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Methamphetamine use disorder (MUD) is a substance use disorder. Because MUD has become more prevalent due to the COVID-19 pandemic, alternative ways to help the efficiency of mass screening of MUD are important. Previous studies used electroencephalogram (EEG), heart rate variability (HRV), and galvanic skin response (GSR) aberrations during the virtual reality (VR) induction of drug craving to accurately separate patients with MUD from the healthy controls. However, whether these abnormalities present without induction of drug-cue reactivity to enable separation between patients and healthy subjects remains unclear. Here, we propose a clinically comparable intelligent system using the fusion of 5–channel EEG, HRV, and GSR data during resting state to aid in detecting MUD. Forty-six patients with MUD and 26 healthy controls were recruited and machine learning methods were employed to systematically compare the classification results of different fusion models. The analytic results revealed that the fusion of HRV and GSR features leads to the most accurate separation rate of 79%. The use of EEG, HRV, and GSR features provides more robust information, leading to relatively similar and enhanced accuracy across different classifiers. In conclusion, we demonstrated that a clinically applicable intelligent system using resting-state EEG, ECG, and GSR features without the induction of drug cue reactivity enhances the detection of MUD. This system is easy to implement in the clinical setting and can save a lot of time on setting up and experimenting while maintaining excellent accuracy to assist in mass screening of MUD.

Objective Multidisciplinary rehabilitation facilitates post-stroke functional recovery, but is associated with resource and accessibility barriers. This study evaluated the combination of a wearable device-assisted system (WEAR) and conventional therapy for post-stroke rehabilitation. Methods This randomized, controlled, parallel group, clinical trial was conducted at two rehabilitation centers. A WEAR system was developed featuring sensors and application program-embedded smartphones. Stroke patients within 12 weeks of onset and modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores of 2 to 4 were randomized into a wearable group (WG, WEAR + conventional rehabilitation) or control group (CG, conventional rehabilitation) for 90 days. The primary outcome was mRS score changes within 90 days. Results Among 127 stroke patients enrolled (76 men [59.8%]; mean age: 57.5 years), 63 and 64 patients were randomized to WG and CG, respectively. Both groups showed significant improvements in mRS scores. Between-group repeated measures analysis adjusted for sex, age and number of rehabilitation sessions showed greater improvement in mRS scores within 90 days in the WG than in the CG (estimate: 0.73). Conclusions This combined WEAR and conventional rehabilitation approach may improve post-stroke functional recovery compared with conventional rehabilitation alone. The WEAR system permits remote monitoring and recording of rehabilitation in various settings. This clinical trial was retrospectively registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov with the Unique Identifier NCT04997408.

As the concept of the Metaverse evolves, virtual reality (VR) plays a pivotal role in creating immersive, socially interactive environments that form the backbone of this interconnected digital universe. However, VR technology often faces significant challenges, including hardware limitations, platform incompatibilities, and difficulties supporting seamless multiplayer experiences. VR streaming offers a potential solution by offloading computational tasks to remote servers, enabling high-quality VR experiences on lower-end devices and enhancing accessibility to a broader audience. In this paper, we present Loka, a versatile and extensible VR streaming framework designed to address these challenges, providing the necessary infrastructure to support social interactions and real-time collaboration in virtual environments—the key components of the Metaverse. Loka is built on Unity Engine and WebRTC, enabling seamless cross-platform VR experiences without the need for device-specific SDKs. It also supports real-time integration of custom sensory data streams, such as motion capture and physiological signals from IoT devices, which can enhance user interaction and personalization in virtual environments, as well as provide a more convenient accessible platform for research. Furthermore, Loka’s native multiplayer and multicasting capabilities facilitate collaborative and interactive social experiences, aligning with the core goals of the Metaverse. By leveraging cloud-based rendering with low-latency streaming, Loka allows users to engage in immersive VR environments on a wide range of devices, without requiring high-end hardware. Its modular architecture ensures extensibility, allowing researchers and developers to integrate new data types and experimental setups more easily. With its ability to set up immersive VR scenes to support social interaction and handle complex virtual environments, we believe the proposed work can be leveraged to foster the development and research of the Metaverse.

