for reconstructive microsurgeons. In the article, we will present what we have done well, what we could have done better, and some pitfalls to avoid.

Virtual & Augmented Reality Applications: A Broader Perspective

Over the past few years, the topics related to alternate realities seem to ponder significant discussion in engineering as well as in general studies. However, in the wake of increasingly diverse and complex research in major domains including education, medical, and defense among others, the topics of augmented and virtual reality seem to gather attention on a global scale. This paper surveys the emerging trends of such technologies and their correlation with the wide application spectrum as an important aspect of human civilization. Moreover, the purpose of this paper is to distinctively formulate the role of such technologies by closely examining and describing the available approaches along with practical competencies through a detailed literature review of more than 70 technical papers. This review further aims to discuss the topic based on an empirically oriented study carried out through an experimental approach and practical vision. Lastly, the existing technologies in every domain along with the related issues and bounded limitations have been discussed to reveal the possible solutions as a future scope perspective of the work.

Artificial intelligence in medical practice

With state support, artificial intelligence is being intensively introduced into the healthcare sector. This review provides general information about artificial intelligence and its place in the healthcare system. A part of the lecture is devoted to the Moscow experiment on the use of computer vision in real clinical practice and the experience of the Kirov region on the use of artificial intelligence in the medical examination of the population. The lecture will be interesting to doctors and students to expand their general understanding of artificial intelligence and the possibility of its application in practical healthcare.

Introducing a new vision of psychoanalytic theory practice and supervision: TALKING BODIES

Introducing a new vision of psychoanalytic theory practice and supervision: TALKING BODIES