Search Results (1,257)

Background: Formal and informal social support networks are crucial for mental well-being, providing a sense of personal security and safety, especially during times of crisis. Aims: The aim of this study is to examine women’s perceptions of their own experiences alongside their perceptions of their partners’ experiences in the relationship between social support and the sense of danger within intimate relationships, based solely on women’s self-reports. It compares couples experiencing high-intensity conflict (particularly related to separation) with couples from the general population, and explores how the distribution of social support, whether received by the woman, the man, both, or neither is associated with feelings of danger. Methods: The sample comprised 165 women from two subsamples: 70 women from the general population and 95 women engaged in high-intensity intimate conflict, who were undergoing separation proceedings. Data were collected via self-report questionnaires, which included the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support and a custom questionnaire for Sense of Danger from the Partner. No direct data were collected from male partners; women provided both their own reports and their perceptions of their partner’s experiences. Repeated measures analysis was performed to examine the sense of danger as perceived for both themselves and their partners. Results: The analysis shows that the higher the level of social support, the weaker the sense of danger reported by women for themselves and for their partners. It also reveals that the sense of danger (both self-reported and attributed to the partner) is stronger among couples engaged in high-intensity conflict than among those in the general population, and that women report a stronger sense of danger for themselves than they attribute to their men. Importantly, when social support is provided to only one partner, it is associated with a higher sense of danger in the other partner. Conclusions: Social support has been associated with lower reported feelings of danger in intimate relationships. However, when support is given to only one partner, it may increase the other partner’s sense of danger. These findings highlight the need for balanced support for both partners in order to reduce tension and promote a greater sense of safety during times of conflict. Full article

Amid growing demands for heritage conservation and precision urban governance, this study proposes a multimodal framework to analyze tourist perception and behavior in Macau’s Historic Centre. We integrate geotagged social media images and text, ultra-wideband (UWB) pedestrian trajectories, and a LiDAR-derived 3D digital twin to examine the interplay among spatial configuration, movement, and affect. Visual content in tourist photos is classified with You Only Look Once (YOLOv8), and sentiment polarity in Weibo posts is estimated with a fine-tuned Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) model. UWB data provide fine-grained trajectories, and all modalities are georeferenced within the digital twin. Results indicate that iconic landmarks concentrate visual attention, pedestrian density, and positive sentiment, whereas peripheral sites show lower footfall yet strong emotional resonance. We further identify three coupling typologies that differentiate tourist experiences across spatial contexts. The study advances multimodal research on historic urban centers by delivering a reproducible framework that aligns image, text, and trajectory data to extract microscale patterns. Theoretically, it elucidates how spatial configuration, movement intensity, and affective expression co-produce experiential quality. Using Macau’s Historic Centre as an empirical testbed, the findings inform heritage revitalization, wayfinding, and crowd-management strategies. Full article

Wines produced from grapes exposed to wildfire smoke exhibit smoke-related flavors, such as smoky, burnt, and an ashy finish. While grapes are impacted on the vine, winemaking strategies can influence the perception of smoke-related properties in the resulting wine. This case study evaluated eight smoke-affected wines across three vintages from commercial production to assess how oak influences smoke-related flavors. Each vintage explored a different usage of oak, including oak origin, oak chips with carbon fining, and potential carryover of flavors through reused barrels. Wines were assessed using descriptive analysis, with intensity ratings collected for seven attributes representing smoke-related and typical wine flavors. Results showed that American oak reduced the perception of smoke-related flavors compared to French oak. The use of oak chips, both alone and with carbon fining, did not improve the flavor profile. This suggests that combining treatments should be approached with caution, especially when strategies target smoke taint mitigation through different mechanisms. Sensory results also indicated no evidence of smoke flavor carryover from using barrels that previously held smoke-affected wine. Overall, this work showed that oak can influence sensory profile of smoke-affected wines and consideration of different wine production practices can be beneficial when faced with a smoke-impacted vintage. Full article