Dyslexia is a complex reading disorder characterized by difficulties in accurate or fluent word recognition, poor spelling, and decoding abilities. These challenges are not due to intellectual, visual, or auditory deficits. The diagnosis of dyslexia is further complicated by symptom variability, influenced by cultural and personal factors. This study leverages Virtual Reality (VR) advancements, eye movement tracking, and machine learning to create a virtual reading environment that captures eye movement data. This data extracts features such as eye movement metrics, word vectors, and saliency maps. We introduce a novel fusion model that integrates various machine learning algorithms to objectively and automatically assess dyslexia using physiological data derived from user interactions. Our findings suggest that this model significantly enhances the accuracy and efficiency of dyslexia diagnosis, marking an important advancement in educational technology and providing robust support for individuals with dyslexia. Although the sample size was limited to 10 dyslexic and 4 control participants, the results offer valuable insights and lay the groundwork for future studies with larger cohorts.

Methamphetamine use disorder (MUD) is an illness associated with severe health consequences. Virtual reality (VR) is used to induce the drug-cue reactivity and significant EEG and ECG abnormalities were found in MUD patients. However, whether a link exists between EEG and ECG abnormalities in patients with MUD during exposure to drug cues remains unknown. This is important from the therapeutic viewpoint because different treatment strategies may be applied when EEG abnormalities and ECG irregularities are complications of MUD. We designed a VR system with drug cues and EEG and ECG were recorded during VR exposure. Sixteen patients with MUD and sixteen healthy subjects were recruited. Statistical tests and Pearson correlation were employed to analyze the EEG and ECG. The results showed that, during VR induction, the patients with MUD but not healthy controls showed significant $\alpha $ and $\beta $ power increases when the stimulus materials were most intense. This finding indicated that the stimuli are indiscriminate to healthy controls but meaningful to patients with MUD. Five heart rate variability (HRV) indexes significantly differed between patients and controls, suggesting abnormalities in the reaction of patient’s autonomic nervous system. Importantly, significant relations between EEG and HRV indexes changes were only identified in the controls, but not in MUD patients, signifying a disruption of brain-heart relations in patients. Our findings of stimulus-specific EEG changes and the impaired brain-heart relations in patients with MUD shed light on the understanding of drug-cue reactivity and may be used to design diagnostic and/or therapeutic strategies for MUD.

Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) groups pose significant cybersecurity threats due to their sophisticated and persistent nature. This study introduces a novel methodology to understand their collaborative patterns and shared objectives, which is crucial for developing robust defense mechanisms. We utilize MITRE ATT&CK Techniques, software, target nations, and industries as our primary features to understand the characteristics of APT groups. Since essential information is often buried within the unstructured data of Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) reports, we employ Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Named Entity Recognition (NER) to extract relevant data. To analyze and interpret the complex relationships between APT groups, we compute similarity among the features using weighted cosine similarity metrics and Machine Learning (ML) models, enhanced by feature crosses and feature selection strategies. Subsequently, hierarchical clustering is used to group APTs based on their similarity scores, helping to identify common behaviors and uncover deeper relationships. Our methodology demonstrates notable clustering performance, with a silhouette coefficient of 0.76, indicating strong intra-cluster similarity. The Adjusted Rand Index (ARI) of 0.63, though moderate, effectively measures agreement between our clustering and the ground truth. These metrics provide robust validation, surpassing commonly recognized benchmarks for effective clustering in cybersecurity. Our methodology successfully classifies 23 distinct APT groups into six clusters, highlighting the importance of techniques and industry features in the clustering process. Notably, techniques such as T1059 (Command and Scripting Interpreter) and T1036 (Masquerading) are prevalently deployed, observed in 18 out of 23 APT groups across all six clusters.

