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UAV-enabled Mobile Edge Computing for Resource Allocation using Cooperative Evolutionary Computation
Get PDFEdge computing is a viable paradigm for supporting the Industrial Internet of Things deployment by shifting computationally demanding tasks from resource-constrained devices to powerful edge servers. In this study, mobile edge computing (MEC) services are provided for multiple ground mobile nodes (MNs) through a time-division multiple access protocol using the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-enabled edge servers. Remotely controlled UAVs can serve as MEC servers due to their adaptability and flexibility.
However, the current MEC approaches have proven ineffective in situations where the number of MNs rapidly increases, or network resources are sparsely distributed. Furthermore, suitable accessibility across wireless networks via MNs with an acceptable quality of service is a fundamental problem for conventional UAV-assisted communications. To tackle this issue, we present an optimized computation resource allocation model using cooperative evolutionary computation to solve the joint optimization problem of queuebased computation offloading and adaptive computing resource allocation. The developed method ensures the task computation delay of all MNs within a time block, optimizes the sum of MN’s accessibility rates, and reduces the energy consumption of the UAV and MNs while meeting task computation restrictions. Moreover, we propose a multilayer data flow processing system to make full use of the computational capability across the system. The top layer of the system contains the cloud centre, the middle layer contains the UAV-assisted MEC (U-MEC) servers, and the bottom layer contains the mobile devices. Our numerical analysis and simulation results prove that the proposed scheme outperforms conventional techniques such as equal offloading time allocation and straight-line flight
Variation in Black students’ conceptions of academic support
No full textThe persistence of degree-awarding gaps and anti-Black racism warrant an exploration of the quality and effectiveness of academic support offered to Black undergraduate students in British higher education, and how such support is perceived by students. Our phenomenographic study found that Black students’ conceptions of academic support range from broad expectations of help with their studies to more advanced understandings of their own agency and the context of academic support. Our results highlight that attempts to enhance academic support should revisit three interconnected areas: what type of academic support is provided, where, and by whom. Most importantly, we propose a new inclusive direction that replaces existing deficit models with approaches that will strengthen Black students’ agential effectiveness within historically White institutions
Socially active neighborhoods: construct operationalization for aging in place, health promotion and psychometric testing
Get PDFFrom the year 2003 when the first walkability scale was published to date, person-environment fit models and empirical research, some of which was published in Health Promotion International, have encapsulated healthy communities in ‘neighborhood walkability’. While there is no doubt that neighborhood walkability positively influences health-seeking behaviors and health, recent models suggest that their measurement and conceptualization have not emphasized the role played by psychosocial and personal factors in aging in place. Thus, the development of scales measuring human ecosystem factors has not recognized all critical factors suited for older adults. In this paper, we aim to draw on relevant literature to frame a more holistic construct, hereby referred to as Socially Active Neighborhoods (SAN), that would better support aging in place in older populations. Through a narrative review based on a systematic search of the literature, we define the scope of SAN and delineate some contextual implications for gerontology, health promotion and psychometric testing. SAN, unlike neighborhood walkability in its current measurement and conceptualization, incorporates critical theory-informed psychosocial factors (i.e. safety and disability friendliness of neighborhood infrastructure) that can encourage older adults with physiological and cognitive limitations to maintain physical and social activities as well as health in later life. The SAN is the result of our adaptation of key person-environment models, including the Context Dynamics in Aging (CODA) framework, that recognizes the role of context in healthy aging
An interface platform for robotic neuromorphic systems
Get PDFNeuromorphic computing is promising to become a future standard in low-power AI applications. The integration between new neuromorphic hardware and traditional microcontrollers is an open challenge. In this paper, we present an interface board and a communication protocol that allows communication between different devices, using a microcontroller unit (Arduino Due) in the middle. Our compact printed circuit board (PCB) links different devices as a whole system and provides a power supply for the entire system using batteries as the power supply. Concretely, we have connected a Dynamic Vision Sensor (DVS128), SpiNNaker board and a servo motor, creating a platform for a neuromorphic robotic system controlled by a Spiking Neural Network, which is demonstrated on the task of intercepting incoming objects. The data rate of the implemented interface board is 24.64 k symbols/s and the latency for generating commands is about 11ms. The complete system is run only by batteries, making it very suitable for robotic applications
Effects of dietary and lifestyle management on type 2 diabetes development among ethnic minority adults living in the UK: a generational shift
Get PDFType 2 diabetes (T2D) is increasing among Asian, African, and Caribbean (AAC) populations in the UK, where diet and lifestyle are the main modifiable factors. The effect of generation on the onset of T2D in relation to dietary and lifestyle habits is unclear in these ethnic communities in UK. Thus, the study aims to investigate this issue along with whether generation of AAC, living in the UK differs in terms of the prevalence of T2D. The current study incorporated longitudinal self-reported data for 3459 AAC adults aged 25+ years using wave 7 (data collected in 2016) & 9 (data collected in 2019) from the UK Household Longitudinal Study data. A Chi-square test was used to examine the prevalence of T2D among ethnic generations. Logistic regression was used to determine the risk of T2D in terms of dietary and lifestyle habits adjusting for covariates. Significantly higher prevalence of T2D existed in the first-generation (5.0%) than the second-generation (1.9%) (p < 0.001). Findings were consistent after adjusting for gender, residence type, country of residence, sleep quality, high blood pressure, long-standing illness, and age. Consuming two or less vegetables and more than two fruits portions per day with (odds ratio, OR 1.92,95% confidence interval, CI 1.02, 1.64); (OR 3.72, 95% CI 1.08, 12.82) respectively, and walking weekly (OR2.30, 95% CI 1.20, 4.41). However, the confounding effect of age in terms of more than two vegetable portions, two or fewer fruits portions, non-smokers, alcoholic and non-alcoholic respondents was non-significant. Findings suggest that people from first-generation, have higher odds of developing diabetes, despite having the same lifestyle as second-generation (fruit and vegetable consumption, exercise, non-smokers, and alcohol). Further research is required to examine these factors more specifically
Politicization, postpolitics and the open city: Openness, closedness and the spatialisation of the political
Get PDFThe idea of the open city has been used both conceptually and analytically to understand the politics of the city. The contrast between the open city and the closed city relies, in part, upon an understanding of the global systems that enfold cities and, consequently, the politics that are – and are not – afforded cities. Notions such as the postpolitical city depend not on temporality where the city has ceased to be political, but a spatialisation of politics where the (properly)
political has become excluded by the closed systems that envelope cities. In this paper, we explore analytical and theoretical responses to the horror of the Grenfell Tower fire to disclose the ways that different critiques of neoliberalism and racial capitalism deploy and rely upon different conceptions of the open and closed systems of the city. Rather than settle for the open/closed binary, we seek to understand how different forms of openness and closedness afford/constrain the politicisation (and depoliticization) of city life – and its catastrophes
Philosophical health: Unveiling the patient's personal philosophy with a person-centred method of dialogue.
