A Simulation Tool for Industrial Ecology: Creating a Board Game

This article presents a board game that was developed for use as a simulation tool in teaching the basic concepts of industrial ecology (IE). The game, with the automobile industry as its theme, includes realistic numbers and displays a variety of IE principles. The objectives of the simulation, however, transcend the automobile industry and apply to other manufacturing industries. They include: pollution prevention, design for environment (in several forms, including design for disassembly), environmental management, and life-cycle assessment. The game has already been played by engineering and business professors, graduate students in environmental engineering, government representatives, and industry executives. A statistical analysis performed on pre- and post-game questionnaires indicates that the game is an effective teaching tool.     

“观赏渔业”课程教学的实践与探索

《观赏渔业》是新兴"水族科学与技术"本科专业学生的专业核心课程,也是水产养殖学专业课程体系中的重要组成。结合作者多年在《观赏渔业》课程教学中的实践和探索,以培养学生对观赏水族的兴趣为本,通过对教学方法的创新、实践教学的注重,极大地激发了学生对该课程的兴趣,充分调动了学生学习和实践的积极性与主动性,增强该课程实践功能促进了教学效果的提高。同时,这对培养水族专业人才,满足中国现代水族产业发展对高素质人才的需要亦具有重要的作用。     

生物安全三级实验室人员管理相关问题的探讨

在生物安全三级(BSL-3)实验室日常管理工作中,实验人员的管理是实验室安全运转的关键,可保证生物安全管理体系文件的准确执行,减少安全隐患.我们总结了数年来管理BSL-3实验室的经验和教训,对人员管理有关问题提出想法和建议,以供参考.     

Fitness improvements of young soccer players after high volume or small sided games interventions

The main goal was to determine anaerobic and aerobic improvement of young soccer players after six-week high volume (HVT) or small sided games (SSG) training intervention. One hundred and one highly trained youth soccer players (16.2 ± 1.3 years) were divided into SSG (n = 51) and HVT groups (n = 50) and according to age into an under sixteen subgroup (U16), under seventeen subgroup (U17), and under nineteen subgroup (U19). The performance was assessed by Yo-Yo intermittent test, Repeated sprint ability test (RSA), and K-test before and after both training interventions. For U16 the SSG group recorded significant improvements in the K-test (0.64 ± 0.56 s; p = .04) and RSA (0.15 ± 0.43 s; p = .01). For U19 the SSG group recorded the same improvements, in the K-test (0.43 ± 0.57 s; p = .007), RSA (0.21 ± 0.22 s; p = .048), and Yo-Yo test (127.25 ± 17.87; p = .049). HVT improved aerobic performance when the Yo-Yo test was significantly better after intervention at U17 (199.00 ± 111.83 m; p = .030), U19 (88.40 ± 66.38 m; p = .049). In total, the HVT group spent 621 min (56.45 ± 5.01 min) of aerobic training and the Small sided game group spent 291 min (26.45 ± 8.61 min) of small sided games focused on aerobic performance. This study showed that both SSG and HVT training interventions were effective for aerobic improvement for the U19 category, but not for younger players. SSG was identified to be more appropriate to fitness development of soccer players.     

Type 2 Diabetes: Endothelial dysfunction and Exercise

[Purpose]

Vascular endothelial dysfunction is an early marker of atherosclerosis characterized by decreased nitric oxide bioavailability in the vascular endothelium and smooth muscle cells. Recently, some animal models and in vitro trials demonstrated that excessive superoxide production from mitochondria within vascular endothelial cells played a role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis in type 2 diabetes. This review provides a systematic assessment of the effectiveness of exercise to identify effective approaches to recognize diabetes risk and prevent progression to heart disease.

[Methods]

A systematic literature search was conducted to retrieve articles from 1979 to 2013 using the following databases: the MEDLINE, PubMed. Articles had to describe an intervention that physical activity and exercise to identify effective approaches to heart and vascular endothelium.

[Results]

Currently, physical activity and exercise guidelines aimed to improve cardiovascular health in patients with type 2 diabetes are nonspecific. Benefit of aerobic exercise training on vascular endothelial function in type 2 diabetic patients is still controversial.

[Conclusion]

it is necessary to demonstrate the mechanism of endothelial dysfunction from live human tissues so that we can provide more specific exercise training regimens to enhance cardiovascular health in type 2 diabetic patients.     

Effectiveness of using an unskilled model in action observation combined with motor imagery training for early motor learning in elderly people: a preliminary study

Abstract

Aim of the study: To investigate a more available model for the early phase of motor learning after action observation combined with motor imagery training in elderly people. To address the purpose, we focused on a slow, unskilled model demonstrating an occasional error.

