Movement Research Articles

Mo(u)vement(s), Interrupted

Mo(u)vement(s), Interrupted

Software for Animation and Graphic Visualization of Mechatronic Elements and Control Process of FMS

The issue of graphical visualization of the simulation, animation and design of mechatronic elements and control process in the example of the mechanical assembly shop of the flexible manufacture system (FMS), which is considered a complex technical system, is set. The purpose of the work is the development of graphics-mode software that provides computer experiments of 2D, 3D designer-modeling, animation and graphic visualization of the interface for evaluating the feasibility of the design process of the flexible mechanical assembly cell (FMAC) As the main research issues, the construction of the 2D and 3D grouping scheme of the static and dynamic elements of the research object, the development of 3D software for the animation models of the activities of its active elements, and the development of the generalized software for the graphic visualization of the interface for the design of the management system were set. Based on the issues raised, the 3D grouping scheme of static and dynamic elements of the FMAC was established, the positioning coordinates of the 2D static and dynamic elements of the FMAC were determined in the PROOF Animation system, the analysis of the technological process of the FMS was carried out to build an animation model, and the animation movements of technological operations were MOVE (management unguided movement) or PATH (guided movement) operators. An animation model of the static and dynamic active elements of the FMAC was built, experiments were conducted, and as a result, it was possible to calculate a technological cycle in the research object and determine the productivity of the workshop. The software for the graphic visualization of the design of the control system of the FMAC was developed, and the procedures and operations of each software module of the interface were planned.

Fully integrated Windows framework for source localization with MNE Python and FreeSurfer

Abstract There is a variety of software packages, toolboxes, or libraries for the analysis and processing of neurophysiological data such as EEG and MEG. Many of these solutions provide algorithms for both, sensor-space analysis and sourcespace analysis. Especially with the solutions that run on Windows machines, it is noticeable that the step of the volume model generation is usually not included, since the state-ofthe- art software for this (FreeSurfer) is a Unix-based software and thus not available forWindows machines. Therefore, our goal was to develop a fully-integrated software solution for Windows machines, accessing all processing steps already implemented in an existing toolbox and using FreeSurfer in the same system. Due to its widespread use, we chose MNE Python as the basis for our fully integrated software solution. We used the Windows Subsystem for Linux to create a virtual Linux kernel for the FreeSurfer installation. To demonstrate the workflow, the libeep, and AutoReject libraries have been added. A 64-channel EEG recording during right-hand movement (ME) and imagination (MI) was used to test the implemented workflow. The developed framework consists of several modules within Python, mainly using existing scripts and functions. The library libeep was integrated to read the EEG data with the ‘.cnt’, eeprope format. AutoReject was used to automatically interpolate detected bad channels or to reject complete epochs. FreeSurfer was successfully integrated and customized Python scripts enabled the communication between MNE Python on a Windows machine and FreeSurfer on a virtual Linux kernel. With the above-mentioned EEG dataset, we performed source reconstruction and were able to show ERD/S patterns for both, ME and MI. Our new, fullyintegrated software framework can be used on Windows machines to perform a complete process of source reconstruction.

Temporal-frequency-phase feature classification using 3D-convolutional neural networks for motor imagery and movement.

Recently, convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have been widely applied in brain-computer interface (BCI) based on electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. Due to the subject-specific nature of EEG signal patterns and the multi-dimensionality of EEG features, it is necessary to employ appropriate feature representation methods to enhance the decoding accuracy of EEG. In this study, we proposed a method for representing EEG temporal, frequency, and phase features, aiming to preserve the multi-domain information of EEG signals. Specifically, we generated EEG temporal segments using a sliding window strategy. Then, temporal, frequency, and phase features were extracted from different temporal segments and stacked into 3D feature maps, namely temporal-frequency-phase features (TFPF). Furthermore, we designed a compact 3D-CNN model to extract these multi-domain features efficiently. Considering the inter-individual variability in EEG data, we conducted individual testing for each subject. The proposed model achieved an average accuracy of 89.86, 78.85, and 63.55% for 2-class, 3-class, and 4-class motor imagery (MI) classification tasks, respectively, on the PhysioNet dataset. On the GigaDB dataset, the average accuracy for 2-class MI classification was 91.91%. For the comparison between MI and real movement (ME) tasks, the average accuracy for the 2-class were 87.66 and 80.13% on the PhysioNet and GigaDB datasets, respectively. Overall, the method presented in this paper have obtained good results in MI/ME tasks and have a good application prospect in the development of BCI systems based on MI/ME.

