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Face detection based on Haar Cascade and Convolution Neural Network (CNN)
No full textFace detection plays a crucial role in identifying individuals during suspicious activities, serving as a foundational component in various security applications. Modern face detection systems leverage machine learning algorithms to accurately identify human faces in images or videos, facilitating authentication in security contexts. This paper presents an innovative face detection system that integrates the Haar cascade method with Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), aimed at enhancing the accuracy of facial detection. The evaluation of the proposed system was carried out in a Python environment, utilizing real images from well-established public datasets, including Faces94, Faces95, Faces96, and the Grimace dataset, curated by Libor Spacek. The results obtained demonstrate the efficacy of the integrated approach, achieving accuracy rates of 98.37%, 97.22%, 97.52%, and 100% for the Faces94, Faces95, Faces96, and Grimace datasets, respectively. These findings indicate that the combination of Haar cascade and CNN-based methodologies significantly outperforms traditional machine learning face detection techniques, underscoring the potential for improved accuracy in real-world face detection applications. This research contributes to the ongoing advancements in facial recognition technology, with implications for enhanced security measures and intelligent human-computer interaction
Object detection based on vision sensors and neural network
No full textThis is a reprint of the Special Issue, published open access by the journal Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220).
This Special Issue reprint provides an overview of object detection in images and videos, with a focus on addressing the resource constraints of lightweight vision sensors. Object detection has long been a key research area in computer vision. It is now gaining increasing attention from both academia and industry, driven by the rapid advancement of deep neural networks (DNNs) and high-resolution vision sensors. While DNNs have achieved remarkable success in recent years, they are becoming increasingly complex, with deeper network structures and larger training datasets. This growing complexity poses a challenge for deploying computationally and data-intensive DNNs on resource-limited vision sensors, particularly for real-time object detection
Supporting young children's physical development through tailored motor competency interventions within a school setting
No full textPresenting in the House of Lords at a poster conference and information exchange event on 21st January 2025. The event is an opportunity for educators to share their insights about key educational issues, and what could be done at policy level to address them. This is organised by St Mary's University, Twickenham.
Attendees will include, educators, community based organisations, charities and special interest groups, members of Parliament and the House of Lords. The event takes place in the Cholmondeley room overlooking the Thames.
There will be no speeches or formal presentations, interested parties will browse the posters and chat informally while enjoying afternoon tea in this beautiful setting.
The poster that is presented focuses on the issue that children are developmentally behind in terms of motor competency, this has an impact on learning to read and write, as well as then having inadequate hand-eye coordination which may also impact behaviour. We share our evidence of success in which motor competency levels can be improved and sustained. And our call to action, having motor competency interventions within all schools, implementation of national level school-based interventions and more CPD and training within University settings as part of initial training for teachers
Discursive constructions of emotionally unstable personality disorder and borderline personality disorder: a critical exploration of how diagnosis is constructed by service users and clinicians
No full textSection A
Background. Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD) and Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) are diagnoses surrounded by significant clinical debates and controversies dating back to their early roots in psychiatry. The introduction considers some of the historical origins of the diagnoses and highlights shifts in diagnostic language and criteria. The history of the diagnoses also highlights the imprecision and limited efficacy of the diagnostic frameworks that have arguably contributed to the way EUPD/BPD is viewed in the present day.
The review also considers some of the growing research around the stigma held by clinicians who have negative views towards individuals with EUPD/BPD and how they contribute to the unhelpful narrative around it. The recent shift in language and its impact on these narratives are explored. Critically, it questions the meaning behind evolving terminology and the implications for those who receive the EUPD/BPD label. This was particularly pertinent as more people sought out the diagnosis.
Aim. This review aimed to critically examine how service users (SUs) constructed and made sense of their diagnosis of EUPD/BPD.
Method. Following the search of three databases, thirteen papers were identified. A narrative synthesis approach was implemented, and studies were organised thematically.
Findings. The findings suggested that the EUPD/BPD construct was built on a multifaceted Discursive Constructions of EUPD/BPD 11 relationship between the label of EUPD/BPD itself, the person’s identity, and the way it affected their relational dynamics in different contexts. The review discussed how stigmatising language could become internalised by SUs. It also highlighted the duality of the diagnosis, which, for some, provided a sense of belonging and understanding of their experiences while also acknowledging how diagnosis could cement a negative self-identity. This showed how it was a fluid construct, and its understanding could not be reduced to a set of characteristics.