Background: Structured postoperative rehabilitation is not routinely provided for individuals with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) after surgery, with physiotherapy typically limited to the immediate inpatient period. Telerehabilitation offers an accessible and supervised option to address persistent functional limitations, pain, and quality-of-life concerns in this population. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a synchronous telerehabilitation program—designed to support post-surgical recovery in individuals with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS)—on trunk muscle endurance, trunk flexibility, functional capacity, pain severity, perception of appearance, and quality of life. Methods: Thirty-two individuals with AIS, who had undergone surgery 6 months to 2 years prior, were randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control group. The intervention group participated in a supervised telerehabilitation program twice weekly for eight weeks, while the control group received no exercise intervention. All outcome measures were assessed before and after the intervention. Results: The telerehabilitation group demonstrated significant improvements across all outcome measures compared with the control group (p < 0.05). Post-intervention, the telerehabilitation group had superior trunk muscle endurance, flexibility, and quality-of-life scores, as well as reduced pain intensity (p < 0.05). However, no significant differences were observed between the groups in functional capacity or perception of appearance (p > 0.05). Conclusions: A supervised telerehabilitation program initiated six months after surgery can effectively improve trunk muscle endurance, flexibility, pain intensity, and quality of life in individuals with AIS. These findings emphasize the value of structured post-surgical rehabilitation and raise awareness of the potential benefits of remotely delivered exercise programs in this population. Full article

The increasing frequency and intensity of urban floods due to the climate crisis necessitate effective adaptation. In South Korea, flood vulnerability assessments have focused on preparedness, underscoring the need for adaptive capacity research. This study proposes the Urban Flood Adaptive Capacity Index (UFACI), a Fuzzy Logic-based framework that quantifies urban resilience. Developed from a socio-ecological systems (SES) perspective, the UFACI integrates economic resources, social capital, risk perception, and infrastructure. Fourteen indicators are applied using Fuzzy Logic to address uncertainties and enhance decision-making. The methodology is tested in 12 rainwater pumping station drainage areas in Seoul, providing actionable insights for flood management. This study contributes by shifting the focus from vulnerability to adaptive capacity, offering a systematic, data-driven approach to flood resilience assessment. Unlike conventional methods, the UFACI integrates socio-economic and physical factors, enabling targeted policy interventions and resource allocation. Its application in Seoul demonstrates its practical value, with potential adaptability for broader urban flood risk management. Full article

Background and Objectives: Decreased balance function in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients is influenced by impaired gravity perception, which can be measured by the subjective visual vertical (SVV) test. The value of this test can be increased by executing it in a moving visual background (i.e., dynamic SVV). However, clinicians and researchers use varying dynamic stimulus properties due to the lack of consensus on optimal parameters for reliably distinguishing between health and disease. Materials and Methods: To evaluate how dynamic visual stimulus intensity affects the perception of verticality in patients with MS and healthy individuals. Materials and Methods: We assessed static and dynamic SVV in 31 MS patients with dizziness and 32 age- and sex-matched controls using the virtual reality application VIRVEST. We evaluated the effects of modifying two parameters in dynamic SVV testing: rotation velocity (10°/s, 30°/s, and 60°/s) and visual field coverage (small vs. large). Results: The median of static SVV deviations was significantly greater in the MS group (1.8° vs. 0.9°). The mildest dynamic stimulus intensity of 10°/s, with a small visual field coverage, yielded the greatest discriminatory capacity to differentiate between the groups (AUC = 0.897; p < 0.001). This stimulus elicited a median SVV deviation of 4.3° in the MS group and 2.1° in the control group (p < 0.001) while also inducing significantly lower test-induced dizziness compared with stronger stimuli. Median visual dependence values measured at 10°/s with a small visual field coverage were 4.2 in the MS group and 2.02 in the control group (p < 0.001), also yielding the greatest AUC values compared to stronger stimuli (AUC = 0.828; p < 0.001). Conclusions: Our results support the use of relatively mild dynamic stimulus intensity. Future studies are encouraged to evaluate different dynamic stimulus parameters and patient populations. Full article

