Electroencephalogram-Based Facial Gesture Recognition Using Self-Organizing Map.

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) allow information to be transmitted directly from the human brain to a computer, enhancing the ability of human brain activity to interact with the environment. In particular, BCI-based control systems are highly desirable because they can control equipment used by people with disabilities, such as wheelchairs and prosthetic legs. BCIs make use of electroencephalograms (EEGs) to decode the human brain's status. This paper presents an EEG-based facial gesture recognition method based on a self-organizing map (SOM). The proposed facial gesture recognition uses α, ß, and θ power bands of the EEG signals as the features of the gesture. The SOM-Hebb classifier is utilized to classify the feature vectors. We utilized the proposed method to develop an online facial gesture recognition system. The facial gestures were defined by combining facial movements that are easy to detect in EEG signals. The recognition accuracy of the system was examined through experiments. The recognition accuracy of the system ranged from 76.90% to 97.57% depending on the number of gestures recognized. The lowest accuracy (76.90%) occurred when recognizing seven gestures, though this is still quite accurate when compared to other EEG-based recognition systems. The implemented online recognition system was developed using MATLAB, and the system took 5.7 s to complete the recognition flow.

Path Following for Autonomous Mobile Robots with Deep Reinforcement Learning.

Autonomous mobile robots have become integral to daily life, providing crucial services across diverse domains. This paper focuses on path following, a fundamental technology and critical element in achieving autonomous mobility. Existing methods predominantly address tracking through steering control, neglecting velocity control or relying on path-specific reference velocities, thereby constraining their generality. In this paper, we propose a novel approach that integrates the conventional pure pursuit algorithm with deep reinforcement learning for a nonholonomic mobile robot. Our methodology employs pure pursuit for steering control and utilizes the soft actor-critic algorithm to train a velocity control strategy within randomly generated path environments. Through simulation and experimental validation, our approach exhibits notable advancements in path convergence and adaptive velocity adjustments to accommodate paths with varying curvatures. Furthermore, this method holds the potential for broader applicability to vehicles adhering to nonholonomic constraints beyond the specific model examined in this paper. In summary, our study contributes to the progression of autonomous mobility by harmonizing conventional algorithms with cutting-edge deep reinforcement learning techniques, enhancing the robustness of path following.

Shell-Driven Localized Oxide Nanoparticles Determine the Thermal Stability of Microencapsulated Phase Change Material.

Not all encapsulation techniques are universally apt for every type of phase change material (PCM), highlighting the imperative for methodological precision. This study addresses the challenges of microencapsulated PCM (MEPCM) arising from the immiscible pairing of α-Al2O3 nanoparticles with Sn microparticles. The high-speed impact blending (HIB) dry synthesis technique is employed, facilitating large-volume production of Sn@α-Al2O3 MEPCMs. The resulting MEPCMs not only seamlessly endure 100 cycles of melting-solidification but also, with the strategic incorporation of a glass frit, exhibit remarkable thermal durability, withstanding up to 1000 melting-solidification cycles. Even under ultrafast thermal fluctuations, the α-Al2O3 shell remained resilient through 100 cycles. A marked reduction in supercooling is observed, which is attributed to the formation of SnO and SnO2 nanoparticles within the α-Al2O3 crystal lattice. The atomically resolved interface dynamics between SnO2 and α-Al2O3 play a pivotal role, lowering the energy barrier for Sn nuclei formation during solidification. This affects the accelerated Sn nucleation rate, effectively suppressing supercooling. Such insights offer a deeper understanding of the interplay between nanoscale crystal lattice imperfections and their implications for energy storage applications.

A Real-Time Application for the Analysis of Multi-Purpose Vending Machines with Machine Learning.

With the development of mobile payment, the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI), smart vending machines, as a kind of unmanned retail, are moving towards a new future. However, the scarcity of data in vending machine scenarios is not conducive to the development of its unmanned services. This paper focuses on using machine learning on small data to detect the placement of the spiral rack indicated by the end of the spiral rack, which is the most crucial factor in causing a product potentially to get stuck in vending machines during the dispensation. To this end, we propose a k-means clustering-based method for splitting small data that is unevenly distributed both in number and in features due to real-world constraints and design a remarkably lightweight convolutional neural network (CNN) as a classifier model for the benefit of real-time application. Our proposal of data splitting along with the CNN is visually interpreted to be effective in that the trained model is robust enough to be unaffected by changes in products and reaches an accuracy of 100%. We also design a single-board computer-based handheld device and implement the trained model to demonstrate the feasibility of a real-time application.

