Synchronized lower limb kinematics with pelvis orientation achieves the non-rotational shot

A non-rotational (NR) shot is now a well-known scoring move in soccer. To execute the NR shot, it is necessary to deprive the ball of any rotational forces during the impact phase. To execute the NR shot, it is natural that the force vector acting from the foot would pass through the ball’s center of gravity; however, the coordinated motion of the lower limb joint’s angular displacement and the pelvis is still unclear. The aim of this study is to estimate the coordinated leg and pelvis motion during the NR shot as compared to that during instep kicking. Four right-leg dominant college league players were asked to perform a NR shot and an instep kick a total of 10 times each. Hip, knee, and ankle joint angular displacements in the sagittal plane and pelvis yaw and roll rotational motions during both types of kicks were calculated with 14 IR reflective markers using a 3D real-time motion analysis system with a 250-Hz sampling. The Euclidean distances of the joint space of the NR shot and the instep kick were also calculated to detect similarities in the coordinated motion of the lower limb. The results showed that the lower limb joint motions in the sagittal plane were not different; however, the pelvis roll and yaw motions were apparently different, and these phenomena could simulate a pendulum motion with changes in both the vertical and horizontal displacements. These results suggest that the coordinated motion of the lower limb joint’s angular displacement shows high similarity between the NR shot and the instep kick, and the pelvis roll and yaw synchronized orientation is essential for achieving the NR shot.     

Elite wheelchair rugby: a quantitative analysis of chair configuration in Australia

Limited recommendations of wheelchair configurations for court sports have been identified in the published literature. To accommodate the wide range of impairments in wheelchair rugby, players are given a point score that reflects their impairment. Players have regularly been grouped as high-, mid-, or low-point players in research, with high-point players having greater levels of muscle function compared with other classifications. This research documented the wheelchair configurations of elite Australian wheelchair rugby players across classification groups. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found for increased seat height and decreased seat depth for high-point players compared with low- and mid-point groups, respectively. Low-point players displayed reduced wheelchair mass compared with high- and mid-point players, as well as increased frame length. Camber angles showed no significant differences across the classification groups. The incorporation of anthropometric measures, such as the elbow angle at the top dead center, was also investigated. While elbow angle showed no significant differences, seat height-to-total arm length ratio was higher for high-point players. Participants also completed surveys detailing their perception of the effect of altering wheelchair configurations. It is suggested that wheelchair configurations should consider an individual’s anthropometrics, impairment, training history, and court role to promote optimal performance, with predictive modeling having the potential to reduce the associated time and cost.     

Direct skeletal attachment prosthesis for the amputee athlete: the unknown potential

Lower limb amputees often experience complications with the use of conventional socket-type prostheses, which further reduce their already compromised ability to perform the activities of daily living, or to participate in sporting activities. During the last two decades, a new technology of direct skeletal attachment (osseointegration) of prosthesis to the femoral residuum has been developed. The aim of this research was to assess the implant design, surgery protocols, and functional testing of this new technology on the first 100 patients using the Integral Leg Prosthesis procedure. This new knowledge can guide future engineering developments of osseointegration within the sporting arena. Between 1999 and 2013, direct skeletal implantation was performed on 112 amputees, from two centres in Germany and Australia. From the experience of the surgical team, modifications were made to the implant design. This re-engineering of the implant has reduced the surgical revisions due to infection from 29 % with the early implant design down to 7 %. The functional testing of the 34 Australian cases were assessed pre- and 12 months post-implant with significant improvements of one complete K-scale; the Q-TFA measures increased (50.9–86.7), whilst the Timed Up and Go decreased significantly (12.43 s ± 3.89 to 8.03 s ± 2.80), and the 6 min walk increased (304.0–383.9 m). From these findings, osseointegration technology is realistically the way of the future for amputee athletes. Further refinement of the implant design and sports-specific functional testing are required to define the potential of this technology.     

