scholarly journals Communication through Movement Codes and Tactile Stimuli for Persons with Deafblindness

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mateus Franco ◽  
Rodrigo Lantyer ◽  
Karina Rodrigues ◽  
Henrique A. Amorim ◽  
Jean Faber

Deafblindness is the condition in which a person has little or no useful hearing and vision. The dysfunction in both senses can occur in different ways and degrees for each person. These differences impose specific barriers and strategies for the rehabilitation of this public, regarding protocols and assistive devices. Most of the technologies and procedures are geared towards a better adaptation of communication. Inspired by sign languages and Braille, we propose the construction of a device capable of transducing specific hand movements of an individual (emitter), into specific vibration patterns on the body of another individual (receiver). Through this device it is possible to adjust different stimulation parameters, based on the modulation of amplitude, frequency of vibration and temporal sequence of pulses, making possible enabling a sensory refinement of wrist and finger's movements, in order to have an improvement associated with the alphabet intended to be represented. This prototype allows communication through crossing-modalities (movement and touch) without the need of visual contact or auditory perception, enabling a future application for deaf-blind people.

2016 ◽  
Vol 136 (8) ◽  
pp. 1135-1141
Author(s):  
Ryo Hasegawa ◽  
Amir Maleki ◽  
Masafumi Uchida
Keyword(s):  
The Body ◽  

1998 ◽  
Vol 201 (6) ◽  
pp. 837-850 ◽  
Author(s):  
K V Kardong ◽  
V L Bels

The predatory behavior of rattlesnakes includes many distinctive preparatory phases leading to an extremely rapid strike, during which venom is injected. The rodent prey is then rapidly released, removing the snake's head from retaliation by the prey. The quick action of the venom makes possible the recovery of the dispatched prey during the ensuing poststrike period. The strike is usually completed in less than 0.5 s, placing a premium on an accurate strike that produces no significant errors in fang placement that could result in poor envenomation and subsequent loss of the prey. To clarify the basis for effective strike performance, we examined the basic kinematics of the rapid strike using high-speed film analysis. We scored numerous strike variables. Four major results were obtained. (1) Neurosensory control of the strike is based primarily upon sensory inputs via the eyes and facial pits to launch the strike, and upon tactile stimuli after contact. Correction for errors in targeting occurs not by a change in strike trajectory, but by fang repositioning after the jaws have made contact with the prey. (2) The rattlesnake strike is based upon great versatility and variation in recruitment of body segments and body postures. (3) Forces generated during acceleration of the head are transferred to posterior body sections to decelerate the head before contact with the prey, thereby reducing impact forces upon the snake's jaws. (4) Body acceleration is based on two patterns of body displacement, one in which acute sections of the body open like a gate, the other in which body segments flow around postural curves similar to movements seen during locomotion. There is one major implication of these results: recruitment of body segments, launch postures and kinematic features of the strike may be quite varied from strike to strike, but the overall predatory success of each strike by a rattlesnake is very consistent. <P>


1977 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 203-219
Author(s):  
W. J. Heitler ◽  
M. Burrows

A motor programme is described for defensive kicking in the locust which is also probably the programme for jumping. The method of analysis has been to make intracellular recordings from the somata of identified motornuerones which control the metathoracic tibiae while defensive kicks are made in response to tactile stimuli. Three stages are recognized in the programme. (1) Initial flexion of the tibiae results from the low spike threshold of tibial flexor motorneurones to tactile stimulation of the body. (2) Co-contraction of flexor and extensor muscles followa in which flexor and extensor excitor motoneurones spike at high frequency for 300-600 ms. the tibia flexed while the extensor muscle develops tension isometrically to the level required for a kick or jump. (3) Trigger activity terminates the co-contraction by inhibiting the flexor excitor motorneurones and simultaneously exciting the flexor inhibitors. This causes relaxation of the flexor muscle and allows the tibiae to extend. If the trigger activity does not occur, the jump or kick is aborted, and the tibiae remain flexed.