Cerebral blood flow abnormalities with central sparing on arterial spin labeling in mild encephalopathy associated with excitotoxicity: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Acute encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and late reduced diffusion (AESD) and mild encephalopathy associated with excitotoxicity (MEEX) are the most frequent acute encephalopathies in pediatric patients in Japan. AESD typically presents with biphasic seizures and delayed reduced diffusion in the subcortical area, called bright tree appearance (BTA), on radiological examination. In patients with AESD, arterial spin labeling (ASL) shows decreased cerebral blood flow (CBF) in the hyperacute stage and increased CBF in the acute stage, suggesting the usefulness of ASL for the early diagnosis of AESD. Additionally, proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) shows elevated glutamate (Glu) and glutamine (Gln) in AESD. MEEX is a group of mild encephalopathies with transient elevation of Gln on MRS similar to that in AESD; however, MEEX does not include any clinical biphasic course or abnormalities, including BTA on diffusion-weighted imaging. Although the usefulness of ASL for AESD has been reported, there are no reports for patients with MEEX. In this study, we report our experience with a 4-year-old girl diagnosed with MEEX who showed unique findings on ASL. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient was a 4-year-old girl admitted to the emergency room with febrile status epilepticus. Considering the possibility of AESD, vitamin therapy was initiated. ASL-MR imaging (MRI) of the brain performed on the second day showed increased blood flow in the frontal, temporal, and occipital regions with spared central sulcus, which indicated AESD with central sparing. The patient was diagnosed with AESD, and the treatment included pulse steroid therapy and immunoglobulin therapy from day 3. The patient remained mildly unconscious but gradually became conscious by day 7 with no seizures. Brain MRI performed on day 8 did not show any characteristic AESD findings, such as BTA. Furthermore, MRS showed elevated Gln, which, along with the clinical course, led to the diagnosis of MEEX. The patient was discharged on day 16 without obvious sequelae. CONCLUSIONS: ASL may be useful in the early diagnosis of MEEX as well as AESD, facilitating early intervention.

Optimized Preparation of a Low-Working-Temperature Gallium Metal-Based Microencapsulated Phase Change Material.

Gallium has been considered for application in the thermal management of electronic equipment because of its high heat transfer ability and heat storage density. To address the issues of metal corrosion and leakage, a microencapsulation method, through which a stable corrosion-resistant ceramic shell can be formed from the liquid metal, is proposed. In this study, an optimized fabrication method for a microencapsulated phase change material (MEPCM) consisting of liquid-state Ga droplets, possessing high durability and heat storage density, is presented. A fabrication route comprising particle formation, hydrothermal treatment, and calcination is proposed. In particular, the thickness and crystal size of the GaOOH shell are controlled by changing the pH during hydrothermal treatment to produce a highly durable shell. The morphology and microstructure, phase composition, heat storage capacity, and durability of the prepared Ga-MEPCM are investigated. In addition, treatment conditions and the shell formation mechanism are analyzed. The results show that pH 9 is the most suitable shell-forming condition, at which the thickest Ga2O3 shell with the smallest crystal size can be produced, which is beneficial for ensuring durability. The MEPCM achieved 200 cycles without leakage and 300 cycles without shape deformation with a high heat storage density of 369.4 J·cm-3.

Development and Feasibility of a Mobile Asthma App for Children and Their Caregivers: Mixed Methods Study.