Conclusion. The review underscored the need for future research that better accounts for gender, cultural, and ethnic differences while acknowledging the power dynamics held by researchers and clinicians who conducted these studies.
Section B
The present study used Foucauldian Discourse Analysis (FDA) to examine how clinicians within the NHS mental health settings discursively construct and negotiate diagnostic labels of Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD), also known as Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). The study adopted a social constructionist epistemology and relativist ontology.
Twelve clinicians from psychological backgrounds participated in semi-structured interviews, exploring their experiences of working with individuals with EUPD/BPD diagnoses, their language choices and the implications of these discursive constructions in clinical practice.
The results have revealed three dominant discourses: Psychiatric and Medical, “Just Being Borderline” Discourse , and Bureaucratic and Institutional. These discourses constructed EUPD/BPD as medicalised and managed through institutional and systemic frameworks that are both perpetuated and resisted by the clinicians working in those systems.
Some counter-discourses emphasised alternative frameworks of EUPD/BPD, though conceptualising it through trauma-informed approaches, service-user-led language and sometimes neurodivergence.
Moreover, the “Broken System” counter-discourse further highlighted systemic pitfalls within the NHS mental health services, positioning clinicians and service users both as constrained by resource limitations, service guidelines inflexibility and exclusion of those with these diagnoses.
The findings underscore clinicians’ complex negotiation of diagnostic discourses, illustrating how language can reproduce and resist psychiatric dominance. This highlights the need for increased critical reflexivity and attention to systemic and institutional practices that
ultimately shape diagnostic decisions and service provision
Exploring provision and impact of physical activity and guidance for women undergoing fertility treatment: a mixed methods approach
No full textResearch indicates a relationship between physical activity and fertility treatment outcomes; suggesting moderate-intensity physical activity can significantly improve fertility treatment outcomes whereas high intensity and frequency of activity can be detrimental. However, there are currently no physical activity guidelines available for this population group.
The overarching aim of this research project was to explore physical activity advice and guidance offered to women throughout their fertility treatment cycle(s) and to investigate the impact thereof.
A mixed methods multiphase approach was implemented, comprising four studies. Study 1 (qualitative) and 2 (quantitative) explored healthcare professionals’ perceived capability, opportunity, and motivation to offer physical activity advice and guidance during fertility treatment. Study 3 (quantitative) and 4 (qualitative) focussed on women’s perspectives and the explored impact on physical activity behaviour.
Meta-inferences generated from these studies reveal the inconsistencies and lack of routine practice regarding physical activity advice and guidance offered to women undergoing fertility treatment. Physical activity advice and guidance is often patient initiated, with highly active women seeking more specific information. Despite some healthcare professionals acknowledging the importance of physical activity, the absence of specific training and lack of guidance available has resulted in varied information offered that is often contradictory, brief, and/or precautionary. A statistically significant relationship was observed (H(2)=6.2, p=0.04), suggesting women who received physical activity advice and guidance reduced their physical activity levels significantly more than those who did not. Integrated data supports this finding as women were often advised to reduce or refrain from physical activity at certain points throughout their fertility treatment cycle.
This research provides novel insight into the physical activity advice and guidance offered to women undergoing fertility treatment. Future recommendations should focus on developing and disseminating guidance to better equip healthcare professionals with evidence-based messaging to empower women to make informed decisions about their physical activity behaviour
Multimodality, AI and pedagogy: A framework for empirical precision
No full textMultimodality stands in a privileged position when undertaking research efforts in the field of pedagogy thanks to its capacity to dissect educational environments, both physical and digital, and explore how teaching and learning occur.
At the same time, however, calls have been made from different corners of the multimodal research community to strive for more precise theories, methodologies and methods (Bateman, 2021; Castaldi 2024). This also applies to the area of pedagogy and AI-integrated teaching and learning.
This keynote will take stock on the current state of multimodal research in AI in education and outline a theoretical framework for empirical precision
An unsquareable circle? Resilience and sustainable development with reference to English coastal policy
No full textFCERM (Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management) policy for England has moved from a focus of defence in favour of ‘resilience’ as the conceptual frame through which prescription and activity might be understood. Whilst the use of resilience in this context is not new, the nature and extent of its use in extant policy marks a significant shift and a problematic one given that under current arrangements the most vulnerable coastal dwellers can expect to lose their homes to the sea, uncompensated, in areas that government chooses not to defend.
