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The ability to link the new Canon Colour Laser Copier to a computer opens up new boundaries of data manipulation. A report from the user's point of view, describes a system comprising the copier with computer input, slide scanner and flat copy capacity. Information is given on the types of materials produced, the types of users, the cost of purchase and maintenance, and the potential for generating profit.
For psychologists, it is sometimes necessary to measure people's reaction times to the nearest millisecond. This article describes how to use the PC parallel port to receive signals from a button box to achieve millisecond response time accuracy. The workings of the parallel port, the corresponding port addresses, and a simple Linux program for controlling the port are described. A test of the speed and reliability of button box signal detection is reported. If the reader is moderately familiar with Linux, this article should provide sufficient instruction for him or her to build and test his or her own parallel port button box. This article also describes how the parallel port could be used to control an external apparatus.
Computer-aided transfer of questionnaire data simplifies the analysis of questionnaires. We present a solution based on an inexpensive barcode pen and its decoder, the software tool Barcode Wizard included in CorelDRAW, and a self-developed application written using Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications. The barcode may be provided on the questionnaire or on a transparency. Error correction is done by means of two different procedures. The present solution can be applied while looking over the completed questionnaire and thus allows time-saving, economic, and precise data transfer from the completed questionnaire directly into computer software.
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Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Grape seed proanthocyanidins extract (GSPE), whose principal ingredient is proanthocyanidins, shows many activities such as cholesterol lowering effects, antioxidant effects, anti-tumor effects, cardioprotective effects, and protection against ultraviolet rays. However, reports of the effects of GSPE on bone are rare. We performed a mechanical analysis of the effect of GSPE on the interior structure of rat mandibular bone in the growth period, using three-dimensional peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT). A low-calcium/high-calcium diet with supplementary GSPE was compared to a low-calcium/high-calcium diet in rats with debilitated mandibular bones. The group who received added GSPE showed a significant increase in cortical bone density, cross-sectional area, and trabecular bone mineral content (p<0.05). A significant increase was also seen in the results of a non-invasive stress strain index (SSI) (p<0.01) in the added GSPE. Our findings suggest that GSPE can increase bone quality and bone strength of rat mandibles in the growth period.
Computer access was studied with children between the ages of 6 months and 18 months with no known handicapping conditions. The research focused on determining at what age young children can access a computer using a single-switch system to run a simple cause-and-effect program. The sample consisted of 80 children divided into four groups (6 to 8 months, 9 to 11 months, 12 to 14 months, and 15 to 17 months). Results demonstrated that some children as young as 6 months of age could control a computer-based, cause-and-effect program using a single-switch access system. Therefore, professionals who work with children with disabilities may consider introducing computers to children at this age or to children who are functioning near this cognitive developmental level.
The growth of computer keyboard use in the workplace is believed to be one important determinant of the increased prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders of the upper extremity (MSD-UE). One possible contributing factor to the development of MSD-UE is the flat standard keyboard, which places the forearm and wrist in biomechanically awkward postures. This meta-analysis examines the efficacy of three alternative keyboard designs, adjustable slope (AS), split fixed-angle (FA), and adjustable open-tented (AT), in reducing forearm pronation, wrist extension, and ulnar deviation. Analyses of pooled effect size from six studies indicated that the AT had a large effect on pronation (r= 0.85) and ulnar deviation whereas the FA had a large effect only on ulnar deviation (r= 0.79). The AS was found to have a large effect (r= 0.66) on wrist extension. The FA had a moderate effect on pronation (r= 0.33) and wrist extension (r= 0.30). None of these keyboards were found to have a significant effect on all three postures. This meta-analysis has implications for clinicians by providing objective information that may assist with the selection of an alternative keyboard that best reduces an identified problematic posture.
OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a sampling strategy for characterizing the finger force exposures associated with computer mouse use. METHODS: Mouse forces were measured from 16 subjects (8 men, 8 women), on 3 separate days, at their actual workstations while they performed (i) their regular work, (ii) a battery of standardized tasks, and (iii) simulated mouse use. RESULTS: The forces applied to the mouse did not vary between hours or days. During regular work, the mouse was used 78.0 (SD 40.7) times per hour, accounting for 23.7 (SD 9.5)% of the worktime. The mean forces applied to the sides and button of the mouse were low, averaging 0.6 % (0.35 N) and 0.8 % (0.43 N) of the maximal voluntary contraction, respectively. The forces applied to the mouse during the standardized tasks differed from the regular work forces; however, there were moderate-to-strong correlations between the 2 measures. CONCLUSIONS: With respect to performing exposure assessment studies, the 3 major findings were (i) mouse force measurements should be made while subjects perform their actual work in order to characterize the absolute applied force accurately, (ii) the forces applied to the mouse during the performance of a short battery of standardized tasks can be used to characterize relative exposure and identify computer operators or work situations for which higher forces are applied to the mouse, and (iii) subjects cannot accurately simulate mouse forces.
Bone strength depends on bone quality (architecture, turnover, damage accumulation, and mineralization) as well as bone mass. In this study, human bone architecture was analyzed using fractal image analysis, and the clinical relevance of this method was evaluated. The subjects were 12 healthy female controls and 16 female patients suspected of having osteoporosis (age range, 22-70 years; mean age, 49.1 years). High-resolution CT images of the distal radius were acquired and analyzed using a peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) system. On the same day, bone mineral densities of the lumbar spine (L-BMD), proximal femur (F-BMD), and distal radius (R-BMD) were measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). We examined the correlation between the fractal dimension and six bone mass indices. Subjects diagnosed with osteopenia or osteoporosis were divided into two groups (with and without vertebral fracture), and we compared measured values between these two groups. The fractal dimension correlated most closely with L-BMD (r=0.744). The coefficient of correlation between the fractal dimension and L-BMD was very similar to the coefficient of correlation between L-BMD and F-BMD (r=0.783) and the coefficient of correlation between L-BMD and R-BMD (r=0.742). The fractal dimension was the only measured value that differed significantly between both the osteopenic and the osteoporotic subjects with and without vertebral fracture. The present results suggest that the fractal dimension of the distal radius can be reliably used as a bone strength index that reflects bone architecture as well as bone mass.
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Recently, new micro-finite element (micro-FE) techniques have been introduced to calculate cancellous bone mechanical properties directly from high-resolution images of its internal architecture. Also recently, new peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging techniques have been developed that can create images of whole bones in vivo with enough detail to visualize the internal cancellous bone architecture. In this study we aim to investigate if the calculation of cancellous bone mechanical properties from micro-FE models based on such new pQCT and MR images is feasible. Three bone specimens were imaged with the pQCT scanning system and the MR-imaging system. The specimens were scanned a second time using a micro-CT scanner with a much higher resolution. Digitized reconstructions were made based on each set of images and converted to micro-FE models from which the bone elastic properties were calculated. It was found that the results of both the pQCT and the MR-based FE-models compared well to those of the more accurate micro-CT based models in a qualitative sense, but correction factors will be needed to get accurate values.
Wrist fractures (Colles) are one of the most frequently observed osteoporotic fractures in postmenopausal women. The aim of our study was the comparison of mechanical properties of distal radius of women with Colles fracture using a Stratec XCT 960 peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) in relation to age-pair controls without a wrist fracture. Using the pQCT method for estimation of SSI (Strength Strain Index), we found significant differences of SSI values in Colles subjects. In clinical practice, pQCT offers new diagnostic tools which cannot be provided by conventional densitometric methods.
In the present study the age-related changes of pQCT values in normal Polish women were examined. The volumetric bone mineral density, trabecular density, cortical density and Strength Strain Index was measured using peripheral quantitative computed tomography (Stratec XCT 960) in 459 healthy women aged 18-60 years. Bone mineral measurement of the distal and proximal radius may be useful in evaluation of age-related bone loss, fracture risk and for diagnosis of osteoporosis.
A personal computer and a modem can be an extremely powerful pair and, used properly, can represent fantastic savings in time and money. Too often, they are underutilized because managers and clinicians do not know how to approach the type of online researching that computers are beautifully designed to perform--the kind of research that can make a daily significant difference.
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