Materials and methods: A total of 36 elderly people participated in the current study and were assigned to either the unskilled or skilled model observation groups (n?=?12, respectively), or the control group (n?=?12). The participants in the observation groups observed the assigned a video clip of an unskilled or skilled model demonstrating a ball rotation task. During the observation, the participants were instructed to imagine themselves as the person in the video clip. The participants in the control group read a scientific paper during the equivalent period of action observation and motor imagery. We measured ball rotation performance (the time required for five rotations, the number of ball drops) in pre- and post-intervention (observation combined with motor imagery training for intervention groups or reading for control group).

Results: Ball rotation performance (ball rotation speed) significantly improved in the unskilled model observation group compared to the other two groups.

Conclusions: Intervention for action observation using unskilled model combined with motor imagery was effective for improving motor performance during the early phase of motor learning.     

低频电刺激联合康复训练治疗脑卒中偏瘫患者效果及运动功能、自我效能的影响

摘要 目的：分析低频电刺激联合康复训练治疗脑卒中偏瘫患者效果及运动功能、自我效能的影响。方法：选择我院自2019年5月至2022年1月收治的156例脑卒中偏瘫患者作为研究对象,随机分为对照组和观察组,每组各78例。对照组予以常规对症支持治疗,加用康复训练;观察组在对照组的基础上,加用低频电刺激治疗,持续治疗8周后评估疗效。根据患者的下肢Brunnstrom分级改善幅度,评价治疗效果;比较两组治疗前后的下肢Fugl-Meyer运动功能量表（FMA）、Berg平衡量表（BBS）、改良Barthel指数（MBI）和一般自我效能感量表（GSES）评分。结果：观察组治疗总有效率为96.15 %,高于对照组的84.62 %（P＜0.05）;对比对照组,观察组治疗后下肢FMA评分、BBS评分均更高（P＜0.05）;对比对照组,观察组治疗后MBI评分、GSES评分均更高（P＜0.05）。结论：低频电刺激联合康复训练治疗脑卒中偏瘫患者的效果明显,能够有效改善运动功能和生活质量,提高自我效能,值得进一步研究应用。     

Exercise prescription and thrombogenesis

Lifestyle habits, such as exercise, may significantly influence risk of major vascular thrombotic events. The risk of primary cardiac arrest has been shown to transiently increase during vigorous exercise, whereas regular moderate-intensity exercise is associated with an overall reduced risk of cardiovascular diseases. What are the mechanisms underlying these paradoxical effects of vigorous exercise versus exercise training on thrombotic modification? This review analyzes research regarding effects and their underlying mechanisms of acute exercise, endurance training, and deconditioning on platelets, coagulation, and fibrinolysis. Evidence suggests that (i) light, acute exercise ( < or = 49% VO(2 max)) does not affect platelet reactivity and coagulation and increases fibrinolytic activity; (ii) moderate, acute exercise (50 to approximately 74% VO(2 max)) suppresses platelet reactivity and enhances fibrinolysis, which remains unchanged in the coagulation system; and, (iii) strenuous, acute exercise ( > or = 75% VO(2 max)) enhances both platelet reactivity and coagulation, simultaneously promoting fibrinolytic activity. Therefore, moderate exercise is likely a safe and effective exercise dosage for minimizing risk of cardiovascular diseases by inducing beneficial anti-thrombotic changes. Moreover, moderate-intensity exercise training reduces platelet reactivity and enhances fibrinolysis at rest, also attenuating enhanced platelet reactivity and augmenting hyper-fibrinolytic activity during strenuous exercise. However, these favorable effects of exercise training on thrombotic modification return to a pre-training state after a period of deconditioning. These findings can aid in determining appropriate exercise regimes to prevent early thrombotic events and further hinder the cardiovascular disease progression.     

The Influence of Voice Volume, Pitch, and Speech Rate on Progressive Relaxation Training: Application of Methods from Speech Pathology and Audiology

Vocal characteristics of therapists, including voice volume, pitch and timbre of speech, and rate of speech have been hypothesized to facilitate the therapeutic process, particularly during procedures like progressive relaxation training (PRT). Very little empirical work, however, has examined the relation between vocal characteristics and treatment process or outcome. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of vocal characteristics during a single session of PRT applying technological innovations devised for speech pathology and audiology settings for evaluating therapist's vocal characteristics. Forty-eight high anxious young adult women were randomly assigned to one of four conditions for training: PRT with the recommended therapist voice (RV) that decreased in tone, volume, and rate across the session, PRT with conversational therapist voice during the session (CV), a credible treatment control called systematic self-relaxation (SR), or no treatment control (NT). All subjects participated in a single PRT session during which heart rate, EMG, self-report measures of tension (SRT) and anxiety, and treatment credibility ratings were obtained. Results revealed significant reductions in SRT, self-reported anxiety, and heart rate for participants in all groups. Only the RV group displayed significant reductions in EMG when compared with the other three groups. Participants in the RV group also rated the therapist's voice as “more facilitating” of relaxation when compared to the CV group. These results suggest that methods employed for evaluating the quality of vocal characteristics in speech and audiology clinics may be useful for evaluating the quality of therapist's voice when conducting PRT.