NUI Maynooth Eprint Archive
Not a member yet
18159 research outputs found
Sort by
Data-driven Energy Conservation in Cellular Networks: A Systems Approach
No full textThe energy consumption of mobile networks is
already substantial nowadays, and only expected to further
increase with the roll-out of 5G. Base stations are the key elements in this context: reducing their energy consumption is
of paramount importance for network operators, not only to
lower operating costs, but also to meet sustainable development
goals. Today’s base stations are typically over-provisioned, i.e.,
they comprise multiple cells to meet the peak load in a region.
Therefore, substantial energy savings are possible by switching
off cells that are under-utilized. This article proposes a datadriven approach to determine the time periods when a cell can
be switched off. Forecasting is used to accurately predict network
utilization and automatically find the time intervals to reliably
switch off a cell. We carefully analyze the requirements of the
system as a whole, from data collection to forecasting methods, to enable effective energy savings in practice. Considering
several real-world traces from LTE networks, we show that an
average of 10.24% energy savings is possible. We explore the
trade-offs between energy savings and overhead in switching off
cells, and provide insights into the choice of methods accordingly.
In particular, we show that the accuracy of forecasting is not the
most important factor in achieving energy savings; instead, the
prediction (uncertainty) interval plays a key role in being able
to achieve energy savings with less impact on end-users. Finally,
we propose a model to generate utilization traces that match the
distribution of real-world traces obtained from cellular networks
Remote state estimation with usage-dependent Markovian packet losses
No full textIn this paper, we consider a problem of packet scheduling in the setting of remote estimation with usage-dependent Markovian packet losses. A sensor measures the state of a discrete-time linear process, computes the estimate via a local Kalman filter, and sends the packets to a remote estimator via a network. The link state evolves as a two-state Markov chain, and its state transition depends on the network usage. The aim is to design the scheduling policy which balances the estimation quality and the energy consumption. We identify the problem as a Markov decision process (MDP) and prove the structural properties of the optimal policy. Furthermore, based on the structural properties, we derive the sufficient and necessary condition of the mean square stability of the remote estimator. Simulation examples are provided to illustrate the results
Responding to the ‘Weight of the World’: Unveiling the ‘Feeling’ Bourdieu in Social Work
No full textThe world continues to lurch from crisis to crisis. Amidst environmental decline, growing disparities in wealth and social dislocation, a minority of the world’s population
ironically prosper while the silent majority struggle to maintain basic standards of economic and social well-being. Social workers are compelled to respond to societal issues
such as these but need theories to make sense of disparities in lived experience and
life outcomes. Responding to this necessity, some social work scholars have drawn on
Pierre Bourdieu’s meta-theory to explain social injustice and guide anti-oppressive
practice. While this growing corpus of work is encouraging, further critical appraisal
of Bourdieu’s work is required. In this article, we identify a gap in Bourdieu’s metatheory: the relative inattention to human affect and how it connects with his formative concepts of ‘habitus’, ‘field’ and ‘capital’. This focus on human affect is salutary
given its centrality in social work practice. To address this gap, we proffer some tentative thoughts about the nature of ‘affective habitus’, ‘affective fields’ and ‘affective
capital’. The implications of these enriched concepts for social work are finally
considered
Modular Verification of Autonomous Space Robotics
No full textEnsuring that autonomous space robot control software behaves as it should is crucial, particularly as software failure in space often equates to mission failure and could potentially endanger nearby astronauts and costly equipment. To minimise mission failure caused by software errors, we can utilise a variety of tools and techniques to verify that the software behaves as intended. In particular, distinct nodes in a robotic system often require different verification techniques to ensure that they behave as expected. This paper introduces a method for integrating the various verification techniques that are applied to robotic software, via a First-Order Logic (FOL) specification that captures each node's assumptions
A Digital Platform to Support Self-management of Multiple Chronic Conditions (ProACT): Findings in Relation to Engagement During a One-Year Proof-of-Concept Trial
No full textBackground: Populations globally are ageing, resulting in higher incidence rates of chronic diseases. Digital health platforms, designed to support those with chronic conditions to self-manage at home, offer a promising solution to help people monitor their conditions and lifestyle, maintain good health, and reduce unscheduled clinical visits. However, despite high prevalence rates of multimorbidity or multiple chronic conditions, most platforms tend to focus on a single disease. A further challenge is that despite the importance of users actively engaging with such systems, little research has explored engagement. Objective: The objectives of this study are to design and develop a digital health platform, ProACT, for facilitating older adults self-managing multimorbidity, with support from their care network, and evaluate end user engagement and experiences with this platform through a 12-month trial. Methods: The ProACT digital health platform is presented in this paper. The platform was evaluated in a year-long proof-of-concept action research trial with 120 older persons with multimorbidity in Ireland and Belgium. Alongside the technology, participants had access to a clinical triage service responding to symptom alerts and a technical helpdesk. Interactions with the platform during the trial were logged to determine engagement. Semi structured interviews were conducted with participants and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis, whereas usability and user burden were examined using validated questionnaires.
Results: This paper presents the ProACT platform and its components, along with findings on engagement with the platform and its usability. Of the 120 participants who participated, 24 (20%) withdrew before the end of the study, whereas 3 (2.5%) died. The remaining 93 participants actively used the platform until the end of the trial, on average, taking 2 or 3 health readings daily over the course of the trial in Ireland and Belgium, respectively. The participants reported ProACT to be usable and of low burden
A Digital Health Platform for Integrated and Proactive Patient-Centered Multimorbidity Self-management and Care (ProACT): Protocol for an Action Research Proof-of-Concept Trial
No full textBackground: Multimorbidity is defined as the presence of two or more chronic diseases and associated comorbidities. There
is a need to improve best practices around the provision of well-coordinated, person-centered care for persons with multimorbidities.
