Neural Reorganization Accompanying Upper Limb Motor Rehabilitation from Stroke with Virtual Reality-Based Gesture Therapy
Conclusions: Prefrontal cortex and cerebellar activity are the driving forces of the recovery associated with Gesture Therapy. The relation between behavioral and brain changes suggests that those with stronger impairment benefit the most from this paradigm. (Source: Positive Technology Journal)
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 23, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Source Type: blogs
Illusory ownership of a virtual child body causes overestimation of object sizes and implicit attitude changes
Authors: Banakou D, Groten R, Slater MAbstract. An illusory sensation of ownership over a surrogate limb or whole body can be induced through specific forms of multisensory stimulation, such as synchronous visuotactile tapping on the hidden real and visible rubber hand in the rubber hand illusion. Such methods have been used to induce ownership over a manikin and a virtual body that substitute the real body, as seen from first-person perspective, through a head-mounted display. However, the perceptual and behavioral consequences of such transformed body ownership have hardly been explored. In Exp. 1, immersive virtual real...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 23, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Research tools Telepresence & virtual presence Virtual worlds Source Type: blogs
The Size of Electronic Consumer Devices Affects Our Behavior
Re-blogged from Textually.orgWhat are our devices doing to us? We already know they're snuffing our creativity - but new research suggests they're also stifling our drive. How so? Because fussing with them on average 58 minutes a day leads to bad posture, FastCompany reports. The body posture inherent in operating everyday gadgets affects not only your back, but your demeanor, reports a new experimental study entitled iPosture: The Size of Electronic Consumer Devices Affects Our Behavior. It turns out that working on a relatively large machine (like a desktop computer) causes users to act more assertively than working...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 23, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Research tools Wearable & mobile Source Type: blogs
SENSUS Transcutaneous Pain Management System Approved for Use During Sleep
Via MedgadgetNeuroMetrix of out of Waltham, MA received FDA clearance for its SENSUS Pain Management System to be used by patients during sleep. This is the first transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation system to receive a sleep indication from the FDA for pain control.The device is designed for use by diabetics and others with chronic pain in the legs and feet. It’s worn around one or both legs and delivers an electrical current to disrupt pain signals being sent up to the brain. (Source: Positive Technology Journal)
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 23, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Biofeedback & neurofeedback Wearable mobile Source Type: blogs
Digital Assistance for Sign-Language Users
Via MedGadgetFrom Microsoft:"In this project—which is being shown during the DemoFest portion of Faculty Summit 2013, which brings more than 400 academic researchers to Microsoft headquarters to share insight into impactful research—the hand tracking leads to a process of 3-D motion-trajectory alignment and matching for individual words in sign language. The words are generated via hand tracking by theKinect for Windows software and then normalized, and matching scores are computed to identify the most relevant candidates when a signed word is analyzed. The algorithm for this 3-D trajectory matching...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 23, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Cognitive Informatics Source Type: blogs
How to see with your ears
Via: KurzweilAI.netA participant wearing camera glasses and listening to the soundscape (credit: Alastair Haigh/Frontiers in Psychology)A device that trains the brain to turn sounds into images could be used as an alternative to invasive treatment for blind and partially-sighted people, researchers at the University of Bath have found.“The vOICe” is a visual-to-auditory sensory substitution device that encodes images taken by a camera worn by the user into “soundscapes” from which experienced users can extract information about their surroundings.It helps blind people use sounds to build an image in their minds of ...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 18, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Brain training & cognitive enhancement Neurotechnology neuroinformatics Source Type: blogs
Advanced ‘artificial skin’ senses touch, humidity, and temperature
Artificial skin (credit: Technion) Technion-Israel Institute of Technology scientists have discovered how to make a new kind of flexible sensor that one day could be integrated into “electronic skin” (e-skin) — a covering for prosthetic limbs.Read full story (Source: Positive Technology Journal)
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 18, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Pervasive computing Research tools Wearable & mobile Source Type: blogs
US Army avatar role-play Experiment #3 now open for public registration