Objective: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a childhood-onset neurodevelopmental disorder with a prevalence ranging from 6.1 to 9.4%. The main symptoms of ADHD are inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and even destructive behaviors that may have a long-term negative influence on learning performance or social relationships. Early diagnosis and treatment provide the best chance of reducing and managing symptoms. Currently, ADHD diagnosis relies on behavioral observations and ratings by clinicians and parents. Medical diagnosis of ADHD was reported to be delayed because of a global shortage of well-trained clinicians, the heterogeneous nature of ADHD, and combined comorbidities. Therefore, alternative ways to increase the efficiency of early diagnosis are needed. Previous studies used behavioral and neurophysiological data to assess patients with ADHD, yielding an accuracy range from 56.6% to 92%. Several factors were shown to affect the detection rate, including methods and tasks used and the number of electroencephalogram (EEG) channels. Given that children with ADHD have difficulty sustaining attention, in this study, we tested whether data from multiple tasks with different difficulties and prolonged experiment times can probe the levels of brain resources engaged during task performance and increase ADHD detection. Specifically, we proposed a Deep Neural Network-based (DNN) fusion model of multiple tasks to enhance the detection of ADHD. Methods & Results: Forty-nine children with ADHD and thirty-two typically developing children were recruited. Analytic results show that the fusion of multi-task neurophysiological data can increase the separation rate to 89%, whereas a single data type can only achieve a best accuracy of 81%. Moreover, the use of multiple tasks helps distinguish between children with ADHD and typically developing children. Our results suggest that different neurophysiological models from multiple tasks can provide essential information to assist in ADHD screening. In conclusion, the proposed model offers a more efficient, and accurate alternative for early clinical diagnosis and management of ADHD. The application of artificial intelligence and multimodal neurophysiological data in clinical settings sets a precedent for digital health, paving the way for future advancements in the field.

Early diagnosis and treatment can reduce the symptoms of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children, but medical diagnosis is usually delayed. Hence, it is important to increase the efficiency of early diagnosis. Previous studies used behavioral and neuronal data during GO/NOGO task to help detect ADHD and the accuracy differed considerably from 53% to 92%, depending on the employed methods and the number of electroencephalogram (EEG) channels. It remains unclear whether data from a few EEG channels can still lead to a good accuracy of detecting ADHD. Here, we hypothesize that introducing distractions into a VR-based GO/NOGO task can augment the detection of ADHD using 6-channel EEG because children with ADHD are easily distracted. Forty-nine ADHD children and 32 typically developing children were recruited. We use a clinically applicable system with EEG to record data. Statistical analysis and machine learning methods were employed to analyze the data. The behavioral results revealed significant differences in task performance when there are distractions. The presence of distractions leads to EEG changes in both groups, indicating immaturity in inhibitory control. Importantly, the distractions additionally enhanced the between-group differences in NOGO $\alpha $ and $\gamma $ power, reflecting insufficient inhibition in different neural networks for distraction suppression in the ADHD group. Machine learning methods further confirmed that distractions enhance the detection of ADHD with an accuracy of 85.45%. In conclusion, this system can assist in fast screenings for ADHD and the findings of neuronal correlates of distractions can help design therapeutic strategies.

Virtual reality (VR) has been widely adopted by therapists to provide rich motor training tasks. Time series data of motion trajectory accompanied with the interaction of VR system may contain important clues in regard to the assessment of motor function, however, clinical evaluation scales such as Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA), Wolf Motor Function Test (WMFT), and Test D’évaluation Des Membres Supérieurs Des Personnes Âgées (TEMPA) are highly depended in clinic. Further, there is not yet an assessment method that simultaneously consider motion trajectory and clinical evaluation scales. The objective of this study is to establish an evidence-based assessment model by machine-learning method that integrated motion trajectory of a VR task with clinical evaluation scales. In this study, a VR system for upper-limb motor training was proposed for stroke rehabilitation. Clinical trials with 20 stroke patients were performed. A variety of motor indicators that derived via motion trajectory were proposed. The correlations between motor indicators and clinical evaluation scales were examined. Further, motor indicators were integrated with evaluation scales to develop a machine-learning based model that represents an evidence-based motor assessment approach. Clinical evaluation scales, FMA, TEMPA and WMFT, were significantly progressed. A few motor indicators were found significantly correlated with clinical evaluation scales. The accuracy of machine-learning based assessment model was up to 86%. The proposed VR system is validated to be effective in motor rehabilitation. Motor indicators derived from motor trajectory were with potential for clinical motor assessment. Machine learning could be a promising tool to perform automatic assessment. Clinical and Translational Impact Statement—A VR task for motor rehabilitation was exanimated via clinical trials. Integrating motor indices with clinical assessment, a machine-learning model with accuracy of 86% was developed to evaluate motor function.

