scholarly journals Touchscreen-based finger tapping: Repeatability and configuration effects on tapping performance

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. e0260783
Author(s):  
Soma Makai-Bölöni ◽  
Eva Thijssen ◽  
Emilie M. J. van Brummelen ◽  
Geert J. Groeneveld ◽  
Robert J. Doll
Keyword(s):  
Research Question ◽  
Drug Effects ◽  
Middle Finger ◽  
Finger Tapping ◽  
Spatial Error ◽  
Medication Effects ◽  
Visual Cueing ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Improved Accuracy ◽  
Healthy Participants

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects almost 2% of the population above the age of 65. To better quantify the effects of new medications, fast and objective methods are needed. Touchscreen-based tapping tasks are simple yet effective tools for quantifying drug effects on PD-related motor symptoms, especially bradykinesia. However, there is no consensus on the optimal task set-up. The present study compares four tapping tasks in 14 healthy participants. In alternate finger tapping (AFT), tapping occurred with the index and middle finger with 2.5 cm between targets, whereas in alternate side tapping (AST) the index finger with 20 cm between targets was used. Both configurations were tested with or without the presence of a visual cue. Moreover, for each tapping task, within- and between-day repeatability and (potential) sensitivity of the calculated parameters were assessed. Visual cueing reduced tapping speed and rhythm, and improved accuracy. This effect was most pronounced for AST. On average, AST had a lower tapping speed with impaired accuracy and improved rhythm compared to AFT. Of all parameters, the total number of taps and mean spatial error had the highest repeatability and sensitivity. The findings suggest against the use of visual cueing because it is crucial that parameters can vary freely to accurately capture medication effects. The choice for AFT or AST depends on the research question, as these tasks assess different aspects of movement. These results encourage further validation of non-cued AFT and AST in PD patients.

scholarly journals Big data-driven stochastic business planning and corporate valuation

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (3-1) ◽  
pp. 189-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Moro Visconti ◽  
Giuseppe Montesi ◽  
Giovanni Papiro
Keyword(s):  
Big Data ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Predictive Ability ◽  
Cash Flows ◽  
Data Driven ◽  
Business Planning ◽  
Information Asymmetries ◽  
Methodological Innovation ◽  
Set Up ◽  
And Control

The research question of this paper is concerned with the investigation of the links between Internet of Things and related big data as input parameters for stochastic estimates in business planning and corporate evaluation analytics. Financial forecasts and company appraisals represent a core corporate ownership and control issue, impacting on stakeholder remuneration, information asymmetries, and other aspects. Optimal business planning and related corporate evaluations derive from an equilibrated mix of top-down and bottom-up approaches. While the former follows a traditional dirigistic methodology where companies set up their strategic goals, the latter are grass-rooted with big data-driven timely evidence. Real options can be embedded in big data-driven forecasting to make expected cash flows more flexible and resilient, improving Value for Money of the investment and reducing its risk profile. More accurate and timely big data-driven predictions reduce uncertainties and information asymmetries, making risk management easier and decreasing the cost of capital. Whereas stochastic modeling is traditionally used for budgeting and business planning, this probabilistic process is seldom nurtured by big data that can refresh forecasts in real time, improving their predictive ability. Combination of big data and stochastic estimates for corporate appraisal and governance issues represents a methodological innovation that goes beyond the traditional literature and practice.

scholarly journals How to design and set up a clinical trial part 1: the research question

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 111-116
Author(s):  
Amarpreet Atwal ◽  
Philip E Benson
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Trial ◽  
Clinical Trials ◽  
Clinical Relevance ◽  
Clinical Care ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Human Participants ◽  
Set Up

Data from clinical trials involving human participants are essential in establishing an evidence base about the safety and effectiveness of our treatments. This first article describes the steps involved in designing and setting up a clinical trial, from establishing the research question(s) to searching the literature. Acquiring some knowledge about how to set up a clinical trial will allow the conscientious clinician to use the most relevant information to provide the highest possible standards of clinical care for his/her patients. CPD/Clinical Relevance: Even if a clinician is not, has never been, nor is ever planning to be involved in research, he/she should understand and be able to interpret the data from clinical trials.

scholarly journals Finger Tapping Task Activation vs. TMS Hotspot: Different Locations and Networks

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 123-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jue Wang ◽  
Hai-Jiang Meng ◽  
Gong-Jun Ji ◽  
Ying Jing ◽  
Hong-Xiao Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Resting State ◽  
Resting State Fmri ◽  
Finger Tapping ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Human Motor ◽  
Healthy Participants ◽  
Task Activation

