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Sniffing Device Helps Disabled People Move, Write
Technology Helps Severely Disabled People Use Their Noses to Drive Electric Wheelchairs, Write Text Messages
July 26, 2010 — Israeli scientists have developed a device that allows severely disabled people to sniff to precisely control objects such as wheelchairs and personal digital assistants, a new study says.
The nasal-mask device works so well that disabled people who can’t move at all can learn to write text messages and drive electric wheelchairs by sniffing, researchers report in the July issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Noam Sobel, PhD, of the department of neurobiology at the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and colleagues set out to find a way to allow people with disabilities ranging from quadriplegia to “locked-in syndrome” to learn how to control devices with their noses just as they would using a joystick or computer mouse.
The Weizmann Institute has filed for a patent on sniff-controlled technology, which the researchers report as a possible conflict of interest.
The researchers built a “sniff controller” that measures changes in nasal pressure, which occur when the soft palate (the soft area at the back of the roof of the mouth) is repositioned. The device was tested on healthy and disabled people. The researchers report that sniffing can be done with precision, and that it requires precise movements of the soft palate, which receives signals from cranial nerves that often are not affected by paralytic injury and other disorders. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Health Sciences, Recent Posts, Science and Technology, Special Education on July 27, 2010 - ט"ז אב תש"ע at 9:17 pm
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Autism in the Holy Land: Conference Skyrockets Interest
Av 6, 5770, 17 July 10 11:51
by Ruth Amber Gristak and Maayana Miskin
(Israelnationalnews.com) One in 91 children worldwide, and one in 58 boys, are diagnosed with autism. Where do Jewish children rank in autism numbers? As there is no research in that specific area of autism, there is no answer. In Israel, the official statistic is 1 in 241. “Lack of answer” is the common end point for most questions about autism. There is no definitively known cause for the disorder.
This may be one reason that the Icare4autism 2010 International Autism conference in Jerusalem brought in over 500 attendees from Israel and around the globe. Attendees included educators, researchers, and those touched by autism. This conference was Israel’s first major international autism conference.
The event was held on July 5-6, 2010, by the NY-based, global non-profit, the International Center for Autism Research and Education (Icare4autism). It featured 30 speakers from around the globe and was held at the Ramada- Renaissance Hotel. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Education Report, Health Sciences, Mental Health, Middle East, Recent Posts, Special Education on July 17, 2010 - ו' אב תש"ע at 9:53 pm
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School districts slow to tap into federal stimulus funds
By Jeremy P. Meyer, July 12, 2010
The Denver Post
Federal authorities are encouraging school districts to spend education stimulus money to save jobs and blunt the effects of statewide budget cuts, but districts have been slow to draw their share of the funds.
"We really hope that you’ll do your best to see how these funds can help alleviate the layoffs and budget crises that your districts or states are facing," Maura Policelli, a senior adviser with the U.S. Department of Education, said in an online seminar, or webinar, last month.
"That does require some courage, and it does involve the possible risk of investing in staff that you may not be able to retain in the 2011-12 school year," she said.
Districts across the nation have been slow to tap stimulus money that is targeted for specific programs — particularly the money intended to bolster programs for students with disabilities or those who come from low-income households.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Education Report, Recent Posts, Special Education on July 13, 2010 - ב' אב תש"ע at 8:47 am
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Psychiatric Times. Vol. 27 No. 7
INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE
Integrative Management of ADHD: What the Evidence Suggests
By James Lake, MD | July 7, 2010
Dr Lake is in private practice in Monterey, Calif, and is on the clinical faculty in the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University Hospital. He chairs the American Psychiatric Association Caucus on Complementary, Alternative, and Integrative Medicine (www.APACAM.org) and is the author of the Textbook of Integrative Mental Health Care (Thieme, 2006) and Integrative Mental Health: A Therapist’s Handbook (Norton, 2009).
It is important for mental health professionals to be familiar with emerging research findings about widely used complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in order to provide patients with accurate information on efficacy, safety, and appropriate use.
A high percentage of children and adults who have been given a diagnosis of ADHD use alternative therapies alone or in combination with conventional pharmacological treatment.1 More than half of parents of children with ADHD treat their children’s symptoms using 1 or more CAM therapies, most commonly vitamins, dietary changes, and expressive therapies; yet only about 10% disclose use of such nonpharmacological therapies to their child’s pediatrician.2 Most nonpharmacological therapies used to treat ADHD are supported by limited evidence; however, as many as 80% of patients who use herbal preparations and other natural products regard these therapies as the primary treatment of their symptoms.2
Conventional treatment
Stimulant medications, including dextroamphetamine, methylphenidate, and related compounds, are the most widely used treatments of ADHD. The nonstimulant atomoxetine has less potential for abuse but also may be less effective than stimulants.3 SSRIs and other antidepressants are used with varying degrees of success. Behavioral modification aimed at rewarding desirable behavior and extinguishing disruptive or inappropriate behavior continues to be a mainstay of conventional treatment. Psychotherapy and psychosocial support help reduce anxiety and feelings of loss of control that frequently accompany ADHD. It is estimated that ADHD is correctly diagnosed and treated in fewer than one-fifth of adults, which results in significant social and occupational morbidity.