对高校校友资源的再认识

本文首次给出“校友资源”的定义，旨在从“资源”的角度重新认识校友问题。文中对校友资源提出的历史背景和现实意义、校友资源的功能体系，以及对开发校友资源值得重视的若干问题进行了深入的分析，旨在对我国高校校友工作的发展有所参考、借鉴。     

Effect of blended learning and learners’ characteristics on students’ competence: An empirical evidence in learning oriental music

Blended learning emerged as the most popular instructional design strategy in the field of education since last decade to present date. In fact, it is well acknowledged that blended learning approach significantly elevate students’ engagement and competency in learning process. Despite immense potentiality, many countries are still lag behind adopting this instructional design, such as Sri Lanka. Therefore, the primary aims of this study are two fold, (a) to investigate the effect of blended learning and learners’ characteristics on students’ competence and (b) to investigate the effectiveness of blended learning in teaching Oriental Music. This study mainly carried out among the senior secondary schools students at Colombo, Sri Lanka. A mixed methods, experimental and survey, were carried out to test the effectiveness of blended learning and identifying the important factors for enhancing students’ competence in learning Oriental Music. Results of independent sample t-test confirmed that blended learning is effective in terms of improving students’ performance in learning Oriental Music. Similarly, regression analysis confirmed that attitude and motivation are the two most important determinants for improving students’ competence. This study fulfilled an existing research gap by utilizing blended learning to teach highly traditional abstract art. Results of the study contributes to the curriculum designing field with novel ideas to adapt in hybrid instructions to teach secondary level students effectively. The curriculum designers will make use of these findings during innovation and future researcher would be benefitted to overlook more possible platforms to deliver music instructions. It will help them to understand how their set objectives have been achieved in technology integrations and seek for improvement where necessary.     

重视实验探究培养创新能力

同学们 ,无论新课程标准 ,还是中考的走向 ,亦无论是思维还是能力的培养 ,剖析一些重点的实验、研究实验的发展趋向 ,将有利于我们的创新意识、创新思维和创新能力的培养。1　从实验器材的选择　培养学生创新能力题目　为了测定一小正方体木块 (不吸水 )的密度。可供选用的实验     

全球化背景下的教师:挑战与对策

全球化已成为世界经济和社会发展不可抗拒的潮流,它所带来的教育变革也是深刻的。在此背景下,教师在身份、权威与自由方面都面临着新的挑战。要应对这些挑战,不仅需要教育政策与制度方面的支持,而且有赖于教师角色的积极转变。     

高校图书馆勤工助学工作的实践与探索

文章通过勤工助学工作在高校图书馆的实践,论述了高校图书馆开展勤工助学工作对大学生素质教育的意义和促进高校图书馆事业发展的作用,并根据工作实践对高校图书馆勤工助学管理的运作机制进行了探讨。     

德育的张力——浅论社会性道德背景与道德教育

在构建和谐社会的方略下，如何进行高校道德教育成为一个重要课题。在讨论了社会性道德背景的产生以及道德教育与社会性道德背景之间的冲突，并考察了西方伦理学者对此问题的解答的基础上，笔者认为保持道德教育中社会主义道德规范与特定的社会性道德背景之间适度的张力是一种较为明智的态度。     

Improved fast intra prediction algorithm of H.264/AVC

With advanced prediction modes of intra prediction, intra coding of H.264/AVC offers significant coding gains compared with previous video coding standards. It uses an important tool called Lagrangian rate-distortion optimization (RDO) technique to decide the best coding mode for a block, but the computational burden is extremely high. In this paper, we proposed an improved fast intra prediction algorithm including block type selection and mode decision algorithm based on analysis of edge feature of a block. Our algorithm filters out unlikely block type and candidate modes to reduce the RDO calculations. Experimental results showed that the proposed algorithm can reduce the computation complexity of intra prediction from 52.90% to 56.31%, with 0.04 dB PSNR degradation and 2% increase of bit rate.