This paper will interrogate resilience as a concept and consider difficulties with its application in this context. Both proponents and critics have identified its potential for co-option by – or at least alignment with – a neo-liberal discourse likely to attract criticism. This places a particular onus on policy makers to use it with the clarity they argue is so important, although this paper will argue that their efforts have resulted in the opposite. For example, it is not hard to identify in speeches and policy statements concerning resilience an ideological orientation that bends toward neoliberalism in expressing a preference for a shrinking state, self reliance and the individualisation of risk. However, it is similarly straightforward to identify a strand of communitarianism in stated enthusiasms for continued state provision and shared risk. Analysis predicated upon resilience leads us into a conceptual hall of mirrors: risk is owned by the individual, except when it isn’t; the public purse can’t be relied on to protect people, except when it can; protection is distinct from resilience but is also an example of it. At various times we might identify the policy deployment of resilience as fitting contradictory conceptual renderings, then, with coastal dwellers facing wildly different outcomes.
Resilience as employed in this way is an inadequate reference point for purposes of deliberation and action, further undermined by the subtle deflection of critical attention away from the principles of sustainable development as enshrined in the UN SDGs which challenge signatories to tackle inequalities within as well as between countries and specify coastal areas as deserving of particular attention.
Only a reworked and more coherent conceptualisation of resilience, stripped of its association with uncompensated loss for a vulnerable minority, can make possible an FCERM strategy that is in step with the UN SDGs
Infection prevention and control and water, sanitation, and hygiene status of healthcare facilities in the Greater Kampala Metropolitan region during the COVID-19 pandemic in Uganda
No full textInfection Prevention and Control (IPC) and Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) are critical in preventing the spread of healthcare Associated Infections, including COVID-19. However, there was limited evidence on the status of IPC/WASH in healthcare facilities (HCFs) in Uganda amidst the COVID-19 pandemic which complicated IPC/WASH planning for the COVID-19 response. This study assessed IPC/WASH status for HCFs in the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GKMA), during the COVID-19 pandemic, so as to inform programming and policy. A mixed methods cross-sectional study was conducted in 75 HCFs following the first wave of COVID-19 in Uganda. The mWater tool was used to collect quantitative data which were then analyzed into STATA version 16. A key informants’ guide was used to collect qualitative data, which was analyzed thematically and themes and quotes used to support the quantitative findings. Overall, 86.7% (65/75) of HCFs had an IPC committee and 72.3% (47/65) of these were functional. Besides, 90.7% (68/75) of the HCFs had an IPC focal person, and 49.3% (37/75) had a clear annual IPC activity plan. Unfortunately, only 32.3% (21/65) of the functional IPC committees received budgetary support for their activities. In terms of WASH infrastructure, 96.0% (72/75), 10.7% (8/75), 60.0% (45/75), and 22.7% (17/75) had access to a basic water service, a basic sanitation service, a basic hand hygiene service and a basic environmental cleaning respectively. Our study reveals that while most HCFs have IPC committees and focal persons, functional support remains limited, with half having a clear annual plan and less than a third receiving budgetary support. Nearly all HCFs have basic water services, but there are significant gaps in sanitation and environmental cleanliness domains. These findings highlight the urgent need for improved support and investment in IPC/WASH supplies and infrastructure to enhance infection control and public health outcomes in Uganda
Behind the scenes - Unethical practices in the sharing economy in developing countries: A case from Middle East
No full textThe experiences of undergoing medico-legal assessments when seeking asylum in the UK: an interpretive phenomenological analysis
No full textAsylum-seekers who have experienced ill-treatment often undergo a clinical assessment for the purposes of having a medico-legal report prepared for use as evidence in their claim for asylum. The literature suggests that while this assessment process may act as a stressor, it might also provide therapeutic benefits. The study employed interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to explore the lived experience of asylum-seekers who had undergone assessment for the preparation of a medico-legal report. Three superordinate themes emerged from the data: (a) uncertainty – the tension between negative and positive expectation; (b) the pain of having to share and remember; (c) therapeutic impact. The assessment process was psychologically distressing. This distress was mitigated by particular components of the process that appeared to hold therapeutic benefits. These findings have important clinical implications for clinicians carrying out assessments with asylum-seekers and highlight the need for trauma-informed approaches to care within the UK asylum system