The Mobility Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center at the Georgia Institute of Technology held its State of the Science Conference to address challenges in studying the health, activity and participation of wheelchair users. This article summarizes the discussions of four seating and positioning research topics. Attendees were divided into Breakout Groups and assigned specific research top...

PURPOSE THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TWOFOLD first, to prospectively compare visual acuity (VA) scores obtained with Snellen charts versus Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) charts in a "real world" retinal practice, and second, to see if there was a difference in visual acuity measurements obtained with ETDRS charts starting at 4 or 2 meters. METHODS Prospective, consecut...

A large number of independent and interacting factors affect seating comfort such as seat shape, stability, lumbar support and seat height. Although many subjective comfort studies have been conducted, few of them considered seating comfort from its subassembly level. This paper analyzed the automotive seat cushion designed with geared four-bar linkage for the seat height adjustment. The operat...

Using a combination of observational and questionnaire methods, this longitudinal study investigated interracial contact in a university residence dining hall, focusing on the organization of seating patterns. The results showed that informal division by race was extensive, with indices of interaction (xPy*) and evenness (D) indicating the existence of high levels of racial segregation. Moreove...

preparing thermal comfort conditions in outdoor public spaces is one of the considerations of architectural design. if the constructed area does not support comfortable conditions in outdoor spaces, it will cause microclimatic problems for pedestrians and adjacent buildings. regarding the different thermal comfort conditions in outdoor spaces in comparison with indoor, several indices have been...

ASK ANY PROFESSOR to describe a “first-row student,” and you will likely hear a description of an engaged learner who pays attention during class, takes notes, and asks questions. A research study (3) from the 1980s has indicated that undergraduate students sitting in the front and center of the classroom score higher than other students. However, it is unclear whether this same trend would be ...