scholarly journals Challenges and Opportunities in Collecting and Modeling Ambulatory Electrodermal Activity Data (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donna L Coffman ◽  
Xizhen Cai ◽  
Runze Li ◽  
Noelle R Leonard
Keyword(s):  
Life Events ◽  
Adolescent Mothers ◽  
Electrodermal Activity ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Motion Artifacts ◽  
Ambulatory Setting ◽  
Activity Data ◽  
Dry Electrode ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Initial Processing

BACKGROUND Ambulatory assessment of electrodermal activity (EDA) is an emerging technique for capturing individuals’ autonomic responses to real-life events. There is currently little guidance available for processing and analyzing such data in an ambulatory setting. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to describe and implement several methods for preprocessing and constructing features for use in modeling ambulatory EDA data, particularly for measuring stress. METHODS We used data from a study examining the effects of stressful tasks on EDA of adolescent mothers (AMs). A biosensor band recorded EDA 4 times per second and was worn during an approximately 2-hour assessment that included a 10-min mother-child videotaped interaction. The initial processing included filtering noise and motion artifacts. RESULTS We constructed the features of the EDA data, including the number of peaks and their amplitude as well as EDA reactivity, quantified as the rate at which AMs returned to baseline EDA following an EDA peak. Although the pattern of EDA varied substantially across individuals, various features of EDA may be computed for all individuals enabling within- and between-individual analyses and comparisons. CONCLUSIONS The algorithms we developed can be used to construct features for dry-electrode ambulatory EDA, which can be used by other researchers to study stress and anxiety.

scholarly journals Challenges and Opportunities in Collecting and Modeling Ambulatory Electrodermal Activity Data

10.2196/17106 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. e17106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donna L Coffman ◽  
Xizhen Cai ◽  
Runze Li ◽  
Noelle R Leonard
Keyword(s):  
Life Events ◽  
Adolescent Mothers ◽  
Electrodermal Activity ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Motion Artifacts ◽  
Ambulatory Setting ◽  
Activity Data ◽  
Dry Electrode ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Initial Processing

Background Ambulatory assessment of electrodermal activity (EDA) is an emerging technique for capturing individuals’ autonomic responses to real-life events. There is currently little guidance available for processing and analyzing such data in an ambulatory setting. Objective This study aimed to describe and implement several methods for preprocessing and constructing features for use in modeling ambulatory EDA data, particularly for measuring stress. Methods We used data from a study examining the effects of stressful tasks on EDA of adolescent mothers (AMs). A biosensor band recorded EDA 4 times per second and was worn during an approximately 2-hour assessment that included a 10-min mother-child videotaped interaction. The initial processing included filtering noise and motion artifacts. Results We constructed the features of the EDA data, including the number of peaks and their amplitude as well as EDA reactivity, quantified as the rate at which AMs returned to baseline EDA following an EDA peak. Although the pattern of EDA varied substantially across individuals, various features of EDA may be computed for all individuals enabling within- and between-individual analyses and comparisons. Conclusions The algorithms we developed can be used to construct features for dry-electrode ambulatory EDA, which can be used by other researchers to study stress and anxiety.

scholarly journals Properties of different types of dry electrodes for wearable smart monitoring devices

2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (4) ◽  
pp. 405-415
Author(s):  
Lana Popović-Maneski ◽  
Marija D. Ivanović ◽  
Vladimir Atanasoski ◽  
Marjan Miletić ◽  
Sanja Zdolšek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stainless Steel ◽  
Heart Muscle ◽  
Silver Chloride ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Motion Artifacts ◽  
The Body ◽  
Stainless Steel Electrode ◽  
Steel Electrode ◽  
Dry Electrodes ◽  
Dry Electrode

AbstractWearable smart monitors (WSMs) applied for the estimation of electrophysiological signals are of utmost interest for a non-stressed life. WSM which records heart muscle activities could signalize timely a life-threatening event. The heart muscle activities are typically recorded across the heart at the surface of the body; hence, a WSM monitor requires high-quality surface electrodes. The electrodes used in the clinical settings [i.e. silver/silver chloride (Ag/AgCl) with the gel] are not practical for the daily out of clinic usage. A practical WSM requires the application of a dry electrode with stable and reproducible electrical characteristics. We compared the characteristics of six types of dry electrodes and one gelled electrode during short-term recordings sessions (≈30 s) in real-life conditions: Orbital, monolithic polymer plated with Ag/AgCl, and five rectangular shaped 10 × 6 × 2 mm electrodes (Orbital, Ag electrode, Ag/AgCl electrode, gold electrode and stainless-steel AISI304). The results of a well-controlled analysis which considered motion artifacts, line noise and junction potentials suggest that among the dry electrodes Ag/AgCl performs the best. The Ag/AgCl electrode is in average three times better compared with the stainless-steel electrode often used in WSMs.

scholarly journals Unconventional Materials Processing Using Spark Plasma Sintering

Ceramics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-40
Author(s):  
Ambreen Nisar ◽  
Cheng Zhang ◽  
Benjamin Boesl ◽  
Arvind Agarwal
Keyword(s):  
Spark Plasma Sintering ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Functional Materials ◽  
Research Field ◽  
Advanced Materials ◽  
Plasma Sintering ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Future Challenges ◽  
Gas Quenching ◽  
Spark Plasma