We present JWST near-infrared (NIR) and mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopic observations of the nearby normal Type Ia supernova (SN) SN 2021aefx in the nebular phase at +255 days past maximum light. Our Near Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) and Mid Infrared Instrument observations, combined with ground-based optical data from the South African Large Telescope, constitute the first complete optical+NIR+MIR nebular SN Ia spectrum covering 0.3–14 μ m. This spectrum unveils the previously unobserved 2.5−5 μ m region, revealing strong nebular iron and stable nickel emission, indicative of high-density burning that can constrain the progenitor mass. The data show a significant improvement in sensitivity and resolution compared to previous Spitzer MIR data. We identify numerous NIR and MIR nebular emission lines from iron-group elements as well as lines from the intermediate-mass element argon. The argon lines extend to higher velocities than the iron-group elements, suggesting stratified ejecta that are a hallmark of delayed-detonation or double-detonation SN Ia models. We present fits to simple geometric line profiles to features beyond 1.2 μ m and find that most lines are consistent with Gaussian or spherical emission distributions, while the [Ar iii ] 8.99 μ m line has a distinctively flat-topped profile indicating a thick spherical shell of emission. Using our line profile fits, we investigate the emissivity structure of SN 2021aefx and measure kinematic properties. Continued observations of SN 2021aefx and other SNe Ia with JWST will be transformative to the study of SN Ia composition, ionization structure, density, and temperature, and will provide important constraints on SN Ia progenitor and explosion models.

We present new 0.3–21 μ m photometry of SN 2021aefx in the spiral galaxy NGC 1566 at +357 days after B -band maximum, including the first detection of any Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) at >15 μ m. These observations follow earlier JWST observations of SN 2021aefx at +255 days after the time of maximum brightness, allowing us to probe the temporal evolution of the emission properties. We measure the fraction of flux emerging at different wavelengths and its temporal evolution. Additionally, the integrated 0.3–14 μ m decay rate of Δ m _0.3–14 = 1.35 ± 0.05 mag/100 days is higher than the decline rate from the radioactive decay of ^56 Co of ∼1.2 mag/100 days. The most plausible explanation for this discrepancy is that flux is shifting to >14 μ m, and future JWST observations of SNe Ia will be able to directly test this hypothesis. However, models predicting nonradiative energy loss cannot be excluded with the present data.

We present optical, infrared, ultraviolet, and radio observations of SN 2022xkq, an underluminous fast-declining Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) in NGC 1784 ( D ≈ 31 Mpc), from

Nebular-phase observations of peculiar Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) provide important constraints on progenitor scenarios and explosion dynamics for both these rare SNe and the more common, cosmologically useful SNe Ia. We present observations from an extensive ground- and space-based follow-up campaign to characterize SN 2022pul, a super-Chandrasekhar mass SN Ia (alternatively “03fg-like” SN), from before peak brightness to well into the nebular phase across optical to mid-infrared (MIR) wavelengths. The early rise of the light curve is atypical, exhibiting two distinct components, consistent with SN Ia ejecta interacting with dense carbon–oxygen (C/O)-rich circumstellar material (CSM). In the optical, SN 2022pul is most similar to SN 2012dn, having a low estimated peak luminosity ( M _B = −18.9 mag) and high photospheric velocity relative to other 03fg-like SNe. In the nebular phase, SN 2022pul adds to the increasing diversity of the 03fg-like subclass. From 168 to 336 days after peak B -band brightness, SN 2022pul exhibits asymmetric and narrow emission from [O i ] λ λ 6300, 6364 (FWHM ≈ 2000 km s ^−1 ), strong, broad emission from [Ca ii ] λ λ 7291, 7323 (FWHM ≈ 7300 km s ^−1 ), and a rapid Fe iii to Fe ii ionization change. Finally, we present the first ever optical-to-MIR nebular spectrum of an 03fg-like SN Ia using data from JWST. In the MIR, strong lines of neon and argon, weak emission from stable nickel, and strong thermal dust emission (with T ≈ 500 K), combined with prominent [O i ] in the optical, suggest that SN 2022pul was produced by a white dwarf merger within C/O-rich CSM.