Activity Groups as Mental Health Interventions for Creative Arts Professionals

ABSTRACT Individuals whose career is within creative arts have higher rates of mental health diagnoses as compared to other professionals. We discuss the development of a novel program, the results of a quasi-experimental pilot survey of participants, and implications for practice and future research. Care for Creatives (CFC) operated from 2018 to 2020 to address community mental health of creative arts professionals. CFC collected pilot survey data from participants and included weekly drop-in social mixers featuring various healing service stations. The event paired with a structured open group featuring activities in yoga, somatic activities, and movement (MOV), expressive arts modalities (EA), and meditative relaxation practices (MED) with facilitated reflective sharing. Pre and post session data were collected from a convenience sample (n = 224). Results were statistically significant for positive change in all domains measured: subjective wellbeing (SWB), gratitude (GT), hope (HP), and social connection (SC). Results indicate that CFC successfully improved mental health indicators.

Evolution de la pensée prosodique à travers la notion de mouvement (France, 1600-1740)

The grammatization of languages first occured through a transfer of the model developed for Latin and Greek, and its application to different object languages. However, this model barely considers prosody, seen at its origin, among the Greeks, as an accompanied song with a melodic movement of the voice, noted by the different accents. In the Latin traditi on, the study of intonati on, stress and quantity is integrated into rhetorics, and reflections on vocal efficiency in poetries. For a long time, the French authors interested in prosody were concerned with versification, and not grammar. The introduction of the new theoretical program of general grammar, with the aim of writing the universal bases of languages, triggers a new interest among grammarians in the prosody of languages in general, and that of French in particular. Slowly, the discipline found its autonomy and a place within French grammar. In this process, the new conception of time and mo vement, which emerged throughout the seventeenth century in other fields such as physics, philosophy or even music, played a significant role: movement was viewed as being in close connection with the soul, and time became the measure of movement.

Thinking Before Doing: A Pilot Study on the Application of Motor Imagery as a Learning Method During Physical Education Lesson in High School.

Motor imagery (MI), i. e., the mental simulation of an action without its actual execution, is a promising technique to boost motor learning via physical practice in rehabilitation, sport, and educational fields. The purpose of the present pilot study was to test the feasibility and the effectiveness of the application of MI as learning methodology place alongside conventional teaching technique as employed for physical education lessons. Thirty-three high school students from two classes were enrolled for instruction in the underhand serve in volleyball. One group, the motor imagery group (MIG) carried out the physical exercise along with the kinesthetic MI of the action, while the other group (the control group) was limited to the merely physical exercise. The training period lasted 8 weeks. MI duration and the duration of real movement (ME), the isochrony index (differences between real and imagined movements duration), and the number of balls which passed over the net (NBN) were evaluated before and after training. Results showed a significant improvement in the isochrony index for the MIG group exclusively; namely, MI duration became more similar to ME duration. Moreover, in MIG a significantly negative relationship appeared between the percentage change in the isochrony index and the difference between NBN before and after training. These findings suggest improvement in sensorimotor representation of the action, which lies at the basis of enhanced motor performance. The present study constitutes initial proof of concept on the application of MI as learning technique applicable to physical education lesson at high school.