This study examines the relationship between dietary patterns, specifically the Mediterranean diet (MD) and the Western diet (WD), and sensory perception among nursing students at the University of Valladolid, Spain. The study aims to understand how these dietary patterns affect taste sensitivity and preferences, contributing to the fields of nutrition and sensory science. Materials and Methods: A total of 41 students participated in this study, following ethical guidelines. Food-grade materials such as refined salt, sucrose, monosodium glutamate, water, and breadsticks were used in sensory assessments. The study involved structured sensory evaluations along with dietary habit questionnaires. Sensory tests were conducted to measure taste perception, and statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics 25.0, with descriptive statistics and correlation analysis. Results: The findings revealed significant differences in taste perception across diet adherence levels. Specifically, higher adherence to the MD was associated with a higher perceived intensity and enjoyment of saltiness and umami, while a higher adherence to the WD showed a preference for sweetness. Significant correlations were found between diet adherence and taste enjoyment, with stronger positive associations for saltiness and umami under the MD. Conclusions: This study emphasized the impact of dietary habits on taste perception. Adherence to the MD enhanced sensitivity to moderate taste intensities, while adherence to the WD resulted in decreased perception at lower concentrations and heightened sensory responses at higher intensities. These results suggest that long-term dietary patterns influence taste receptor adaptation, potentially affecting food choices and overall health. Full article

Background: Chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) is a multidimensional condition involving both peripheral and central mechanisms, with increasing evidence supporting an interplay between subjective pain perception and autonomic nervous system (ANS) function. However, few studies have explored whether a single non-invasive intervention can concurrently modulate both domains. Objectives: To evaluate the short-term effects of a single session of Pulsed Electromagnetic Field (PEMF) therapy—administered via the PAP Ion Magnetic Induction (PAPIMI™) device—on subjective pain intensity and heart rate variability (HRV) parameters in individuals with CMP. The relationship between perceived pain relief and physiological autonomic adaptations was also explored. Methods: Thirty adults with CMP underwent a single PAPIMI™ session. Subjective pain intensity was measured using the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS), while autonomic function was assessed via HRV. Pre- to post-intervention changes were analyzed using the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test, while Spearman’s correlation was computed to assess associations between post-intervention changes in subjective perceived pain and HRV parameters. Results: A significant reduction in NPRS scores (p < 0.001) was found after PAPIMI intervention. Also, a significant increase in specific parasympathetic-related HRV indices, namely, RMSSD (p = 0.015) and HF power (p = 0.029), was observed. No significant correlations were found between post-intervention changes in pain perception and HRV metrics. Conclusions: A single PAPIMI session induced both analgesic effects and improvements in autonomic balance in individuals with CMP. These findings underscore the potential of PAPIMI as a non-pharmacological approach for rapid pain modulation and systemic rebalancing. Full article

In complex traffic environments, image degradation due to adverse factors such as haze, low illumination, and occlusion significantly compromises the performance of object detection systems in recognizing vehicles and pedestrians. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a robust visual detection framework that integrates multi-stage image enhancement with a lightweight detection architecture. Specifically, an image preprocessing module incorporating ConvIR and CIDNet is designed to perform defogging and illumination enhancement, thereby substantially improving the perceptual quality of degraded inputs. Furthermore, a novel enhancement strategy based on the Horizontal/Vertical-Intensity color space is introduced to decouple brightness and chromaticity modeling, effectively enhancing structural details and visual consistency in low-light regions. In the detection phase, a lightweight state-space modeling network, Mamba-Driven Lightweight Detection Network with RT-DETR Decoding, is proposed for object detection in complex traffic scenes. This architecture integrates VSSBlock and XSSBlock modules to enhance detection performance, particularly for multi-scale and occluded targets. Additionally, a VisionClueMerge module is incorporated to strengthen the perception of edge structures by effectively fusing multi-scale spatial features. Experimental evaluations on traffic surveillance datasets demonstrate that the proposed method surpasses the mainstream YOLOv12s model in terms of mAP@50–90, achieving a performance gain of approximately 1.0 percentage point (from 0.759 to 0.769). While ensuring competitive detection accuracy, the model exhibits reduced parameter complexity and computational overhead, thereby demonstrating superior deployment adaptability and robustness. This framework offers a practical and effective solution for object detection in intelligent transportation systems operating under visually challenging conditions. Full article