Author(s):  
Subham Jain N ◽  
Preeti S ◽  
Amit B Patil

Background: The nanotechnology which has vast growth in the research field and the outcome product of nanotechnology is nanoparticles. Quantum dots with a size range of 2-10nm represents a new form in nanotechnology materials. It has showed widespread attention in recent years in the field of science and its application in drug delivery. Quantum dots are semiconductor nanocrystals which possess interesting properties and characteristics such as unique optical properties, quantum confinement effect and emit fluorescence on excitation with a light source which makes them a potential candidate for nano-probes and for carriers for biological application. Objective: The objective of the article is to explain the role and application of Quantum dots in drug delivery and its future application in pharmaceutical science and research. This review focuses on drug delivery through Quantum dots and Quantum dots helping nanocarriers for drug delivery. The development of QD nano-carriers for drugs has become a hotspot in the fields of nano-drug research. The Quantum Dot labelled nano-carrier can able to deliver the drugs with fewer side effects and it can able to trace the drug location in the body. Results: The Fluorescent emission of Quantum dots is better than other organic dyes which leads to better drug delivery for cancer or acting as a tag for other drug carriers. Conclusion: Because of emission property of Quantum Dots, it can be said used with other drug carriers and later it can be traced with the help of Quantum Dots. Quantum dots can be said as smart Drug delivery.


1999 ◽  
Vol 277 (5) ◽  
pp. E958-E964 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiulin Wang ◽  
Huiyuan Zheng ◽  
Hans-Rudolf Berthoud

The importance of neural elements in the control of both endocrine and exocrine pancreatic secretory functions and their coordination with gastrointestinal, hepatic, and general homeostatic functions is increasingly recognized. To better characterize the vagal efferent input to the pancreas, the capacity of electrical vagal stimulation to induce expression of c-Fos in neurochemically identified neurons of intrapancreatic ganglia was investigated. At optimal stimulation parameters, unilateral stimulation of either the left or right cervical vagus induced Fos expression in ∼30% of neurons in the head and 10–20% of neurons in the body and tail of the pancreas. There was no Fos expression if no stimulation or stimulation with a distally cut vagus was applied. Large proportions of neurons contained nitric oxide synthase as assessed with NADPH diaphorase histochemistry (88%) and choline acetyltransferase. The proportion of nitrergic and nonnitrergic neurons receiving vagal input was not different. It is concluded that a significant proportion of pancreatic neurons receives excitatory synaptic input from vagal preganglionic axons and that many of these vagal postganglionic neurons can produce nitric oxide and acetylcholine.


2019 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 208-212
Author(s):  
Mateusz Bartczyk ◽  
Andrzej Suchanowski ◽  
Marta Woldańska-Okońska

Over the last decade, the use of vibration-supported therapeutic measures has been increased. There are many devices in the market that generate whole body vibration, but they can be divided into three groups due to the frequency, amplitude and direction of the vibrations being applied to the body. The aim of the work is to analyze the results of the most important works discussing the use and effectiveness of the therapeutic effect of vibrations on the human body. The studies are indicative of favourable changes to the symptoms of neurodegenerative diseases, neurological dysfunctions, incomplete spinal cord injury, sarcopenia and senile age disorders, osteoporosis, sports injuries. The use of whole body vibration does not result in significant changes to the hemodynamic function during therapy, although appropriate stimulation parameters may induce sufficient cardiovascular response to improve overall physical fitness. In the physiotherapy procedure, the whole body vibration is another means of increasing the effect of the therapy used.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Regine Zopf ◽  
Veronika Kosourikhina ◽  
Kevin R. Brooks ◽  
Vince Polito ◽  
Ian Stephen