BACKGROUND: Mobile health apps can support the self-management of pediatric asthma. Previous studies on mobile apps for children aged >7 years with asthma are limited, and most reports on asthma apps do not consider interactions between the children and their caregivers. Therefore, we developed an asthma app for children aged 0-12 years and their caregivers based on the results of our previous study regarding user needs. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of a developed mobile app for children with asthma and their caregivers and to modify and complete the app according to the feasibility results. METHODS: We recruited children diagnosed with persistent asthma by an allergy specialist at 2 children's hospitals, 1 university hospital, 2 general hospitals, and 1 pediatric clinic. Thereafter, the app usage was assessed, and questionnaires were administered. This study used convergent mixed methods, including providing user feedback about the pediatric asthma app, completing questionnaire surveys regarding preferences, and obtaining quantitative data about app usage. Quantitative data were analyzed based on the ratings provided for the app features used by the participants, and the usage of the app features was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Qualitative data were analyzed via a descriptive qualitative research analysis and were used to identify codes from the content-characteristic words. RESULTS: In total, 30 pairs of children aged 2-12 years and their caregivers responded to the 3-month survey, and 20 pairs of children aged 4-12 years and their caregivers responded to the 6-month survey. In the 3- and 6-month surveys, "record" was the most commonly used feature by both caregivers and children. The average access logs per month among the 20 pairs ranged from 50 to 79 in the 6-month survey. The number of access logs decreased over time. In the qualitative results, app utilization difficulties were identified for 6 categories: record, preparing, alert settings, change settings, mobile phone owner, and display and motivation. Regarding app feasibility, 60% (12/20) of the caregivers strongly agreed or agreed for all evaluation items, while 63% (7/11) of the children strongly agreed or agreed for 6 items, excluding satisfaction. In the qualitative results, feasibility evaluation of the app was classified into 3 categories: high feasibility of the app, improvement points for the app, and personal factors preventing app utilization. Based on the results of the feasibility analysis, the final version of the app was modified and completed. CONCLUSIONS: The app feasibility among children with asthma and their caregivers was generally good. Children aged 7-12 years used elements such as record, quiz, and manga. This app can support the continuous self-management of pediatric asthma. However, efforts must be taken to maintain and improve the app quality. TRIAL REGISTRATION: UMIN Clinical Trials Registry UMIN000039058; https://tinyurl.com/3na9zyf8.

Neurogenic pulmonary edema following febrile status epilepticus in a 22-month-old infant with multiple respiratory virus co-detection: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Neurogenic pulmonary edema is a rare but serious complication of febrile status epilepticus in children. Comprehensive screening for viral pathogens is seldomly performed in the work-up of febrile children. CASE PRESENTATION: A 22-month-old girl presented with her first episode of febrile status epilepticus, after which she developed acute pulmonary edema and respiratory failure. After the termination of seizure activity, the patient was intubated and managed on mechanical ventilation in the emergency room. The resolution of respiratory failure, as well as the neurological recovery, was achieved 9 h after admission, and the patient was discharged 6 days after admission without any complications. Molecular biological diagnostic methods identified the presence of human coronavirus HKU1, influenza C virus, and human parainfluenza virus 2 from the patient's nasopharyngeal specimens. CONCLUSIONS: Neurogenic pulmonary edema following febrile status epilepticus was suspected to be the etiology of our patient's acute pulmonary edema and respiratory failure. Timely seizure termination and rapid airway and respiratory intervention resulted in favorable outcomes of the patient. Molecular biological diagnostic methods identified three respiratory viruses; however, their relevance and association with clinical symptoms remain speculative.

Identification of Prime Factors to Maximize the Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution of Covalent Organic Frameworks.

Visible-light-driven hydrogen (H2) production from water is a promising strategy to convert and store solar energy as chemical energy. Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are front runners among different classes of organic photocatalysts. The photocatalytic activity of COFs depends on numerous factors such as the electronic band gap, crystallinity, surface area, exciton migration, stability of transient species, charge separation and transport, etc. However, it is challenging to fine tune all of these factors simultaneously to enhance the photocatalytic activity. Hence, in this report, an effort has been made to understand the interplay of these factors and identify the key factors for efficient photocatalytic H2 production through a structure-property-activity relationship. Careful molecular engineering allowed us to optimize all of the above plausible factors impacting the overall catalytic activities of a series of isoreticular COFs. The present study determines three prime factors: light absorption, charge carrier generation, and its transport, which influence the photocatalytic H2 production of COFs to a much greater extent than the other factors.

Therapy with propylthiouracil for T3-predominant neonatal Graves' disease: a case report.

This case report describes a male neonate with Graves' disease. The mother's pregnancy was complicated by poorly controlled Graves' disease. The neonate was diagnosed with thyroxine (T3)-predominant Graves' disease with low free triiodothyronine (T4) and high free T3 during antithyroid drug therapy. The patient also presented with persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn due to hyperthyroidism and airway stenosis caused by goiter. It was difficult to control thyroid function and maintain free T4 levels with inorganic iodine, thiamazole, and levothyroxine sodium hydrate. We successfully controlled thyroid function using the previous treatments in combination with propylthiouracil. Propylthiouracil suppresses type 1 iodothyronine deiodinase, and its pharmacological action suppresses the conversion of T4 to T3. Therefore, we used propylthiouracil at an earlier stage of intervention in this case. We ceased administration of antithyroid drugs on day 85 of life. Subsequently, as the TRH loading test revealed central hypothyroidism, oral administration of levothyroxine sodium hydrate was continued. Its administration was discontinued at the age of 1 yr. Thyroid-stimulating hormone recovered to normal values, and his development had progressed without complications by the age of 2 yr.

Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome caused by the dissemination of an invasive emm3/ST15 strain of Streptococcus pyogenes.

BACKGROUND: Streptococcus pyogenes (group A Streptococcus [GAS]) is a major human pathogen that causes a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations. Although invasive GAS (iGAS) infections are relatively uncommon, emm3/ST15 GAS is a highly virulent, invasive, and pathogenic strain. Global molecular epidemiology analysis has suggested that the frequency of emm3 GAS has been recently increasing. CASE PRESENTATION: A 14-year-old patient was diagnosed with streptococcal toxic shock syndrome and severe pneumonia, impaired renal function, and rhabdomyolysis. GAS was isolated from a culture of endotracheal aspirates and designated as KS030. Comparative genome analysis suggested that KS030 is classified as emm3 (emm-type) and ST15 (multilocus sequencing typing [MLST]), which is similar to iGAS isolates identified in the UK (2013) and Switzerland (2015). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the global dissemination of emm3/ST15 GAS strain has the potential to cause invasive disease.

Accuracy of using Diagnosis Procedure Combination administrative claims data for estimating the amount of opioid consumption among cancer patients in Japan.

OBJECTIVE: The state of opioid consumption among cancer patients has never been comprehensively investigated in Japan. The Diagnosis Procedure Combination claims data may be used to measure and monitor opioid consumption among cancer patients, but the accuracy of using the Diagnosis Procedure Combination data for this purpose has never been tested. METHODS: We aimed to ascertain the accuracy of using the Diagnosis Procedure Combination claims data for estimating total opioid analgesic consumption by cancer patients compared with electronic medical records at Aomori Prefectural Central Hospital. We calculated percent differences between estimates obtained from electronic medical records and Diagnosis Procedure Combination claims data by month and drug type (morphine, oxycodone, fentanyl, buprenorphine, codeine and tramadol) between 1 October 2012 and 30 September 2013, and further examined the causes of discrepancy by reviewing medical and administrative charts between April and July 2013. RESULTS: Percent differences varied by month for drug types with small prescription volumes, but less so for drugs with larger prescription volumes. Differences also tended to diminish when consumption was compared for a year instead of a month. Total percent difference between electronic medical records and Diagnosis Procedure Combination data during the study period was -0.1% (4721 mg per year per hospital), as electronic medical records as baseline. Half of the discrepancy was caused by errors in data entry. CONCLUSION: Our study showed that Diagnosis Procedure Combination claims data can be used to accurately estimate opioid consumption among a population of cancer patients, although the same conclusion cannot be made for individual estimates or when making estimates for a group of patients over a short period of time.

[RATIONALE FOR ELIMINATING CERTAIN FOODS IN CHILDREN WITH FOOD ALLERGY].

BACKGROUND: Some caregivers of children with food allergy may eliminate specific foods from the diet of these children without first consulting doctors. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of such practice and the sensitization of the offending foods. METHODS: All participants were patients aged one year or over who visited our outpatients unit with complaints of food allergy. Caregivers of the patients were asked to fill out a questionnaire to state the eliminated food items and the grounds for avoidance ("doctor's instructions", "family's judgment", and "not consumed in daily diet") of nine food items including chicken egg, cow's milk, wheat, soy bean, rice, buckwheat, peanut, sesame and shrimp. Data on food-specific IgE titers were extracted from the patients' electronic medical charts. RESULTS: A total of 463 subjects were included in the analyses. Prevalence of patients with specific food avoidance of each of the food item was higher in the lower age group than the higher age group. More than 83% of the patients who avoided chicken egg, cow's milk or wheat were advised by their doctors to do so, while less than 49% of patients who avoided buckwheat did so for the same reason. The percentage of the patients who showed positive sensitization to buckwheat, peanut or shrimp, and avoided it without doctor's instructions, was 46%, 48%, and 34%, respectively. CONCLUSION: While the majority of caregivers of the children who visited our outpatient unit eliminated specific foods according to doctor's instructions, a considerable proportion of them do so inappropriately without first consulting a doctor.