Limitations and risks of conventional treatment
Long-term amphetamine use in childhood is associated with delays in normal development.4 One-third of individuals of all ages who take stimulants for ADHD report significant adverse effects, including insomnia, decreased appetite, and abdominal pain.5 Cases of stimulant-induced psychosis have also been reported.6 Stimulants and other conventional treatments of ADHD in adults are probably only half as effective as they are in children.4
Adverse effects of nonstimulant drugs used to treat ADHD include hypertension, decreased appetite, nausea, fatigue, liver toxicity, insomnia, and seizures. A meta-analysis of 6 controlled trials concluded that stimulant therapy started in childhood reduces the risk of subsequent substance abuse by as much as one-half. In contrast, stimulants started in adolescence or adulthood increase the risk of future substance abuse.7 Nonstimulant medications and extended-release stimulants are less likely to be abused.8 Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Education Report, Health Sciences, Mental Health, Recent Posts, Special Education on July 9, 2010 - כ"ז תמוז תש"ע at 11:29 am
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Son’s autism leads to innovation
By Geoff Adams-Spink , April 23, 2010
Age & disability correspondent, BBC News website
The father of a child with severe autism has developed technology to help him communicate.
Stephen Lodge said the idea for his Speaks4Me system came to him years ago but has been waiting for technology to catch up in order to make it a reality.
His eleven-year-old son, Callum, is non-verbal and uses his father’s invention to speak.
Speaks4Me was on show at Naidex 2010 – the annual disability exhibition at the NEC in Birmingham.
Mr Lodge’s system runs on any device that can run the Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 operating system.
It uses the concept of dragging and dropping images from one area of the screen to another to form sentences.
The user then presses a speech button to "verbalise" the sentence.
"Callum has been using Speaks4Me for some time now and he has already been able to create some very expressive sentences," Mr Lodge told the BBC.
Examples include, "I want a drink of juice", "I want to go outside", and "I feel tired".
Mr Lodge – who lives in South Yorkshire – has 20 years’ experience in technology and developed Speaks4Me after deciding that other products on the market were unsatisfactory for Callum.
He cashed in his savings and raised money on his property in order to finance the venture.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Education Report, Health Sciences, Mental Health, Recent Posts, Science and Technology, Special Education on April 24, 2010 - י' אייר תש"ע at 11:24 pm
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How Not to Raise a Bully: The Early Roots of Empathy
By Maia Szalavitz, TIME , Apr. 17, 2010
Since the Jan. 14 death of Phoebe Prince, the 15-year-old in South Hadley, Mass., who committed suicide after being bullied by fellow students, many onlookers have meditated on whether the circumstances that led to her after-school hanging might have been avoided.
Could teachers have stepped in and stopped the bullying? Could parents have done more to curtail bad behavior? Or could preventive measures have been started years ago, in early childhood, long before bullies emerged and started heaping abuse on their peers? (Read what can be done about bullying in school.)
Increasingly, neuroscientists, psychologists and educators believe that bullying and other kinds of violence can indeed be reduced by encouraging empathy at an early age. Over the past decade, research in empathy — the ability to put ourselves in another person’s shoes — has suggested that it is key, if not the key, to all human social interaction and morality.
Without empathy, we would have no cohesive society, no trust and no reason not to murder, cheat, steal or lie. At best, we would act only out of self-interest; at worst, we would be a collection of sociopaths.
Although human nature has historically been seen as essentially selfish, recent science suggests that it is not. The capacity for empathy is believed to be innate in most humans, as well as some other species — chimps, for instance, will protest unfair treatment of others, refusing to accept a treat they have rightfully earned if another chimp doing the same work fails to get the same reward. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Education, Education Report, Mental Health, Recent Posts, Special Education on April 18, 2010 - ד' אייר תש"ע at 6:34 am
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ADHD Is Not a Disease
Today, the “epidemic” of ADHD has grown to about seven million young people in the U.S. Most of these children are on medication. And if you add in the numbers that are on antidepressants and other psychotropic medications, the number is over 10 million. That is larger than the entire population of New York City!
By Jon Herring, Total Health Breakthroughs, March 10, 2010
“Hey, Phillip… do you mind if I sit here and eat with you?” I asked.
“Sure, whatever…”
“How’s school going? Are you doing well?”
“Not really. I just want it to be summer.”
“Yeah, I remember how that used to feel,” I told him.
Phillip is eleven years old. He’s the son of some family friends and I was at a small party when I saw him sitting by himself. I hadn’t seen him for a few years, so I wanted to remind him who I was and get to know him a little better.
As he became comfortable, he opened up a bit more. He told me his plans for the summer. He told me about his friends and the girl he likes at school. And he also told me that he didn’t care for school all that much.
“It’s hard,” he said. “Plus, I have ADHD, so I don’t pay attention very well.”