Present health systems across the European Union (EU) focus on supporting a single-disease framework of care; the primary
challenge is to create a patient-centric, integrated care ecosystem to understand and manage multimorbidity. ProACT is a large-scale
project funded by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 programme, that involved the design, development, and
evaluation of a digital health platform to improve and advance home-based integrated care, and supported self-management, for
older adults (aged ≥65 years) living with multimorbidity.
Objective: This paper describes the trial implementation protocol of a proof-of-concept digital health platform (ProACT) in 2
EU member states (Ireland and Belgium) to support older persons with multimorbidities self-managing at home, supported by
their care network (CN).
Methods: Research was conducted across 2 EU member states, Ireland and Belgium. A 12-month action research trial design,
divided into 3 evaluation cycles and lasting 3 months each, with a reflective redesign and development phase of 1 month after
cycles 1 and 2 was conducted. Participants were 120 (60/120, 50% in Ireland and 60/120, 50% in Belgium) older persons with
multimorbidities diagnosed with two or more of the following chronic conditions: diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,
chronic heart failure, and cardiovascular diseases. With permission from persons with multimorbidities, members of their CN
were invited to participate in the study. Persons with multimorbidities were provided with ProACT technologies (tablet, devices,
or sensors) to support them in self-managing their conditions. CN members also received access to an app to remotely support
their persons with multimorbidity. Qualitative and quantitative feedback and evaluation data from persons with multimorbidity
and CN participants were collected across four time points: baseline (T1), at the end of each 3-month action research cycle (T2
and T3), and in a final posttrial interview (T4). Thematic analysis was used to analyze the qualitative interview data. Quantitative.
data were analyzed via platform use statistics (to assess engagement) and standardized questionnaires (using descriptive and
inferential statistics). This study is approved by the ethics committees of Ireland and Belgium.
Results: The trial implementation phase for this 44-month (2016-2019) funded study was April 2018 to June 2019. The trial
outcomes are at various stages of publication since 2021.
Conclusions: ProACT aims to co-design and develop a digital intervention with persons with multimorbidities and their CN,
incorporating clinical guidelines with the state of the art in human-computer interaction, behavioral science, health psychology,
and data analytic methods to deliver a digital health platform to advance self-management of multimorbidity at home, as part of
a proactive, integrated model of supported person-centered care
Shadow Men and Real Women: Shifting the Paradigms of the Chicana/o Family in Cherríe Moraga’s Shadow of a Man and Josefina López’s Real Women Have Curves
No full textThe works studied here illuminate the repression of Chicana/o women through their focus on family gender divisions. Hailed by Chicano writers as the bedrock of Chicana/o society and a refuge from the racism of US society, the family is re-imagined in these works and in the film based on López’s play. Although these works received very different critical analyses, I argue that they have much in common. I propose that rather than rejecting the family, they offer new role models to Chicanas that allow for fluid sexual identities and the pursuit of goals that do not accord with Mexican tradition
Measuring assistive technology supply and demand: A scoping review
No full textThe supply of and market demand for assistive products (APs) are complex and influenced by diverse
stakeholders. The methods used to collect AP population-level market data are similarly varied. In this
paper, we review current population-level AP supply and demand estimation methods for five priority APs
and provide recommendations for improving national and global AP market evaluation.
Abstracts resulting from a systematic search were double-screened. Extracted data include WHO world
region, publication year, age-groups, AP domain(s), study method, and individual assessment approach.
497 records were identified. Vision-related APs comprised 65% (n = 321 studies) of the body of
literature; hearing (n = 59), mobility (n = 24), cognitive (n = 2), and studies measuring multiple domains
(n = 92) were proportionately underrepresented. To assess individual AP need, 4 unique approaches were
identified among 392 abstracts; 45% (n = 177) used self-report and 84% (n = 334) used clinical evaluation.
Study methods were categorized among 431 abstracts; Cross-sectional studies (n = 312, 72%) and
secondary analyses of cross-sectional data (n = 61, 14%) were most common. Case studies illustrating
all methods are provided.
Employing approaches and methods in the contexts where they are most well-suited to generate
standardized AP indicators will be critical to further develop comparable population-level research
informing supply and demand, ultimately expanding sustainable access to APs
The Management and Coordination of Virtual Teams in Large Classes: Facilitating Experiential Learning
No full textThe management and coordination of classroom teaching continues to be
a challenge, particularly as enrollment trends suggest that class sizes are
growing. In the past, many faculty have divided their large classes into smaller
groups to incorporate experiential exercises. In this article, we discuss the
challenges of managing an experiential exercise featuring a large number
of teams in a virtual setting. These challenges include (a) coordinating
class communication with a large number of teams, (b) managing teams
and facilitating team communication and trust, (c) managing virtual team
performance and instructor feedback throughout the experiential exercise,
and (d) managing and evaluating student engagement. We also provide
practical suggestions for management educators on how to address each
challenge based on insight gleaned from our years of experience using virtual
teams in large classes. Finally, we highlight avenues for future research in the
area of virtual teams and large class size teaching
Trends in the physical and chemical state of the ocean. (Chapter 5)
No full textThe second World Ocean Assessment is a collaborative effort of hundreds of experts from all regions of the world, a comprehensive and integrated assessment of the state of marine environment. It is the product of the second cycle of the Regular Process for global reporting and assessment of the state of the marine environment, including socio-economic aspects (Regular Process) established after the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development to regularly review the environmental, economic and social aspects of the world’s oceans, both current and foreseeable. Its purpose is to strengthen the regular scientific assessment of the state of the marine environment in order to enhance the scientific basis for policymaking and thus contribute to the sustainable management of human activities that affect the oceans and seas