Infrared-visible image fusion quality is critical for nighttime perception in autonomous driving and surveillance but suffers severe degradation under extreme low-light conditions, including irreversible texture loss in visible images, thermal boundary diffusion artifacts, and overexposure under dynamic non-uniform illumination. To address these challenges, a Decomposition–Disentanglement–Dynamic Compensation framework, D3Fusion, is proposed. Firstly, a Retinex-inspired Decomposition Illumination Net (DIN) decomposes inputs into enhanced images and degradative illumination maps for joint low-light recovery. Secondly, an illumination-guided encoder and a multi-scale differential compensation decoder dynamically balance cross-modal features. Finally, a progressive three-stage training paradigm from illumination correction through feature disentanglement to adaptive fusion resolves optimization conflicts. Compared to State-of-the-Art methods, on the LLVIP, TNO, MSRS, and RoadScene datasets, D3Fusion achieves an average improvement of 1.59% in standard deviation (SD), 6.9% in spatial frequency (SF), 2.59% in edge intensity (EI), and 1.99% in visual information fidelity (VIF), demonstrating superior performance in extreme low-light scenarios. The framework effectively suppresses thermal diffusion artifacts while mitigating exposure imbalance, adaptively brightening scenes while preserving texture details in shadowed regions. This significantly improves fusion quality for nighttime images by enhancing salient information, establishing a robust solution for multimodal perception under illumination-critical conditions. Full article

Robotic waste sorting systems offer a scalable and consistent alternative to manual sorting for Construction and Demolition Waste (CDW) by reducing labor-intensive tasks and exposure to hazardous conditions, while enabling the extraction of high-purity materials (e.g., polymers) from the waste streams. Despite advancements in perception systems, manipulation and planning remain significant bottlenecks, limiting widespread adoption due to high complexity and cost. This paper introduces RaapWaste, a robot- and application-agnostic planning framework specifically designed for waste sorting, addressing challenges in motion planning, scheduling, and real-world integration. Built on open-source resources, RaapWaste employs a modular and flexible architecture, enabling integration of diverse planning techniques and scheduling strategies. The framework aims to simulate the performance of real-world sorting equipment (e.g., robots, grippers). To evaluate its effectiveness, we conducted simulations with articulated and delta robots, as well as real-world tests on CDW sorting. Metrics such as the Sorting Throughput (ST) and Sorting Ratio (SR) reveal the RaapWaste’s capability across different waste sorting cases. In simulation, the delta robot achieved an SR exceeding 95%, while the UR5e showed consistent performance. In real-world CDW experiments, the system achieved a peak SR of 99% and maintained 80% using the SPT scheduler. Full article

Background/Objectives: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic lung disease affecting preterm infants, often resulting in prolonged neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) stays and significant parental stress. The experiences of parents navigating their preterm infant’s early NICU journey are important to support clinical trials to improve infant outcomes. Aim: The aim of this study was to explore parental perceptions of their infant’s health progression during the first 10 days of life through personal diary entries and their correlation with the echo scans assessments, as part of the Exploring Right vEntricular function applicability in a Prediction mOdel to identify pReterm infanTs with early BronchoPulmonary Dysplasia (REPORT-BPD) feasibility study. Methods: An embedded qualitative design was employed, utilising thematic analysis of 17 parent diaries. Parents of preterm infants (<32 weeks of gestation) admitted to a NICU documented their daily experiences. Thematic analysis was applied to ensure a rigorous, inductive examination of emerging themes. Findings: Four main themes were identified: (1) developing parent–infant relationships, highlighting the emotional impact of separation and the significance of bonding; (2) health and well-being of premature infants and family, reflecting parental vigilance, cautious optimism, and emotional distress; (3) parents navigating support and the NICU environment, describing challenges related to medical procedures, communication with staff, and adapting to a highly technical setting; and (4) emotions and protective gestures, illustrating parental resilience, coping mechanisms, and the innate drive to protect their child. Conclusions: Parental experiences in the NICU were shaped by emotional turmoil, uncertainty, and the need for support in navigating their infant’s care. Diaries provided an effective means for parents to express their experiences; they could serve as a communication tool in clinical trials to provide a deeper understanding of the development of the recruited preterm infants. Full article

