May 6th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News, Research
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Shafiq ur Réhman, a doctoral student at Umeå University in Sweden has unveiled his thesis project — a technology that converts facial emotions into special tactile sensations for the visually impaired.
The system uses a webcam to capture faces, and then subsequently converts the captured emotion into a series of vibrations that correspond with the expressed emotion.
The users are expected to train themselves by making their own faces into the webcam and getting a feel for how the vibrations change with the faces they’re making. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
April 29th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, Health Tips, Research
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According to a doctoral thesis to be presented by Jan Bergström at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) via the Internet is just as effective in treating panic disorder as traditional group-based CBT. It’s also apparently efficacious for the treatment of mild and moderate depression.
Access to conventional CBT is limited in Sweden, so an Internet-based CBT was developed in which the patient undergoes an Internet-based self-help program and has contact with a therapist by email. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
April 6th, 2010 by Jonathan Foulds, Ph.D. in Better Health Network, Expert Interviews, Health Policy, Health Tips, News, Opinion, Research, True Stories
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This week the respected CBS documentary news show “60 Minutes” included a feature on smokeless tobacco, focusing on the recent launch of snus in the United States. The show was relatively balanced in focusing on the main potential risks and benefits of snus.
It started by featuring a young man who enjoys using snus in places where he cannot smoke, while continuing with a pack-a-day smoking addiction. The interviewer gave him the bad news: “You are a dual user.”
It then had a segment with the widely respected Swedish nicotine addiction expert, Dr Karl Fagerstrom, who stated that snus is 90-99% less harmful than smoking (while admitting some risks, including of pancreatic cancer). Read more »
This post, Smokeless Tobacco And The U.S. Launch Of Snus, was originally published on
Healthine.com by Jonathan Foulds, Ph.D..