Military Open Simulator Enterprise Strategy (MOSES) is secure virtual world software designed to evaluate the ability of OpenSimulator to provide independent access to a persistent, virtual world. MOSES is a research project of the United States Army Simulation and Training Center. STTC’s Virtual World Strategic Applications team uses OpenSimulator to add capability and flexibility to virtual training scenarios. Scenario DetailsExperiment Description (Source: Positive Technology Journal)
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 18, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Research tools Telepresence & virtual presence Source Type: blogs
Identifying human emotions based on brain activity
For the first time, scientists at Carnegie Mellon University have identified which emotion a person is experiencing based on brain activity.The study, published in the June 19 issue of PLOS ONE, combines functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and machine learning to measure brain signals to accurately read emotions in individuals. Led by researchers in CMU’s Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences, the findings illustrate how the brain categorizes feelings, giving researchers the first reliable process to analyze emotions. Until now, research on emotions has been long stymied by the lack of reliable meth...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - July 18, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Emotional computing Research tools Source Type: blogs
Omni brings full-body VR gaming to Kickstarter
I am really excited about this new interest in Virtual Reality, since I have been a fan of this technology for quite some time.The latest news is that the virtual reality gaming device Omni launched a funding campaign Tuesday in Kickstarter and in few hours, more than doubled its goal of $150,000!Used in tandem with the Oculus Rift and motion controller Razer Hydra, it potentially offers an unprecedented degree of immersion.It's also a good news that VR hardware has been dropping dramaticaly in price in the last couple of years - I am thinking about at the incredible value-for-money of the Oculus Rift (dev kit: $...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - June 5, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Source Type: blogs
Help Dravet's Syndrome children
Dravet's syndrome is a rare genetic dysfunction of the brain with onset during the first year in an otherwise healthy infant. Despite the devastating nature of this condition, its rarity and relatively new distinction as its own syndrome mean that there is little formal research available.I was introduced to this disease by a friend of mine and wanted to help in some way. If you also want to give a contribution, you can do it by getting in touch with the Dravet Syndrome Foundation or, if you are from Italy, with the Italian one.Your donation will help fight this disease. Hope you can help - even a visit to these associatio...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - June 5, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Source Type: blogs
Positivetechnology.it
From today, this blog can also be accessed from the following URL:www.positivetechnology.itAndrea (Source: Positive Technology Journal)
Source: Positive Technology Journal - June 3, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Source Type: blogs
Symposium on Positive Technology @ Third World Congress on Positive Psychology
We hope you will join us in Los Angeles, California, on Saturday June 29th for attending the Symposium on Positive Technology. The special session features interventions by key PT researchers and is a great opportunity to meet, share ideas and build the future of this exciting research field!Download the conference program here (PDF) (Source: Positive Technology Journal)
Source: Positive Technology Journal - May 29, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Positive Technology events Source Type: blogs
Cross-Brain Neurofeedback: Scientific Concept and Experimental Platform
Authors: Duan L, Liu WJ, Dai RN, Li R, Lu CM, Huang YX, Zhu CZ Abstract. The present study described a new type of multi-person neurofeedback with the neural synchronization between two participants as the direct regulating target, termed as "cross-brain neurofeedback." As a first step to implement this concept, an experimental platform was built on the basis of functional near-infrared spectroscopy, and was validated with a two-person neurofeedback experiment. This novel concept as well as the experimental platform established a framework for investigation of the relationship between multiple participants' cross-brain neu...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - May 26, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Biofeedback & neurofeedback Cognitive Informatics Creativity and computers Source Type: blogs
A Hybrid Brain-Computer Interface-Based Mail Client
In this study, we propose a hybrid BCI-based mail client that implements electronic mail communication by means of real-time classification of multimodal features extracted from scalp electroencephalography (EEG). With this BCI mail client, users can receive, read, write, and attach files to their mail. Using a BCI mouse that utilizes hybrid brain signals, that is, motor imagery and P300 potential, the user can select and activate the function keys and links on the mail client graphical user interface (GUI). An adaptive P300 speller is employed for text input. The system has been tested with 6 subjects, and the experimenta...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - May 26, 2013 Category: Technology Consultants Tags: Brain-computer interface Source Type: blogs