Estimating the size of bodies is crucial for interactions with physical and social environments. Body size perception is malleable and can be altered using visual adaptation paradigms. However, it is unclear whether such visual adaptation effects also transfer to other modalities and influence, for example, the perception of tactile distances. In this study we employed a visual adaptation paradigm. Participants were exposed to images of expanded or contracted versions of self- or other-identity bodies. Before and after this adaptation they were asked to manipulate the width of body images to appear as “normal” as possible. We replicated an effect of visual adaptation, such that the body size selected as most “normal” was larger after exposure to expanded and thinner after exposure to contracted adaptation stimuli. In contrast, we did not find evidence that this adaptation effect transfers to distance estimates for paired tactile stimuli delivered to the abdomen. A Bayesian analysis showed that our data provide moderate evidence that there is no effect of visual body size adaptation on the estimation of spatial parameters in a tactile task. This suggests that visual body size adaptation effects do not transfer to somatosensory body size representations.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Atanas Totlyakov ◽  
◽  
◽  

The current article are discussed the problem of significant importance of the tactile feelings in the context of the ways in which they are used in drawing creation.The basis of the study is the theoretical and practical experience gained in the conditions of creative experimentation, derived as a specific artistic practice.The relationship between visual and mental images and their comparison with the sensory field of the active touch is analyzed.There are summarized a four experimental plans: Mastering practical tactil experience and its creativity interpretation; Comparison of the tactil execution of a creative act and optical perception of drawings obtained without visual contact; Reflection of a participation of the body in the creative process; Focusing attention on feeling and their emotional coloring as interpersonal interaction in the frame of the working environment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Rabellino ◽  
Paul A. Frewen ◽  
Margaret C. McKinnon ◽  
Ruth A. Lanius

Peripersonal space (PPS) is defined as the space surrounding the body where we can reach or be reached by external entities, including objects or other individuals. PPS is an essential component of bodily self-consciousness that allows us to perform actions in the world (e.g., grasping and manipulating objects) and protect our body while interacting with the surrounding environment. Multisensory processing plays a critical role in PPS representation, facilitating not only to situate ourselves in space but also assisting in the localization of external entities at a close distance from our bodies. Such abilities appear especially crucial when an external entity (a sound, an object, or a person) is approaching us, thereby allowing the assessment of the salience of a potential incoming threat. Accordingly, PPS represents a key aspect of social cognitive processes operational when we interact with other people (for example, in a dynamic dyad). The underpinnings of PPS have been investigated largely in human models and in animals and include the operation of dedicated multimodal neurons (neurons that respond specifically to co-occurring stimuli from different perceptive modalities, e.g., auditory and tactile stimuli) within brain regions involved in sensorimotor processing (ventral intraparietal sulcus, ventral premotor cortex), interoception (insula), and visual recognition (lateral occipital cortex). Although the defensive role of the PPS has been observed in psychopathology (e.g., in phobias) the relation between PPS and altered states of bodily consciousness remains largely unexplored. Specifically, PPS representation in trauma-related disorders, where altered states of consciousness can involve dissociation from the body and its surroundings, have not been investigated. Accordingly, we review here: (1) the behavioral and neurobiological literature surrounding trauma-related disorders and its relevance to PPS; and (2) outline future research directions aimed at examining altered states of bodily self-consciousness in trauma related-disorders.


2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tommi Jantunen

AbstractThis paper investigates the interplay of constructed action and the clause in Finnish Sign Language (FinSL). Constructed action is a form of gestural enactment in which the signers use their hands, face and other parts of the body to represent the actions, thoughts or feelings of someone they are referring to in the discourse. With the help of frequencies calculated from corpus data, this article shows firstly that when FinSL signers are narrating a story, there are differences in how they use constructed action. Then the paper argues that there are differences also in the prototypical structure, linkage type and non-manual activity of clauses, depending on the presence or non-presence of constructed action. Finally, taking the view that gesturality is an integral part of language, the paper discusses the nature of syntax in sign languages and proposes a conceptualization in which syntax is seen as a set of norms distributed on a continuum between a categorial-conventional end and a gradient-unconventional end.


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