Care and rhythmanalysis: Using metastability to understand the routines of dementia care.

An increasing number of people living with dementia worldwide receive informal care from their family members. A key element of dementia care is maintaining a daily routine and familiarity, making caring an extremely rhythmic practice. To explore the rhythmic nature of informal care, we apply and advance Lefebvre's unfinished rhythmanalysis by developing an original typology of eurhythmia as a metastable equilibrium. Metastability, although appearing macroscopically stable, is a vulnerable state where a slight disturbance can result in deviation to another state (i.e., stable or unstable). Drawing upon interviews with informal caregivers, we discuss the rhythms and (dis)harmonies of caring practice, including the substantial rhythms of caring practice, the relational balance of rhythms between the caregiver and care recipient, and the various rhythmic disruptions that occur. We demonstrate how metastability provides an understanding of the ever-changing rhythms of every day and allows us to move beyond the immediacy of arrhythmic breaks and explore the subtle changes that occur in (poly)rhythms. Thus, eurhythmia as a metastable equilibrium allows us to explore the gradual and subtle development of, and changes to, dementia care and other routine practices in health geography.

'We may be long in the tooth, but it makes us tough': exploring stillness for older adults during the COVID-19 lockdowns.

Following the outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 across the world in 2020, millions of people were reduced in their mobility to hinder the spread of the disease. The lockdown was particularly difficult for older adults, who were deemed 'vulnerable' because many felt unsafe leaving the house and often forced to self-isolate. In this paper, we interpret the lockdowns as a period of prolonged stillness: breaks from everyday practices, including withdrawnness, inefficiency, and retreat. We extend ideas of stillness by integrating the capability approach, which shows how the opportunities and challenges that arise from moments of stillness are dependent on a combination of individual agency and the role of structural or contextual factors. Using the accounts of thirty-eight older adults in the Netherlands and England, we show how the COVID-19 lockdowns established and encouraged different types of stillness which had differing impacts upon the older adults' lives. The effect of the prolonged stillness on these different areas of everyday life is based on individual agency and contextual factors, such as choosing to volunteer or having an adequate internet connection. Thus, our findings contribute to discussions around active ageing and demonstrate that slowing down, and spending more time at home, can provide respite from an otherwise active everyday life.

Tras el brote del SARS-CoV-2 en todo el mundo en 2020, la movilidad de millones de personas se redujo para evitar la propagación de la enfermedad. El encierro fue particularmente difícil para los adultos mayores, a quienes se consideró 'vulnerables' porque muchos se sentían inseguros al salir de la casa y, a menudo, se vieron obligados a aislarse por sí mismos. En este artículo, interpretamos los encierros de emergencia como un período de quietud prolongada: rupturas con las prácticas cotidianas, que incluyen retraimiento, ineficacia y retirada. Extendemos las ideas de quietud integrando el enfoque de la capacidad, que muestra cómo las oportunidades y los desafíos que surgen de los momentos de quietud dependen de una combinación de agencia individual y el papel de factores estructurales o contextuales. Utilizando los relatos de treinta y ocho adultos mayores en los Países Bajos e Inglaterra, mostramos cómo los encierros de emergencia por el COVID-19 establecieron y alentaron diferentes tipos de quietud que tuvieron diferentes impactos en la vida de los adultos mayores. El efecto de la quietud prolongada en estas diferentes áreas de la vida cotidiana se basa en la agencia individual y factores contextuales, como elegir ser voluntario o tener una conexión a Internet adecuada. Por lo tanto, nuestros hallazgos contribuyen a las discusiones sobre el envejecimiento activo y demuestran que disminuir la velocidad y pasar más tiempo en casa puede brindar un respiro de una vida cotidiana que de otro modo sería activa.

À la suite de la flambée de la pandémie de SARS-CoV-2 dans le monde en 2020, des millions de personnes ont vu une réduction leur mobilité visant à limiter la propagation du virus. Le confinement s'est avéré particulièrement difficile pour les seniors, qui étaient considérés comme une « catégorie vulnérable ¼, parce que beaucoup d'entre eux ne se sentaient pas en sécurité en dehors de chez eux et étaient souvent forcés de s'auto-isoler. Dans cet article, nous interprétons les confinements comme une période d'immobilité prolongée: des interruptions du quotidien et de ses pratiques, contenant l'introversion, l'inefficacité et le repli. Nous enrichissons le concept d'immobilité en y intégrant la théorie de l'approche par les capacités, qui montre comment les opportunités et les obstacles qui surviennent de ces moments d'immobilité dépendent d'une combinaison d'agentivité personnelle et le rôle de facteurs structurels et contextuels. Nous avons utilisé les récits de trente-huit personnes âgées en Angleterre et aux Pays-Bas, nous exposons la manière dont les confinements dus à l'épidémie de COVID-19 ont établi et stimulé différentes sortes d'immobilités qui ont touché les vies des seniors de façons variées. L'effet de ces immobilités prolongées sur ces différentes parties du quotidien est fondé sur l'agentivité personnelle et les facteurs contextuels, par exemple le choix de faire du volontariat ou posséder une connexion Internet adéquate. Ainsi, nos observations contribuent aux débats autour du vieillissement actif et démontrent que ralentir et passer plus de temps chez soi peut apporter du répit dans une vie quotidienne habituellement remplie d'activités.