Abstract Both functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) have been used to non-invasively localize the human motor functional area. These locations can be clinically used as stimulation target of TMS treatment. However, it has been reported that the finger tapping fMRI activation and TMS hotspot were not well-overlapped. The aim of the current study was to measure the distance between the finger tapping fMRI activation and the TMS hotspot, and more importantly, to compare the network difference by using resting-state fMRI. Thirty healthy participants underwent resting-state fMRI, task fMRI, and then TMS hotspot localization. We found significant difference of locations between finger tapping fMRI activation and TMS hotspot. Specifically, the finger tapping fMRI activation was more lateral than the TMS hotspot in the premotor area. The fMRI activation peak and TMS hotspot were taken as seeds for resting-state functional connectivity analyses. Compared with TMS hotspot, finger tapping fMRI activation peak showed more intensive functional connectivity with, e.g., the bilateral premotor, insula, putamen, and right globus pallidus. The findings more intensive networks of finger tapping activation than TMS hotspot suggest that TMS treatment targeting on the fMRI activation area might result in more remote effects and would be more helpful for TMS treatment on movement disorders.

The blockchain as a sustainable business model innovation

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (8) ◽  
pp. 1621-1642 ◽  
Author(s):  
Riccardo Tiscini ◽  
Silvia Testarmata ◽  
Mirella Ciaburri ◽  
Emanuele Ferrari
Keyword(s):  
Food Industry ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Corporate Website ◽  
Set Up

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to strive to close the current research gap pertaining to potential implications of the blockchain (BC) for sustainable business models (SBMs) in the agri-food industry.Design/methodology/approachTo answer the research question, the authors utilised the Value Triangle framework by Biloslavo et al. (2018) in order to explore the potential innovation of BC for SBMs in the agri-food industry. Then, the authors apply it to an in-depth exploratory case study of the Placido Volpone winery. The authors draw data from strategic plans, annual reports, corporate website and a semi-structured interview with the winery's founder.FindingsThe authors show how BC technology could be a source of SBM innovation in the agri-food industry.Research limitations/implicationsBC technology has the potential to significantly change SBMs. Given the huge set-up investments by the industry, academic research investigating potential implications and supporting companies in their application of BC is needed. This paper explores how the implications of BC as source of innovation on SBMs can be investigated.Practical implicationsThe research results of this study can be used by company leaders and managers to support the development of SBMs through the introduction of BC technology in their business activities.Originality/valueThe paper is novel because it investigates the relationship between SBM innovation and BC providing theoretical justification to SBM technological innovation in an agri-food setting. Additionally, the paper provides an empirical application of the framework by Biloslavo et al. (2018) for understanding the development of SBM through BC in the agri-food industry.

scholarly journals Economic Differences of Border Regions in the Czech Republic

2018 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 571-582
Author(s):  
Jitka Svobodová ◽  
Ludmila Dömeová ◽  
Andrea Jindrová
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Border Region ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Border Regions ◽  
Neighbouring Country ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Three Components

The article deals with the economically weak regions in the border areas of the Czech Republic (CR). The main goal is the selection and application of the most important variables, as the methodology of selection and evaluation of economically weak regions is not united. The following research question was formulated as whether the border regions are economically weaker when compared with the Czech Republic average of selected indicators. Two working hypotheses were set: whether the situation of the border regions is different from each other among the border regions and whether the economy of the neighbouring country impacts these disparities in border regions. The secondary goal of this article is to find homogenous clusters and describe these clusters of border regions. The result of the principal component analysis was determination of three components Labour market, Transnational commuters and Population migration. The variables that set up the component Labour Market was found to be the most important for economically weak border regions. The three components were used for cluster analysis and the territories were broken up into four clusters, none of which is above average of the CR with the result that the situation in the border region is dependent on the neighbouring country.

scholarly journals Response Time Inconsistencies in Object and Action Naming in Anomic Aphasia

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (1S) ◽  
pp. 477-484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth E. Galletta ◽  
Mira Goral
Keyword(s):  
Response Times ◽  
Healthy Individuals ◽  
Response Latencies ◽  
The People ◽  
Retrieval Processes ◽  
Action Naming ◽  
Lower Accuracy ◽  
Improved Accuracy ◽  
Accuracy Rates ◽  
Healthy Participants

Purpose The effect of repeated naming on both object and action picture naming in individuals with anomic aphasia is explored. We asked whether repeatedly naming the same items leads to improved accuracy and reduced response latency. Method Ten individuals with anomic aphasia and 6 healthy adults, 3 young and 3 old, named a set of 27 object pictures and a set of 27 action pictures presented 1 at a time on a computer screen. We examined accuracy and response times (RTs) across the 2 blocks of 10 repeated trials. Results Results demonstrated higher accuracy and faster RTs for object than for action naming for all participants, with lower accuracy rates and slower RTs for the people with aphasia (PWA) compared with the healthy individuals, and diverging patterns of change across trials. Unlike the healthy participants, whose RTs decreased across trials, PWA continued to demonstrate variability in response latencies across the trials. Conclusions Our preliminary results suggest that measuring RT may be useful in characterizing retrieval difficulty in anomic aphasia and that the retrieval processes in PWA, even in those who experience mild anomia, may be less efficient or different from those processes in neurologically healthy individuals.