“Really? How do you know you have ADHD?” I asked.
“That’s what my doctor said. He said I’ve had it since I was born. That’s why I have to take medicine.”
“Well, I think you’re just fine. How does that medicine make you feel?”
“It used to make me kinda nervous,” he said. “And I couldn’t go to sleep when I took it. Now, it just makes me not want to eat.”
After complimenting Phillip on his manners and intelligence, I changed the subject back to his plans for the summer. But what he said bothered me. Here was a bright young boy who was bored and frustrated in school… who probably had a few behavioral problems… and who had now been labeled as having a “disease” and put on medication.
And, unfortunately, Phillip is just one of millions…
I was bothered by his story because I could only imagine what that would do to the psyche and development of a child to be handed a lifelong sentence like that from a doctor. You are broken. You are defective. Your brain doesn’t work right. You are not acceptable in your natural state, but taking these drugs every day can help you.
It might be one thing if ADHD was actually a “disease”… but it’s not.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Education Report, Health Sciences, Mental Health, Recent Posts, Special Education on March 12, 2010 - כ"ו אדר תש"ע at 12:58 pm
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School Support Lacking for Emotional, Behavioral Issues
By Health News Digest, Jan 20, 2010
(HealthNewsDigest.com) – ANN ARBOR, Mich.—School psychologists, counselors and social workers are often the first line of support for children with behavioral, emotional or family problems. Problems can range from attention deficit disorder and homelessness to depression and bullying all of which can make academic success a challenge.
The C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health asked nearly 1,100 parents across the United States to grade their children’s public schools on how well they support children with behavioral, emotional or family problems.
Thirty-seven percent of parents gave primary schools an A for support for children with ADHD and other behavioral problems, and 34 percent gave an A for support for children with emotional or family problems. Twenty-two percent of parents gave secondary schools an A for support for children with behavioral, emotional or family problems.
In contrast, for overall education 52 percent of parents gave primary schools an A and 38 percent of parents gave secondary schools an A.
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Posted by CNP Webmaster as Education Report, Mental Health, News Articles, Recent Posts, Special Education on January 21, 2010 - ו' שבט תש"ע at 4:36 am
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A Mideast Bond, Stitched of Pain and Healing
JERUSALEM — He can be impulsive. She has a touch of bossiness. Next-door neighbors for nearly a year, they talk, watch television and explore the world together, wandering into each other’s homes without a second thought. She likes his mother’s eggplant dish. He likes her father’s rice and lamb.
Friendship often starts with proximity, but Orel and Marya, both 8, have been thrust together in a way few elsewhere have. Their playground is a hospital corridor. He is an Israeli Jew severely wounded by a Hamas rocket. She is a Palestinian Muslim from Gaza paralyzed by an Israeli missile. Someone forgot to tell them that they are enemies.
“He’s a naughty boy,” Marya likes to say of Orel with an appreciative smile when he gets a little wild.
When Orel arrived here a year ago, he could not hear, see, talk or walk. Now he does them all haltingly. Half his brain is gone. Doctors were deeply pessimistic about his survival. Today they are amazed at his progress although unclear how much more can be made.
Marya’s spinal cord was broken at the neck and she can move only her head. Smart, sunny and strong-willed, she moves her wheelchair by pushing a button with her chin. Nothing escapes her gaze. She knows that Orel is starting to prefer boys as playmates and she makes room. But their bond remains strong. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by CNP Webmaster as Health Sciences, Islam, Judaism, Middle East Report, News Articles, Recent Posts, Special Education on December 31, 2009 - י"ד טבת תש"ע at 6:46 pm
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Human-Chimp Gene Comparison Hints at Roots of Language
By comparing how a gene critical for language works in humans and chimpanzees, researchers have identified an entire network of genes involved in the incredible linguistic powers of Homo sapiens.
The findings don’t explain how language functions at the biological level, or exactly what changes were needed to put an otherwise unremarkable monkey on its chattering, Earth-dominating trajectory. But they do give researchers a foundation for investigating these questions.
“We know a fair amount about the brain structures involved in speech and language, but we know very little about how that evolved, or how genes contribute to that,” said Daniel Geschwind, a University of California, Los Angeles neurogeneticist.
The target of Geschwind’s analysis was FOXP2, a gene that rose to scientific prominence during the study of a London-based family afflicted by hereditary speech disorders. Of the extended family’s 30 members, one-half have severe linguistic deficiencies, as well as a FOXP2 mutation. Those who don’t have the mutation are able to speak normally.
That connection was revealed in 2001, and subsequent research has shown FOXP2 to be play a role not only in acquiring grammar and syntax, but in developing motor skills and helping brain cells form new connections. Studies also suggested FOXP2 had mutated rapidly in the Homo sapiens lineage, and worked differently in humans than in chimpanzees, our closest genetic relative.
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Posted by CNP Webmaster as Evolutionary Biology, Science, Special Education on November 13, 2009 - כ"ו חשון תש"ע at 3:42 am
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