Insights Into the Emerging Role of Baf53b in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Accurate and precise regulation of gene expression is necessary to ensure proper brain development and plasticity across the lifespan. As an ATP-dependent chromatin-remodeling complex, the BAF (Brg1 Associated Factor) complex can alter histone-DNA interactions, facilitating dynamic changes in gene expression by controlling DNA accessibility to the transcriptional machinery. Mutations in 12 of the potential 29 subunit genes that compose the BAF nucleosome remodeling complex have been identified in several developmental disorders including Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and intellectual disability. A novel, neuronal version of BAF (nBAF) has emerged as promising candidate in the development of ASD as its expression is tied to neuron differentiation and it's hypothesized to coordinate expression of synaptic genes across brain development. Recently, mutations in BAF53B, one of the neuron specific subunits of the nBAF complex, have been identified in patients with ASD and Developmental and epileptic encephalopathy-76 (DEE76), indicating BAF53B is essential for proper brain development. Recent work in cultured neurons derived from patients with BAF53B mutations suggests links between loss of nBAF function and neuronal dendritic spine formation. Deletion of one or both copies of mouse Baf53b disrupts dendritic spine development, alters actin dynamics and results in fewer synapses in vitro. In the mouse, heterozygous loss of Baf53b severely impacts synaptic plasticity and long-term memory that is reversible with reintroduction of Baf53b or manipulations of the synaptic plasticity machinery. Furthermore, surviving Baf53b-null mice display ASD-related behaviors, including social impairments and repetitive behaviors. This review summarizes the emerging evidence linking deleterious variants of BAF53B identified in human neurodevelopmental disorders to abnormal transcriptional regulation that produces aberrant synapse development and behavior.

Urban Emotion Sensing Beyond 'Affective Capture': Advancing Critical Interdisciplinary Methods.

The use of mobile sensor methodologies in urban analytics to study 'urban emotions' is currently outpacing the science required to rigorously interpret the data generated. Interdisciplinary research on 'urban stress' could help inform urban wellbeing policies relating to healthier commuting and alleviation of work stress. The purpose of this paper is to address-through methodological experimentation-ethical, political and conceptual issues identified by critical social scientists with regards to emotion tracking, wearables and data analytics. We aim to encourage more dialogue between the critical approach and applied environmental health research. The definition of stress is not unambiguous or neutral and is mediated by the very technologies we use for research. We outline an integrative methodology in which we combine pilot field research using biosensing technologies, a novel method for identifying 'moments of stress' in a laboratory setting, psychometric surveys and narrative interviews on workplace and commuter stress in urban environments.

Detecting Moments of Stress from Measurements of Wearable Physiological Sensors.

There is a rich repertoire of methods for stress detection using various physiological signals and algorithms. However, there is still a gap in research efforts moving from laboratory studies to real-world settings. A small number of research has verified when a physiological response is a reaction to an extrinsic stimulus of the participant's environment in real-world settings. Typically, physiological signals are correlated with the spatial characteristics of the physical environment, supported by video records or interviews. The present research aims to bridge the gap between laboratory settings and real-world field studies by introducing a new algorithm that leverages the capabilities of wearable physiological sensors to detect moments of stress (MOS). We propose a rule-based algorithm based on galvanic skin response and skin temperature, combing empirical findings with expert knowledge to ensure transferability between laboratory settings and real-world field studies. To verify our algorithm, we carried out a laboratory experiment to create a "gold standard" of physiological responses to stressors. We validated the algorithm in real-world field studies using a mixed-method approach by spatially correlating the participant's perceived stress, geo-located questionnaires, and the corresponding real-world situation from the video. Results show that the algorithm detects MOS with 84% accuracy, showing high correlations between measured (by wearable sensors), reported (by questionnaires and eDiary entries), and recorded (by video) stress events. The urban stressors that were identified in the real-world studies originate from traffic congestion, dangerous driving situations, and crowded areas such as tourist attractions. The presented research can enhance stress detection in real life and may thus foster a better understanding of circumstances that bring about physiological stress in humans.