Employing the Critical juncture hypothesis to explain the 2011 Egyptian revolution

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rustam Mussa ◽  
◽  
Raushan Yesbergen ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Arab Spring ◽  
Political Power ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Economic Institutions ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Critical Juncture ◽  
Egyptian Revolution ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Contemporary Development

Our research question involves applying the critical juncture hypothesis formulated by Daron Acemoglu and his co-authors in the series of the articles and books to the context of the 2011 Arab Spring events. Critical juncture hypothesis states that politics and political institutions determine what economic institutions a country has, because the former represents the distribution of political power. Whoever controls political institutions then can set up economic institutions, determining the rules governing economic activities and who will benefit from them. Generated resources are then used in defending these sets of institutions. Though for Acemoglu and his co-authors politics always precedes economics, it is the interplay of political and economic institutions that explain contemporary development of states. The case of 2011 Egyptian Revolution is presented, as the well-documented illustraion of the hypothesis at work.

ANALYSIS OF THE DIVERSIFIED AND THE HIGHLY SPECIALIZED ENTERPRISES’ FINANCIAL STABILITY

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1097-1105
Author(s):  
O.V. Karpets ◽  
◽  
A.A. Andreev ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Financial Stability ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Real Data ◽  
Development Strategies ◽  
Diversification Strategy ◽  
Doing Business ◽  
Future Strategy ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Selection Of

Today it is getting harder for companies all over the world to stay in the market, as doing business is associated with great risks. It is especially true for the young enterprises that have just set up or are at this stage. When a certain group of persons made a decision to begin and run a business, then one of the main questions that, as a rule, should arise first of all for them - what the company will do and according to what strategy it will carry out its main activities. It is easy to guess that the question of the future strategy of the enterprise is much more complicated for both new companies and existing ones, even though today there are many different development strategies for practically any enterprise, regardless of the size of its charter capital, scope of activity and other important factors. There are a great many development strategies, but most general are two - diversification and specialization. One strategy involves the concentration of production and the sale of one type of goods, while the other strategy is its absolute opposite, which involves the creation of several lines of goods that are in no way connected with each other, and the sale of these goods to different sales markets. The purpose of this article is to determine, basing on real data, which of the two strategies is most effective. Research objectives: determination of criteria for the selection of the necessary enterprises; compiling a list of enterprises and indicators of financial stability; analysis of the results obtained and the answer to the research question. After completing all the tasks and objectives of the study, it was concluded that those enterprises that use a diversification strategy are in a more stable financial position than enterprises that use a specialization strategy.

Can a local weather station be used in place of on-site measurements for heat stress assessment in a sports setting?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivia Cahill ◽  
Andrew Grundstein ◽  
Christian Walker ◽  
Earl Cooper
Keyword(s):  
Heat Stress ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Subtropical Climate ◽  
Wet Bulb Globe Temperature ◽  
Playing Field ◽  
Weather Stations ◽  
Globe Temperature ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Local Weather

<p>Across the globe, exposure to environmental heat stress may impose increased health and safety hazards to active populations such as athletes and workers. Monitoring heat stress is a key component of a well-designed heat mitigation policy. Yet, the cost of several hand-held heat stress sensors may pose a financial barrier for use in many circumstances. Numerous areas, however, have existing networks of weather stations that could potentially be incorporated into monitoring heat stress. Currently, the Japanese Ministry of the Environment has set up a network of weather stations across the city to monitor environmental conditions in preparation of the 2021 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic games. Our research question asks how representative are the values recorded at local weather stations (often located over a natural surface) to playing field conditions with various surfaces and microclimate conditions. In the U.S. the WeatherSTEM network has over 600 stations scattered across the country and measures a suite of variables relevant to heat stress including air temperature, humidity, wind speed, solar radiation and models the wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) values. This study will compare measurements from a local WeatherSTEM station with on-site measurements taken over three different playing surfaces (grass, synthetic turf, and hardcourt tennis) in a humid subtropical climate in Athens, Georgia. U.S. It will also compare WBGT values computed using different models. Our results may provide insight not only for sports but also for the workplace which take place over various surface types and environments.</p>

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document