Higher plasma levels of F2-isoprostanes are associated with slower psychomotor speed in healthy older adults

Oxidative stress has been identified as a process which is detrimental to brain health, and associated with age-related cognitive declines. Few studies to-date have examined the relationship between in vivo oxidative stress biomarkers and cognitive performance within healthy elderly populations. The current study investigated the relationship between reaction time and oxidative stress, as measured by blood plasma concentrations of F2-isoprostanes using a sample of 251 healthy, non-demented, elderly volunteers (Male; 111: Female 140) aged 60–75 years from the Australian Research Council Longevity Intervention (ARCLI) study cohort. A Jensen Box was used in conjunction with the Hick paradigm in order to differentiate simple from choice reaction time (two, four and eight-choice conditions) as well as movement (MT) and decision times (DT). MT, but not DT, was found to be significantly slower for participants in the high F2-isoprostane group compared to the low F2-isoprostane group, across all stimulus choices. F2-isoprostanes, age and Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI) full scale intelligence quotient (IQ) were found to be significant predictors of average MT in the sample as a whole. These findings provide preliminary evidence to suggest that higher levels of oxidative stress may be associated with impaired psychomotor speed in the healthy elderly population.

Are Fast Complex Movements Unimaginable? Pupillometric Studies of Motor Imagery in Expert Piano Playing

Motor imagery (MI; mental simulation of actions) shares certain mental representations and processes with executed movement (ME). This neurocognitive overlap between MI and ME may explain why the systematic use of MI improves skilled performance in numerous domains. Unfortunately, the attentional mechanisms underlying MI remain unresolved. Therefore, the present studies investigated the role of attentional effort (as measured by pupil dilation) in MI. We evaluated the effects of movement complexity and speed on expert pianists' pupil dilation as they physically executed and used MI to perform easy/complex and slow/fast music phrases. Results revealed that easy movements required similar levels of attentional effort during MI and ME. However, during complex movements performed at a fast speed, the correspondence between execution and imagery of movement was disrupted.

Genetic parameter estimates for temperament, heifer rebreeding, and stayability in Nellore cattle

Abstract The aim of this study was to estimate heritability for five temperament and two reproductive traits in Nellore cattle and to estimate genetic and phenotypic correlations among them. Temperament was evaluated using the movement (MOV), tension (TEN) and crush (CS) scores (measured with animals inside the squeeze chute) as well as the flight speed (FS) and temperament score (TS). Reproductive traits included i) heifer rebreeding (HR), which evaluates heifers’ ability to become pregnant, given that they had calved once; and ii) stayability (STAY), which measures cows’ ability to calve at least 3 offspring before reaching 65 months of age. We used Bayesian inference and Gibbs sampling in a two-trait analysis to estimate genetic parameters applying a linear model for FS and threshold models for MOV, TEN, CS, TS, HR and STAY. The animal model included contemporary group as a fixed effect, direct additive genetic and residual effects as random effects, and animal age at yearling as a covariate (with linear and quadratic effects). Heritability estimates for MOV, TEN, CS, FS, TS, HR and STAY were 0.14 ± 0.04, 0.11 ± 0.03, 0.09 ± 0.03, 0.22 ± 0.02, 0.19 ± 0.04, 0.13 ± 0.02 and 0.13 ± 0.02, respectively. The genetic correlation estimates were low to moderate and the highest values (in magnitude) were − 0.19 ± 0.21 (HR-CS), − 0.21 ± 0.15 (STAY-TEN) and − 0.24 ± 0.16 (STAY-CS), indicating that the selection to improve cattle temperament does not negatively affect HR and STAY. These results indicate that all traits had sufficient genetic variability to respond to direct selection; however, given the low estimated heritability, we expect to see only long-term genetic changes. Genetic correlations showed that there is no antagonism of temperament with fertility and longevity; however, we recommend including these traits as selection criteria in Nellore breeding programs to obtain satisfactory genetic changes.

