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Advanced MMC-based hydrostatic bearings for enhanced linear motion in ultraprecision and micromachining applicationsThis study investigates the impact of material selection on the performance of linear slideways in ultraprecision machines used for freeform surface machining. The primary objective is to address challenges related to load-bearing capacity and limited bandwidth in slow tool servo (STS) techniques. Multi-body dynamic (MBD) simulations are conducted to evaluate the performance of two materials, alloy steel and metal matrix composite (MMC), within the linear slideway system. Key performance parameters, including acceleration, velocity, and displacement, are analyzed to compare the two materials. The findings reveal that MMC outperforms alloy steel in acceleration, velocity, and displacement, demonstrating faster response times and greater linear displacement, which enhances the capabilities of STS-based ultraprecision machining. This study highlights the potential of utilizing lightweight materials, such as MMC, to optimize the performance and efficiency of linear slideways in precision engineering applications.
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Healthcare providers’ perceptions of dementia: understanding help-seeking behaviour for dementia in northern region of GhanaBackground. Dementia is a significant global health challenge, particularly in low and middle-income countries like Ghana. Research on dementia reveals that there has been a substantial increase in the number of people living with dementia worldwide due to an increasing ageing population. Despite the rapid increase of dementia cases worldwide, symptoms of dementia are often unrecognised in Sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, there is very little evidence of research that explore perceptions of dementia and help-seeking behaviour for dementia in Sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in Ghana. Understanding the socio-cultural dynamics of dementia and help-seeking behaviours for dementia in a Sub-Saharan African setting such as Ghana is crucial for developing culturally appropriate health promotion strategies. Therefore, this study aimed to explore healthcare providers’ perceptions of dementia and their perspectives on factors influencing help-seeking behaviour for people with dementia in the Northern Region of Ghana. Method. The PEN-3 cultural model was adopted as the conceptual framework for this research, which aided in the understanding of perceptions and help-seeking behaviour for dementia within a socio-cultural context. An interpretative philosophical stance was adopted to answer the research questions and to achieve research objectives. The study employed two complementary methodologies: a systematic review and a qualitative method. The systematic review critically synthesised and appraised existing primary qualitative evidence-based studies that explored healthcare providers' perceptions of dementia and their perspectives on help-seeking behaviour for people with dementia in Sub-Saharan Africa. The review employed Joanna Briggs Institute's (JBI) critical checklist for qualitative research to draw current existing evidence. The primary qualitative approach used semi-structured interviews. A total of 43 interviews were conducted among formal and informal healthcare providers. Data were analysed using Braun and Clarke's (2006) step-by-step guide to thematic analysis approach. Findings. The systematic review's findings revealed that there is limited knowledge and understanding of dementia in Sub-Sahara Africa. It also shows that help-seeking behaviour for dementia is influenced by perceptions of dementia associated with normal ageing, spirituality and the availability of healthcare services. The findings from the primary qualitative study indicate that there is limited knowledge and understanding of dementia, particularly among informal healthcare providers. The findings reveal that healthcare providers in the Northern Region of Ghana hold varying perceptions about dementia; ranging from supernatural beliefs and normal ageing among informal healthcare providers to biomedical models among formal healthcare providers. Furthermore, the findings identified four different help-seeking pathways: first point of call for help-seeking pathway, emergency or deteriorated help-seeking pathway, blended or multiple help-seeking pathway, and informed or advice-based help-seeking pathway. The main factors influencing help-seeking behaviour are identified as: religious or cultural factors, socio-economic factors, trust or reliability of healthcare services, attitudes and professionalism of healthcare providers, and Language barrier. Conclusion and recommendation. The study highlights the need for targeted educational interventions to enhance healthcare providers' understanding of dementia and to promote appropriate help-seeking behaviour. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of community engagement, emphasising on collaboration between community-based healthcare providers such as faith healers, traditional healers, and healthcare professionals.
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Child maltreatment and metabolic syndrome in midlife: a life-course approachEvidence suggests that childhood adverse events are associated with an elevated risk of adult diseases in later life. However, there is limited knowledge of child maltreatment (CM) on the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in adulthood. This study examined the role of CM and the mechanism through which CM influences the development of MetS in midlife. The National Child Development (NCDS) 1958 British birth cohort study in the UK consists of approximately 18,558 babies born in the same week in March in England, Scotland and Wales. At intervals, the NCDS cohort was followed up from birth to the age of 60 in 2018, and information on CM was prospectively measured at ages 7, 11, and 16 and retrospectively at age 45. Also, research professionals measured information on MetS during the biomedical survey when the cohort members were 45 years old. The association between CM and MetS was examined using suitable statistical methods such as Logistic regression and Structural equation modelling, and estimates were presented as odds ratio (OR) 95% confidence intervals (CIs), and standardised coefficients. The main finding shows an indirect path where smoking fully mediated the effect of all CM measures obtained retrospectively on the risk of MetS. Hence, the knowledge of the mechanism through which CM influences MetS should play a significant role in the prevention of MetS. Further research is required to consolidate these findings further.
