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The use of information communication technologies (ICT) in education brings up new possibilities of promoting learning and health experiences. In this sense, education contexts of the 21st century must consider these two areas of knowledge, especially their integration. This article presents learning practices developed with mobile devices and games in order to improve learning and well-being in children and adolescents undergoing cancer treatment in a non-formal educational setting. The methodology is based on qualitative case studies with content-based data analyses, involving informal interviews and observation methods. The study considers data from five patients who participated in the research between 2015 and 2019. The results demonstrate a positive influence of the practices with mobile technologies and games in terms of learning and in the well-being experience of patients during the treatment.

Background Clinicians vary markedly in their ability to detect murmurs during cardiac auscultation and identify the underlying pathological features. Deep learning approaches have shown promise in medicine by transforming collected data into clinically significant information. The objective of this research is to assess the performance of a deep learning algorithm to detect murmurs and clinically significant valvular heart disease using recordings from a commercial digital stethoscope platform. Methods and Results Using >34 hours of previously acquired and annotated heart sound recordings, we trained a deep neural network to detect murmurs. To test the algorithm, we enrolled 962 patients in a clinical study and collected recordings at the 4 primary auscultation locations. Ground truth was established using patient echocardiograms and annotations by 3 expert cardiologists. Algorithm performance for detecting murmurs has sensitivity and specificity of 76.3% and 91.4%, respectively. By omitting softer murmurs, those with grade 1 intensity, sensitivity increased to 90.0%. Application of the algorithm at the appropriate anatomic auscultation location detected moderate-to-severe or greater aortic stenosis, with sensitivity of 93.2% and specificity of 86.0%, and moderate-to-severe or greater mitral regurgitation, with sensitivity of 66.2% and specificity of 94.6%. Conclusions The deep learning algorithm's ability to detect murmurs and clinically significant aortic stenosis and mitral regurgitation is comparable to expert cardiologists based on the annotated subset of our database. The findings suggest that such algorithms would have utility as front-line clinical support tools to aid clinicians in screening for cardiac murmurs caused by valvular heart disease. Registration URL: https://clinicaltrials.gov; Unique Identifier: NCT03458806.

The increased use of smartphones and tablets sets the stage for new mobile-based educational programs that seek to increase student learning and engagement in school and at home. This study examines the effectiveness of Escribo Play, a game-enhanced educational program, on preschool students' phonological awareness, word reading, and writing skills. The randomized controlled trial was conducted with 749 students from 62 classrooms from 17 schools located in five cities. Quantitative pretesting and posttesting procedures using standardized instruments were employed. The results indicate that the experimental classrooms that used the 20 games for 3 months gained 68% in their reading scores compared to control classrooms (d = 0.40). They also gained 48% more in writing scores (d = 0.20). Multilevel analysis indicated that these findings were statistically significant.

This research introduces an analysis of the anisotropic electrical resistivity (ER) and its relation to the electromagnetic shielding effectiveness (EMSE) for two injection-molded carbon-fiber-reinforced polybutylene terephthalates (PBTs). The properties were measured for 2-mm thick injection moldings considering the effect of melt temperature, injection velocity, and flow distance. The results for one compound showed an EMSE in the range of 30-40 dB, while EMSE for a compound with lower filler content is in the range of 45-75 dB. A combination of higher temperature and higher velocity leads to an increase of EMSE for both compounds in the range of 3%-8.5%. However, the increase in flow path reduced the EMSE for both compounds up to 10%. A novel experimental apparatus was used to measure the anisotropic ER in the three directions, that is, parallel, perpendicular, and transversal to flow. It is evident that injection molding induced high anisotropy for both compound specimens, and, depending on the processing conditions, produced similar longitudinal resistivity (0.2-4 [ohm].cm) but higher transversal resistivity (8-22 [ohm].cm). ER properties were compared with EMSE, evidencing an inverse relation as expected. Furthermore, it was found that the longitudinal resistivity is the main contributor to the specimens shielding. KEYWORDS composites, conducting polymers, electrical resistivity, electromagnetic shielding, injection molding, 1 | INTRODUCTION Current market trends for lightweight and innovative products stimulate a redesign and manufacture of electronic enclosures fully made of thermoplastic-based materials. These plastic enclosures need to encompass [...]

Background: People with Down syndrome (DS) usually display reduced physical fitness (aerobic capacity, muscle strength and abnormal body composition), motor proficiency impairments (balance and postural control) and physical functional limitations. Exergames can be an appealing alternative to enhance exercise engagement and compliance, whilst improving physical fitness and motor function. This study aims to analyse the effects of a Wii-based exercise program on physical fitness, functional mobility and motor proficiency of adults with DS. Methods: Twenty-seven adults with DS were randomly allocated to an experimental group (Wii; n = 14) or control group (n = 13). Participants in the experimental group completed a 2-month Wii-based exercise program, with three 1-h sessions per week that included training games for aerobic endurance, balance and isometric strength. Participants completed assessments regarding anthropometric measures, physical fitness, functional mobility and motor proficiency. Results: Mixed ANOVA analysis showed a significant group by time interaction for aerobic endurance, explosive leg power and flexibility. Independent samples t-test for change scores indicated significant between-group differences favouring the experimental group regarding speed of limb movement, trunk strength and functional mobility, as well as a trend towards significance on body weight. Mann-Whitney's "U" test for change scores demonstrated between-group differences favouring the experimental group for visceral fat as well as running speed and agility. Large within-group effect sizes were observed for explosive leg power (d = 1.691), body weight (d = 1.281), functional mobility (d = 1.218), aerobic endurance (d = 1.020), speed of limb movement (d = 0.867) and flexibility (d = 0.818) in the experimental group. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that Wii-based exercise can be an effective tool to improve physical fitness, functional mobility and motor proficiency of adults with DS, including crucial measures such as aerobic capacity and lower limb strength. Exergames using Wii Fit or other equipment can be appealing alternatives for adults with DS to engage in regular physical activity, preventing sedentary behaviour and decreasing the risk to develop cardiovascular diseases.