Telecommunication carriers of 5G-MEC are re-architecting their central offices and mobile base stations as datacenters with network function virtualization (NFV) technology. These datacenters (DCs) are known as edge datacenters that help network operators speed deployment and reduce costs. Previously, the use of NFV was limited to within a datacenter (DC) known as intra-DC. Recently, many studies have been conducted into the use of NFV across DCs, i.e., inter-DC. However, these NFV inter-DC architectures have limited communication between DCs with either horizontal or vertical connectivity. In this paper, we propose a generic architecture of such edge NFV datacenters with both horizontal and vertical connectivity, and demonstrate the consequences of both vertical and horizontal connectivity between DCs in terms of communication and computing costs. We formulate a cost optimization problem with latency and capacity as constraints by estimating the traffic dispatch rate between DCs. We propose a vertical-horizontal communication (VHC) heuristic solution to the NP-hard problem. Compared to horizontal connectivity, our results show that vertical connectivity helps to reduce computing costs by 10-30%. However, both vertical and horizontal communications together can help to reduce such costs by 20-30% compared to only vertical communication.

With the development and progress of science and technology, the learning patterns also evolve. In Question-Driven learning, students clarify and validate what they learn by answering questions. Such a large number of questions needs good management. A well-performed management can avoid the situation that learning materials with the same knowledge set are defined into different sections due to ambiguous expressions. In this work, we propose a hybrid classification model using the CNN-SVM that focuses on K-12 learning materials. We combine the Word2Vec feature and the hidden layer feature of CNN. In response to a current question that contains text and image, we also introduce a multi-modal preprocessing approach. The experiment results validate that the preprocessing method and the hybrid model can outperform the the state-of-the-art method and baseline methods.

E-Learning has become more and more popular in recent years with the advance of new technologies. Using their mobile devices, people can expand their knowledge anytime and anywhere. E-Learning also makes it possible for people to manage their learning progression freely and follow their own learning style. However, studies show that E-Learning can cause the user to experience feelings of isolation and detachment due to the lack of human-like interactions in most E-Learning platforms. These feelings could reduce the user's motivation to learn. In this paper, we explore and evaluate how well current chatbot technologies assist users' learning on E-Learning platforms and how these technologies could possibly reduce problems such as feelings of isolation and detachment. For evaluation, we specifically designed a chatbot to be an E-Learning assistant. The NLP core of our chatbot is based on two different models: a retrieval-based model and a QANet model. We designed this two-model hybrid chatbot to be used alongside an E-Learning platform. The core response context of our chatbot is not only designed with course materials in mind but also everyday conversation and chitchat, which make it feel more like a human companion. Experiment and questionnaire evaluation results show that chatbots could be helpful in learning and could potentially reduce E-Learning users' feelings of isolation and detachment. Our chatbot also performed better than the teacher counselling service in the E-Learning platform on which the chatbot is based.

This research intends to understand whether users would adopt the interactive interface of hand gesture recognition for XRSPACE MANOVA in the virtual-reality environment. Different from the traditional joystick control and external sensors, XRSPACE MANOVA’s hand gesture recognition relies on cameras built into the head-mount display to detect users’ hand gestures and interact with the system to provide a more life-like immersive experience. To better understand if users would accept this hand gesture recognition, the current experiment compares users’ experiences with hand gesture recognition and joystick control for XRSPACE MANOVA while controlling for the effects of gender, college major, and the completion time. The results suggest that users of hand gesture recognition have better perceptions of enjoyment, satisfaction, and confirmation, which means that they have a relatively fun and satisfying experience and that their expectations of the system/technology confirm their actual usage. Based on the parametric statistical analyses, user assessments show that perceived usefulness, perceived ease-of-use, attitude, and perception of internal control suggest that, in terms of operating performance, users are more accepting of the traditional joystick control. When considering the length of usage time, this study finds that, when hand gesture recognition is used for a relatively longer time, users’ subjective evaluations of internal control and behavioral intention to use are reduced. This study has, therefore, identified potential issues with hand gesture recognition for XRSPACE MANOVA and discussed how to improve this interactive interface. It is hoped that users of hand gesture recognition will obtain the same level of operating experience as if they were using the traditional joystick control.