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The feasibility and acceptability of remote positive movement: a remotely delivered adapted mind-body physical activity intervention for older peopleBackground: People are living for longer, and with ageing comes changes in physical, psychological, and social functioning. Due to a decline in overall functioning, there is a need for adapted physical activity interventions. Furthermore, access to such interventions might become challenging with reduced abilities therefore, remotely delivered interventions might provide an avenue for people to remain active. This thesis aims to test the feasibility and acceptability of Remote Positive movement using mixed methods. Methods: The Medical Research Council (MRC) and Person Based Approach (PBA) research frameworks were employed resulting in a mixed methods study. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to investigate the effectiveness of adapted mind-body physical activity interventions for older people. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted pre-intervention to explore perceptions and experiences of older people on physical activity and the use of digital technologies, as well as post intervention to identify benefits and challenges to participating in remote Positive Movement. A quantitative approach was utilised to test the feasibility and acceptability of the intervention, looking at recruitment, study procedures, data collection materials, retention, attendance, and initial impact. The experimental design was conducted in two phases (two sessions/week over eight weeks and one session/week over 20 weeks). Findings: The systematic review and meta-analysis indicated that adapted mind-body interventions for older people could result in small to moderate effects on some components of physical function, quality of life and wellbeing. No remotely delivered interventions were identified in the review, presenting a knowledge gap within the literature. The qualitative findings showed that the target population were willing to participate in the remotely delivered intervention in the context of COVID-19 and absence of face-to-face alternatives. In addition, recruitment, data collection and intervention delivery via Zoom was conducted successfully and deemed a feasible mode of delivery. The retention and attendance rates were reported to be within acceptable ranges, however there were mixed views on whether participants preferred face to face or remote interventions. The quantitative findings reported that remote Positive Movement shows some promise in improving quality-of-life and overall physical function in older people. Conclusions: Older people were willing to engage in remote interventions and some found it beneficial and convenient, whilst others still preferred face to face interventions. A gender bias and addressing digital literacy and access were concerns identified for future research to address. This PhD encourages a culture of developing hybrid interventions that offer the choice of face-to-face or remotely delivered interventions to encourage uptake of physical activity from older adults. The findings reported in this thesis highlight the importance of developing and implementing tailored interventions that aim to cater to the different population needs and the role of joined up working within communities to facilitate this. Additionally, recommendations for future research have been made. In conclusion, remote delivery of the intervention was deemed feasible, a larger study is needed to evaluate its effectiveness. Contribution to knowledge: This thesis includes a systematic review that was to the authors knowledge, the first to look at the effectiveness of adapted mind-body physical activity interventions for older people. No digital interventions were included in the review highlighting a knowledge gap. The delivery of physical activity interventions over Zoom or other video conferencing platforms became popular during the COVID-19 pandemic, however there is limited literature on the feasibility of conducting instructor-led, interactive live-stream adapted mind-body interventions for community dwelling older people. This thesis aims to add to this evidence base.
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Development of digital investigation framework for Robot Operating System (ROS)The incorporation of robot use into each industry has made industrial operations dependent on automation and precision in completing tasks. Though it is advanced, security problems within the robots, particularly ROS, are new challenges that pose an even higher risk because of their increased vulnerability to cyber-attacks. One of the most widely used frameworks in robotics, ROS presents unique forensic challenges through its architecture, open communication protocols, and lack of built-in security features. To discuss the above issues, this thesis proposes the ROS Forensic Framework (ROSFF) specially designed to address forensic issues specific to ROSbased environments. The ROSFF is somewhat different from conventional digital forensic frameworks, with a few differences outlined as follows. Unlike the frameworks for traditional systems such as desktop computers, mobile phones, or even IoT devices, ROSFF is custommade to cope with the decentralized and modular nature of ROS. The number of existing systems focused on particular operating systems or isolated forensic phases is on a major increase, whereas ROSFF integrates all aspects - organizational, technical, and legal. The ROS Forensic Framework (ROSFF) is not similar to all the traditional digital forensic frameworks because it addresses the unique characteristics of the architecture, including ROS decentralized and modular. Traditional forensic framework tools are designed for centralized systems that are ineffective for communication across several nodes and topics in ROS. In contrast, ROSFF is specifically designed to collect evidence across these distributed components making sure that complete evidence collection is taken into account with the system's dynamic nature. ROSFF uses decentralized logging. The mechanism of evidence collection from numerous nodes and topics of the ROS system thus ensures comprehensive data collection, with all relevant interactions and communications in a networked environment. It integrates seamlessly with ROS’s architecture to collect, preserve, and analyze digital evidence ensuring that every stage of the forensic process is systematically addressed. The immutable data storage system implemented by ROSFF maintains digital evidence without losing its integrity, and the use of ROS-specific tools in real-time analysis ensures critical forensic data capture and interpretation without loss of validity. Moreover, while existing frameworks mostly fail to provide real-time capabilities, in ROSFF realtime monitoring and automated anomaly detection are made, where certain suspicious activities can quickly be marked. By the mechanism of ROSFF, anomaly detection algorithms continuously monitor system activity for suspicious behavior. Any suspicious information is marked, and then this marking allows irregularities to be identified immediately by streamlining the forensic investigation process. Forensic checks in ROSFF are also robust, including systematic data acquisition, verification mechanisms, and reconstruction of incidents. Furthermore, ROSFF provides a flexible meta-model, allowing investigators to adapt the framework to different ROS versions and configurations. ROSFF has a four-phase process in its forensic checks, containing data collection, examination, analysis, and reporting. Unlike most of the frameworks, which rely on general-purpose forensic tools, ROSFF emphasizes flexibility with accuracy, using specially designed ROS-specific tools to extract log files, traces from the system, and histories of events. This leads not only to gathering the evidence but also to understanding an incident in context within the ecosystem of ROS. This ensures both technical and legal aspects of the investigation warrant that the forensic findings are valid and make them reliable for presentation in court. This thesis applies ROSFF to real-world scenarios to demonstrate the practicality and effectiveness of such an approach. The results indicate that ROSFF enables more comprehensive forensic evaluations in ROS-based systems, better overcoming the limitations of existing digital forensic frameworks. Thus, it concludes by saying that ROSFF offers a novel, systematic approach toward forensic investigations within robotic environments, both opening new avenues for academic research and contributing to reallife digital forensics.