The rapid development of artificial intelligence technologies has promoted the emergence of Agriculture 4.0, where the machines participating in agricultural activities are made smart with the capacities of self-sensing, self-decision-making, and self-execution. As representative implementations of Agriculture 4.0, intelligent selective fruit harvesting robots demonstrate significant potential to alleviate labor-intensive demands in modern agriculture, where visual detection serves as the foundational component. However, the accurate detection of fruits remains a challenging issue due to the complex and unstructured nature of fruit orchards. This paper comprehensively reviews the recent progress in visual detection methods for selective fruit harvesting robots, covering cameras, traditional detection based on handcrafted feature methods, detection based on deep learning methods, and tree branch detection methods. Furthermore, the potential challenges and future trends of the visual detection system of selective fruit harvesting robots are critically discussed, facilitating a thorough comprehension of contemporary progress in this research area. The primary objective of this work is to highlight the pivotal role of visual perception in intelligent fruit harvesting robots. Full article

In humans, food choice, nutrient intake, and meal size are strongly influenced by sense of smell. It is known that individuals differ in their olfactory abilities and may show a normal, reduced, or absent sense of smell. Previous findings have also suggested that males are more deficient than females in their olfactory performance. Recent studies have shown that humans could perceive the odor of free fatty acids, providing information about the nutritional content of foods. The aim of this research was to study the orthonasal perception of palmitic, oleic, and linoleic fatty acids in 70 healthy subjects (38 females and 32 males). First, participants were classified as normosmic or hyposmic by means of the Sniffin’ Sticks test. Second, the ability to detect the odor of fatty acids was assessed using the gas chromatography–olfactometry technique, a combination of sensory and instrumental analysis that allows for simultaneous chromatographic separation and odor evaluation by a human subject. Finally, the olfactory threshold to fatty acids was also evaluated by means of a three-way forced-choice test, using a presentation procedure of ascending concentration with seven dilution steps. The results highlighted differences in perception ability, perception intensity, and olfactory threshold in relation to the lipophilicity of the molecule, olfactory function, and sex. Our findings confirm the human ability to perceive the odor of fatty acids, with females and normosmic individuals performing better than males and hyposmic ones, respectively. They also show that the intensity of perception increases with the decreasing lipophilicity of fatty acids; consequently, the olfactory perception threshold also decreases. Full article

Clarifying the key driving factors behind the adoption of manure resource utilization technology and promoting its widespread application are crucial for achieving the high-quality development of animal husbandry. This study analyses survey data from 412 large-scale dairy farms across 23 provinces in China. The Cov-AHP method is used to measure the adoption intensity of technology and analyse its mechanisms and underlying logic. The results indicate that value perception, particularly economic value perception, is the strongest driver of adoption intensity. Although the direct effect of environmental regulation is limited, it significantly amplifies the influence of value perception—particularly economic value perception—on technology adoption intensity, especially in large-scale farms. Furthermore, incentive-based regulations (e.g., government subsidies) markedly promote the adoption of manure resource utilization technologies, whereas constraint-based measures (e.g., fines) exert stronger effects on small-scale farms. Additionally, demonstration farms serve as critical catalysts for disseminating best practices and accelerating technology adoption. This study suggests that policies should integrate value perception with targeted financial subsidies and regulatory measures to improve technology adoption, especially with support for small-scale farms. By leveraging demonstration farms to promote successful experiences, the comprehensive adoption of manure resource utilization technologies across the industry can be further improved. Full article