Interkongress «Dvizheniye

Interkongress «Dvizheniye

Influence of different heights and widths of basic athletic stance on the response time in basketball

The aim of this study was to find the optimal basketball athletic stance which will enable the fastest subsequent action. We compared the reaction (RT), movement (MT), and total response (RST) times of a single leg lateral step, performed from starting positions and differentiating in three different heights and two different stance widths. RMANOVA results showed that the RSTs obtained during wide stance positions were clearly shorter when compared to the times obtained during narrow stances (p = 0.000). Interaction of the height (knee angle) and width of stance was also found significant (p = 0.048), while the effect of the height of the stance alone was not (p = 0.098). Similar results were found for MT, while no differences were found for RT. Width of the stance therefore clearly brings about different RSTs; a wide feet position enabled shorter MT when compared to a narrow position and consequently shorter RST, probably due to a more advantageous starting position for lateral movements and due to laws of joint and muscle mechanics. The basic athletic stance with feet double shoulder distance apart and a medium (120°) and small (150°) knee flexion was found optimal in enabling the quickest lateral movement response.

Population genetic structure of the South American Bryde's whale

A genetic analysis based on mitochondrial DNA control region sequences was conducted to investigate both species identity and populations genetic structure of South American Bryde's whales. The genetic analysis was based on historical, biopsy and stranding samples from Chile (n= 10) and Brazil (n= 8). For comparative purposes published sequences of the Bryde's whales from different localities of the Indian and Pacific Oceans (including Peru, n= 24) were incorporated into the analysis. Results of the phylogenetic analysis identified the Bryde's whales of South Ameri ca as Balaenoptera brydei. No statistically significant genetic differentiation was found between Chilean and Peruvian Bryde's whales. However, striking differences were found between western South Atlantic (Brazil) and eastern South Pacific (Peru and Chile) animals. In addition, striking genetic differences were found between all South American localities and those from the western North Pacific, Fiji and Java. These results suggest movement of B. brydei in the eastern South Pacific in the latitudinal range corresponding to Chile and Peru. These results also suggest no or very limited mov ement of whales between the South Pacific and the South Atlantic Oceans. This is consistent with the notion that B. brydei is not distributed further south of approximately 40oS on both sides of South America.

Elevated air movement enhances stomatal sensitivity to abscisic acid in leaves developed at high relative air humidity.

High relative air humidity (RH ≥ 85%) during growth leads to stomata malfunctioning, resulting in water stress when plants are transferred to conditions of high evaporative demand. In this study, we hypothesized that an elevated air movement (MOV) 24 h per day, during the whole period of leaf development would increase abscisic acid concentration ([ABA]) enhancing stomatal functioning. Pot rose ‘Toril’ was grown at moderate (61%) or high (92%) RH combined with a continuous low (0.08 m s-1) or high (0.92 m s-1) MOV. High MOV reduced stomatal pore length and aperture in plants developed at high RH. Moreover, stomatal function improved when high MOV-treated plants were subjected to leaflet desiccation and ABA feeding. Endogenous concentration of ABA and its metabolites in the leaves was reduced by 35% in high RH, but contrary to our hypothesis this concentration was not significantly affected by high MOV. Interestingly, in detached leaflets grown at high RH, high MOV increased stomatal sensitivity to ABA since the amount of exogenous ABA required to decrease the transpiration rate was significantly reduced. This is the first study to show that high MOV increases stomatal functionality in leaves developed at high RH by reducing the stomatal pore length and aperture and enhancing stomatal sensitivity to ABA rather than increasing leaf [ABA].