Spark plasma sintering (SPS) has gained recognition in the last 20 years for its rapid densification of hard-to-sinter conventional and advanced materials, including metals, ceramics, polymers, and composites. Herein, we describe the unconventional usages of the SPS technique developed in the field. The potential of various new modifications in the SPS technique, from pressureless to the integration of a novel gas quenching system to extrusion, has led to SPS’ evolution into a completely new manufacturing tool. The SPS technique’s modifications have broadened its usability from merely a densification tool to the fabrication of complex-shaped components, advanced functional materials, functionally gradient materials, interconnected materials, and porous filter materials for real-life applications. The broader application achieved by modification of the SPS technique can provide an alternative to conventional powder metallurgy methods as a scalable manufacturing process. The future challenges and opportunities in this emerging research field have also been identified and presented.

scholarly journals ECOCAPTURE@HOME: Protocol for the Remote Assessment of Apathy and Its Everyday-Life Consequences

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 7824
Author(s):  
Valérie Godefroy ◽  
Richard Levy ◽  
Arabella Bouzigues ◽  
Armelle Rametti-Lacroux ◽  
Raffaella Migliaccio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Electrodermal Activity ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Smartphone Application ◽  
Measurement Model ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Active Data ◽  
Personalised Treatment

Apathy, a common neuropsychiatric symptom associated with dementia, has a strong impact on patients’ and caregivers’ quality of life. However, it is still poorly understood and hard to define. The main objective of the ECOCAPTURE programme is to define a behavioural signature of apathy using an ecological approach. Within this program, ECOCAPTURE@HOME is an observational study which aims to validate a method based on new technologies for the remote monitoring of apathy in real life. For this study, we plan to recruit 60 couples: 20 patient-caregiver dyads in which patients suffer from behavioral variant Fronto-Temporal Dementia, 20 patient-caregiver dyads in which patients suffer from Alzheimer Disease and 20 healthy control couples. These dyads will be followed for 28 consecutive days via multi-sensor bracelets collecting passive data (acceleration, electrodermal activity, blood volume pulse). Active data will also be collected by questionnaires on a smartphone application. Using a pool of metrics extracted from these passive and active data, we will validate a measurement model for three behavioural markers of apathy (i.e., daytime activity, quality of sleep, and emotional arousal). The final purpose is to facilitate the follow-up and precise diagnosis of apathy, towards a personalised treatment of this condition within everyday life.

scholarly journals Dedicated Algorithm for Unobtrusive Fetal Heart Rate Monitoring Using Multiple Dry Electrodes

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (13) ◽  
pp. 4298
Author(s):  
Alessandra Galli ◽  
Elisabetta Peri ◽  
Yijing Zhang ◽  
Rik Vullings ◽  
Myrthe van der Ven ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Fetal Heart Rate ◽  
Fetal Heart ◽  
Processing System ◽  
Motion Artifacts ◽  
Accurate Estimation ◽  
Fetal Heart Rate Monitoring ◽  
Dry Electrodes ◽  
Textile Electrodes ◽  
Dry Electrode

Multi-channel measurements from the maternal abdomen acquired by means of dry electrodes can be employed to promote long-term monitoring of fetal heart rate (fHR). The signals acquired with this type of electrode have a lower signal-to-noise ratio and different artifacts compared to signals acquired with conventional wet electrodes. Therefore, starting from the benchmark algorithm with the best performance for fHR estimation proposed by Varanini et al., we propose a new method specifically designed to remove artifacts typical of dry-electrode recordings. To test the algorithm, experimental textile electrodes were employed that produce artifacts typical of dry and capacitive electrodes. The proposed solution is based on a hybrid (hardware and software) pre-processing step designed specifically to remove the disturbing component typical of signals acquired with these electrodes (triboelectricity artifacts and amplitude modulations). The following main processing steps consist of the removal of the maternal ECG by blind source separation, the enhancement of the fetal ECG and identification of the fetal QRS complexes. Main processing is designed to be robust to the high-amplitude motion artifacts that corrupt the acquisition. The obtained denoising system was compared with the benchmark algorithm both on semi-simulated and on real data. The performance, quantified by means of sensitivity, F1-score and root-mean-square error metrics, outperforms the performance obtained with the original method available in the literature. This result proves that the design of a dedicated processing system based on the signal characteristics is necessary for reliable and accurate estimation of the fHR using dry, textile electrodes.

The Role of Simulation in the Learning of Surgical Skills

2013 ◽  
Vol 95 (9) ◽  
pp. 292-295 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Brown
Keyword(s):  
Life Events ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Surgical Skills ◽  
Immediate Feedback

Many authors have published theories regarding the learning of practical (surgical) skills. Table 1 contains a useful summary of these theories. Simulation has been defined by Allery et al as 'a structured activity designed to reflect reality, real life and real situations',1 and good simulation has been defined by Gorman et al as 'represent [ing] simplified reality, free from the need to include every possible detail'.2 when discussing simulation in education, issenberg, et al stated: 'Simulations are not identical to real-life events. Instead simulations place trainees into lifelike situations that provide immediate feedback about questions, decisions and actions.'3

scholarly journals The power of place: Trauma recovery and memorialization

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Arel
Keyword(s):  
Life Events ◽  
Social Activity ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Emotional Availability ◽  
Symbolic Meaning ◽  
Potential Space ◽  
Trauma Recovery ◽  
Working Through ◽  
Memorial Museums

In this paper, places of trauma, physical locations that reflect the Celtic spiritual concept of “thin places,” simultaneously represent real life events, possess symbolic meaning, and become places for active, engaged social activity related to memorialization. I explore how these places create a potential space for working through trauma, drawing on Judith Herman’s fundamental stages of recovery which she articulates as “establishing safety, reconstructing the trauma story, and restoring the connection between survivors and their communities.” I argue that memorial museums attending to trauma can guide the process of working through suffering to growth and transformation, thus benefiting witnesses, survivors and family members, and employees who immerse themselves in the stories they memorialize in order to facilitate empathy and emotional availability to visitors of all types. This community commemorating communal

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