Search Results (4)

In recent years, extended reality (XR) and telerehabilitation (TR) technologies have increasingly been used in the neurorehabilitation of motor dysfunctions in patients with cerebral palsy (CP). The Khymeia Virtual Reality Rehabilitation System (K-VRRS) is a medical device specifically designed for neuromotor rehabilitation, and it can also be used in TR mode. This pilot study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and adherence to a “two-step neuromotor program” (TS-NP) approach using K-VRRS to enhance upper limb motor functions in children with CP. The TS-NP protocol consists of two phases. In the first phase, patients undergo intensive motor training with K-VRRS during a period of hospitalization. In the second phase, initiated after discharge, patients continue K-VRRS treatment at home through TR, building upon the progress made during their hospital stay. A total of seven children with unilateral spastic CP (ages 4–10 years) were assessed at three time points: baseline (T0), after the first phase of in-person hospital treatment (T1), and following the second phase of TR treatment at home (T2). Standardized outcome measures were used, with the primary measure being the Melbourne Assessment 2. Preliminary data support the hypothesis that intensive K-VRRS treatment during hospitalization enhances motor function in the affected upper limb of children with CP. Furthermore, continuing K-VRRS treatment at home through TR appears crucial for maintaining the motor gains achieved during the hospital phase. Full article

The aim of the present work was to study the potential of ultrafiltration with three polyacrylonitrile membranes (1, 10, and 25 kDa) to concentrate polyphenolic antioxidants in apple juice and extract. The permeate flux, total polyphenols, polyphenolic profile, phenolic acid content, and total antioxidant capacity were determined using the FRAP and DPPH tests, the content of water-soluble proteins during ultrafiltration was established, and the concentration factors and rejections were determined. The permeate flux decreased by increasing the volume reduction ratio and decreasing the molecular weight cut-off of the membranes. The concentration factor and rejection of polyphenolics increased with the increase in the volume reduction ratio (VRR) for all membranes and both liquids. The concentration and rejection effectiveness of the 1 kDa membrane was higher than those observed for 10 and 25 kDa during the ultrafiltration of the apple extract, while these values were comparable for 1 and 10 kDa during the ultrafiltration of the apple juice. The concentration factors and rejections of total polyphenols were higher in the extract than in the juice. Chlorogenic acid was the main compound in the polyphenol profile of apple juice. The total content of phenolic acids, determined by using HPLC, increased by 15–20% as a result of the membrane concentration, but the separation process did not significantly change the ratio between the individual compounds. Full article

We demonstrate precise determination of atmospheric temperature using vibro-rotational Raman (VRR) spectra of molecular nitrogen and oxygen in the range of 292–293 K. We used a continuous wave fiber laser operating at 10 W near 532 nm as an excitation source in conjunction with a multi-pass cell. First, we show that the approximation that nitrogen and oxygen molecules behave like rigid rotors leads to erroneous derivations of temperature values from VRR spectra. Then, we account for molecular non-rigidity and compare four different methods for the determination of air temperature. Each method requires no temperature calibration. The first method involves fitting the intensity of individual lines within the same branch to their respective transition energies. We also infer temperature by taking ratios of two isolated VRR lines; first from two lines of the same branch, and then one line from the S-branch and one from the O-branch. Finally, we take ratios of groups of lines. Comparing these methods, we found that a precision up to 0.1 K is possible. In the case of O${}_2$, a comparison between the different methods show that the inferred temperature was self-consistent to within 1 K. The temperature inferred from N${}_2$ differed by as much as 3 K depending on which VRR branch was used. Here we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each method. Our methods can be extended to the development of instrumentation capable of non-invasive monitoring of gas temperature with broad potential applications, for example, in laboratory, ground-based, or airborne remote sensing. Full article

In this study, we present a meso-scale simulation of the urban microclimate in Berlin, Germany, using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) numerical weather prediction platform. The objective of the study is to derive an accurate estimate of the near-surface urban heat island (UHI) intensity. The simulation is conducted over a two-week summer period. We compare different physical schemes, different urban canopy schemes and different methods for estimating the UHI intensity. The urban fraction of each urban category is derived using the Copernicus Impervious Density data and the Corine Land Cover data. High-resolution City Geography Markup Language (CityGML) data is used to estimate the building height densities required by the multi-layer urban canopy model (UCM). Within the single-layer UCM, we implement an anthropogenic heat profile based on the large scale urban consumption of energy (LUCY) model. The optimal model configuration combines the WRF Single Moment Five-Class (WSM5) microphysics scheme, the Bougeault–Lacarrère planetary boundary layer scheme, the eta similarity (Mellor–Yamada–Janjic) surface layer scheme, the Noah Multi-Parameterization land surface model, the Dudhia and Rapid Radiative Transfer Model (RRTM) radiation schemes, and the multi-layer UCM (including the building energy model). Our simulated UHI intensity results agree well with measurements with a root mean squared error of $0.86$$\mathrm{K}$ and a mean bias error of $0.20$$\mathrm{K}$. After model validation, we proceed to compare several UHI intensity calculation methods, including the ‘ring rural reference’ (RRR) method and the ‘virtual rural reference’ (VRR) method. The VRR mthod is also known as the ‘urban increment’ method. We suggest and argument that the VRR approach is superior. Full article