Reatividade e desempenho em cordeiros cruzados Suffolk x Île-de-France

Objetivou-se estimar as correlações fenotípicas (r) entre os escores comportamentais de reatividade aplicados durante e após a pesagem e os ganhos médios diários de peso (GMD) de cordeiros cruzados Suffolk x Île-de-France, aos 30, 60 e 90 dias de idade, bem como estudar o efeito da habituação dos animais ao manejo. As variáveis avaliadas por meio de escores foram: interferência do avaliador para o animal entrar na balança (INT), vocalização (VOC), movimentação (MOV), tensão (TEN), movimentos exploratórios (ME), postura de orelhas (ORE) e o teste de tipos de marcha (TM). Os resultados das correlações de Spearman obtidos entre os escores indicam que VOC, MOV e TEN podem ser consideradas como características importantes na expressão da reatividade de ovinos em ambiente de restrição. Já o GMD parece não estar associado com a reatividade dos cordeiros avaliados. Por fim, aos 90 dias de idade, os cordeiros apresentaram-se menos reativos, em função do aprendizado por habituação

New Concept of Cultivation Using Limited Strip-Tillage with Strip Shallow Irrigation

Dry land is one of land resources which potentially used for food crop cultivation, especially in the areas which have light to medium technical obstacles. The devel opment of technology to improve soil quality in mar ginal lands to be productive lands is still widely open for agricultu ral development in Indonesia. Rooting medium qualit y can be improved by changing soil tillage method and observing the prop er crop irrigation technology. It can be the soluti on for crop cultivation in clay loam soil. This study aimed to obtain water mo vement model in a minimally-tilled clay soil with s trip shallow irrigation. The concept is limited soil-tillage with strip shal low irrigation method, water supply technique, and crop water requirement. Method used in this study includes developing water movement model (software development) in a minimal ly-tilled clay soil with subsurface irrigation. In the final stages, research also conducted water movement analysis testi ng apparatus in the laboratory, field validation of the subsurface irri gation performance, and cultivation technique testi ng to chili pepper growth (Capsicum annuumL.). The development of water movem ent simulation on a limited strip-tillage with subs urface irrigation uses the concept to quantify the amount of water in the soil. The analysis of movement pattern was dem onstrated on contour patterns. It showed that the wetting process can re ach depth zone - 5 cm to the rooting zone. It was a n important discovery on the development of minimum stripe tillage soil with subsurface irrigation. Specifically, it can be con cluded that: the result of fitting by eyes to diffusivity graphic and water co ntent obtained the required parameter values for so il physical properties. It was then simulated on horizontal water movement mod el on a minimum strip-tillage with strip shallow ir rigation .

ENHANCEMENT OF THE OUTPUT POWER GENERATED FROM A HYBRID SOLAR THERMAL SYSTEM

This paper investigates the output power and increa sed the efficiency of a hybrid Photovoltaic/ Therma l (PV/T) modules through utilizing the heat generated from the surface of pa nels by one axial tracking of the hybrid PV/Tsystem by means of zenith angle and decreasing the heat generated from the PV modules bthe flow rate of the system. A compar ison between theoretical and experimental work results for fixed and tracking PV /T hybrid system is presented. Comsol software pac kage used to simulate the electromagnetic waves produced by the sun through sMaxwell's equations in three dimensions and the sun irradiance is assumed to be Gaussian distribution across the twel ve mourning hours. Beside that an experimental work is presented depending on the results conjured from the theoretical experienc e used in Comsol Multiphysics In the second part of the experimental work, one axial sun-tracking system is designed where the mov ement of a photo-voltaic module is controlled to fo llow the Sun’s radiation using a Data acquisition card (DAQ) unit. Finally an acti ve cooling system is designed and conducted to cool the fixed and tracking modules at which an absorber system consists of cop per pipe welded with aluminium plate is attached un derneath the PV modules to allow water flowing below the modules. In addition to the above an electrical analysis for both system s are presented where I-V, P-V, power with 12 mourning hour’s and electrical effici ency. Beside that the thermal analysis for the fixe d and tracking PV modules and the piping water are presented where the input, out put temperatures, the total energy of heat losses a nd thermal efficiency are calculated. As a result, a significant enhancement in the total electrical efficiency is observed with acceptable increase in the output water temperature.