Possible symptoms of intellectual disability (ID) include delayed physical development that becomes more pronounced as the disability progresses, delayed development of gross and fine motor skills, sensory perception problems, and difficulty grasping the integrity of objects. Although there is no cure or reversal, research has shown that extensive training and learning can lead to easier social integration, but the human demands of diagnosis and the cost of training often result in overburdened families of origin, an unmanageable workload for teachers, and high social costs. Therefore, it is important to conduct efficient, effective, and economical assessments in a safe and reproducible training environment. Currently, the assessment of ID relies on intelligence tests, such as the Wechsler intelligence scale and the vineland adaptive behavior scale. With the rapid development of virtual reality (VR) and machine learning (ML), we created a virtual supermarket and then collected data in three areas, including eye movements, brain waves, and behaviors. We also propose an intelligent executive function evaluation using ML to develop a more objective and automatic evaluation model based on real data through physiological data obtained from user reflections. Statistical analysis of the obtained data showed that some data metrics derived from behavioral information differed significantly between ID patients and healthy participants. This shows that it is possible to perform classification through neural networks, even at multiple levels, which may prove effective for vocational training through VR.

As the concept of the Metaverse evolves, virtual reality (VR) plays a pivotal role in creating immersive, socially interactive environments that form the backbone of this interconnected digital universe. However, VR technology often faces significant challenges, including hardware limitations, platform incompatibilities, and difficulties supporting seamless multiplayer experiences. VR streaming offers a potential solution by offloading computational tasks to remote servers, enabling high-quality VR experiences on lower-end devices and enhancing accessibility to a broader audience. In this paper, we present Loka, a versatile and extensible VR streaming framework designed to address these challenges, providing the necessary infrastructure to support social interactions and real-time collaboration in virtual environments—the key components of the Metaverse. Loka is built on Unity Engine and WebRTC, enabling seamless cross-platform VR experiences without the need for device-specific SDKs. It also supports real-time integration of custom sensory data streams, such as motion capture and physiological signals from IoT devices, which can enhance user interaction and personalization in virtual environments, as well as provide a more convenient accessible platform for research. Furthermore, Loka's native multiplayer and multicasting capabilities facilitate collaborative and interactive social experiences, aligning with the core goals of the Metaverse. By leveraging cloud-based rendering with low-latency streaming, Loka allows users to engage in immersive VR environments on a wide range of devices, without requiring high-end hardware. Its modular architecture ensures extensibility, allowing researchers and developers to integrate new data types and experimental setups more easily. With its ability to set up immersive VR scenes to support social interaction and handle complex virtual environments, we believe the proposed work can be leveraged to foster the development and research of the Metaverse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dyslexia is a complex reading disorder characterized by difficulties in accurate or fluent word recognition, poor spelling, and decoding abilities. These challenges are not due to intellectual, visual, or auditory deficits. The diagnosis of dyslexia is further complicated by symptom variability, influenced by cultural and personal factors. This study leverages Virtual Reality (VR) advancements, eye movement tracking, and machine learning to create a virtual reading environment that captures eye movement data. This data extracts features such as eye movement metrics, word vectors, and saliency maps. We introduce a novel fusion model that integrates various machine learning algorithms to objectively and automatically assess dyslexia using physiological data derived from user interactions. Our findings suggest that this model significantly enhances the accuracy and efficiency of dyslexia diagnosis, marking an important advancement in educational technology and providing robust support for individuals with dyslexia. Although the sample size was limited to 10 dyslexic and 4 control participants, the results offer valuable insights and lay the groundwork for future studies with larger cohorts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]