Get PDFGrounded in ideas about sense-making and whole-person care with a long intellectual heritage, the movement for Philosophical Health—with its specific conceptions of philosophical care and counselling—is a relatively recent addition to the ongoing debate about understanding better the perspectives of patients to improve health practice. This article locates the development of this movement within the context of broader discussions of person-centred care (PCC), arguing that the approach advocated by defenders of philosophical health can provide a straightforward method for implementing PCC in actual cases. This claim is explained and defended with reference to the SMILE_PH method created by Luis de Miranda (Sense-Making Interviews Looking at Elements of Philosophical Health), an approach recently trialled convincingly with people living with traumatic spinal cord injury
Bright lights and terror –speaker diary from the CILIP conference 2023.
Get PDFSpeaker diary from the CILIP conference 2023
Emotions Matter: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Detection and Classification of Students’ Emotions in STEM during Online Learning
Get PDFIn recent years, the rapid growth of online learning has highlighted the need for effective methods to monitor and improve student experiences. Emotions play a crucial role in shaping students’ engagement, motivation, and satisfaction in online learning environments, particularly in complex STEM subjects. In this context, sentiment analysis has emerged as a promising tool to detect and classify emotions expressed in textual and visual forms. This study offers an extensive literature review using the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) technique on the role of sentiment analysis in student satisfaction and online learning in STEM subjects. The review analyses the applicability, challenges, and limitations of text- and facial-based sentiment analysis techniques in educational settings by reviewing 57 peer-reviewed research articles out of 236 articles, published between 2015 and 2023, initially identified through a comprehensive search strategy. Through an extensive search and scrutiny process, these articles were selected based on their relevance and contribution to the topic. The review’s findings indicate that sentiment analysis holds significant potential for improving student experiences, encouraging personalised learning, and promoting satisfaction in the online learning environment. Educators and administrators can gain valuable insights into students’ emotions and perceptions by employing computational techniques to analyse and interpret emotions expressed in text and facial expressions. However, the review also identifies several challenges and limitations associated with sentiment analysis in educational settings. These challenges include the need for accurate emotion detection and interpretation, addressing cultural and linguistic variations, ensuring data privacy and ethics, and a reliance on high-quality data sources. Despite these challenges, the review highlights the immense potential of sentiment analysis in transforming online learning experiences in STEM subjects and recommends further research and development in this area
A randomised controlled trial investigating the effect of improving the cleaning and disinfection of shared medical equipment on healthcare-associated infections: the CLEaning and Enhanced disiNfection (CLEEN) study
Get PDFBackground
Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are a common, costly, yet largely preventable complication impacting patients in healthcare settings globally. Improving routine cleaning and disinfection of the hospital environment has been shown to reduce the risk of HAI. Contaminated shared medical equipment presents a primary transmission route for infectious pathogens, yet is rarely studied. The CLEEN study will assess how enhanced cleaning and disinfection of shared medical equipment affects the rate of HAIs in a tertiary hospital setting. The initiative is an evidence-based approach combining staff training, auditing and feedback to environmental services staff to enhance cleaning and disinfection practices.
Methods
The CLEEN study will use a stepped wedge randomised controlled design in 10 wards of one large Australian hospital over 36 weeks. The intervention will consist of 3 additional hours per weekday for the dedicated cleaning and disinfection of shared medical equipment on each ward. The primary outcome is to demonstrate the effectiveness of improving the quality and frequency of cleaning shared medical equipment in reducing HAIs, as measured by a HAI point prevalence study (PPS). The secondary outcomes include the thoroughness of equipment cleaning assessed using fluorescent marker technology and the cost-effectiveness of the intervention.
Discussion
Evidence from the CLEEN study will contribute to future policy and practice guidelines about the cleaning and disinfection of shared medical equipment. It will be used by healthcare leaders and clinicians to inform decision-making and implementation of best-practice infection prevention strategies to reduce HAIs in healthcare facilities