Comparison of postural control with different customized foot orthoses on isolated subtalar arthrodesis

Background Studies describe subtalar and ankle arthrodesis as a factor altering the biomechanics of the foot during walking [1-3] whereas postural control appears physiological [3]. Furthermore, foot orthoses (FOs) are also recognized for their actions on dynamics [4] and balance [5] but not for their postural impact on an isolated subtalar arthrodesis (ISA). Previous studies have shown that depending on the type of FOs [6] and along the comfort felt by the subject [7], the variations induced by different FOs were significantly different. The aim of this study was to compare effects of different types of FOs on balance of patients with an ISA. Two subjects with ISA were volunteers for one session of three repeated measures: without FOs (Control), with Classical FOs (FOsC) and with Molded FOs (FOsM). After a clinical examination, these two types of FOs are custom-made including same posting. We compared postural variations through a force platform with shoes. Three modalities have been demanded at each measure: Normal stance, One-leg stance on the ISA (OnISA) and One-leg stance on the control foot (OnControl). Three data’s have been compared: Center of Pressure Area (CoP), CoP Movement (MoV) and Mean Velocity (Vel). The perception of comfort was evaluated by using previously established footwear comfort measures [7]: 100mm visual analog scale (VAS).

Aging of sensorimotor processes: a systematic study in Fitts’ task

Though age-related decrease in information-processing capacities is hypothesized to be a prominent cause of behavioral slowing, it has been scarcely systematically studied in goal-directed motor tasks. The present study investigated how the decrease in information processing affects the sensorimotor processes underlying the control of a discrete Fitts' task. The index of difficulty (ID) of the task was manipulated using changes in either target distance (D) or target width (W). In each manipulation, movement (MTs), acceleration (ATs) and deceleration times (DTs) of young and older participants were compared across eight ID levels. They were analyzed with efficiency functions, state traces and Brinley plots. Our results showed that older participants were always slower. However, in both age groups, MTs were longer in D manipulation, which resulted from a slowing of both ATs and DTs, while W manipulation affected mainly DTs. In D manipulation, equivalent age-related slowing ratios were observed for AT and DT (1.3). In W manipulation, ATs of older participants were additively slower than those of young participants. Conversely, DTs presented a multiplicative slowing ratio of 1.3. These findings showed that ID manipulations differentially loaded information processing in the nervous system and that age-related slowing of multisensory control processes was independent of the manipulated dimension. Nevertheless, ID manipulations revealed different age-related adaptations to task constraints, suggesting that D and W manipulations are complementary means to assess age-related slowing of the processes involved in target-directed rapid-aiming tasks, with D scaling being more specific to capture the slowing of force-impulse control.

Idokan and IMACSSS for Research and Practice of Judo

History of an institution is created by people (leaders, members) and consists of facts. According this rule, judo people – coaches, researchers and theoreticians – make new judo. What content is created in one chosen journal from area of martial arts science? The example gives us the “Ido Move ment for Culture”, e-Journal of Idokan Poland Associa tion (IPA), International Association for Sport Kinetics (IASK) and IMACSSS. The authors know IPA and IMACSSS very well, because they represent University of Rzeszow, the International Mar tial Arts and Combat Sports Scientific Society (IMACSSS) [1] and Idokan Poland Association (Committee of Scientific Re search and Judo Division of the Dan Committee) [2]. Both of them are judo coaches and sport scientists. In perspective of the Anthropology of Warriors Pathway [3], the analysis of the multidisciplinary judo research in this two scientific societies is presented. It should be a little step toward an explanation of institutionalization martial arts (and combat sports) science. Among martial arts’ and combats sports’ institutions there are some, which are publishers of scientific journals. A part of this area are special scientific associations. The associations and their journals need discussion. Publishers in area of Martial Arts & Combat Sports