The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of within-day and between-day measurements of body volume (BV), thoracic gas volume (Vtg), and body fat percentages (%fat) taken in the BOD POD. Fifty subjects (25 men, 25 women) of varying ages (20-81 yrs.), races, and body composition (2.2-51.1% fat) were tested under ideal conditions set forth by the manufacturer at the same time of day (± 3 hours) on three separate days within two weeks. On each day, testing was repeated in succession until three trials were obtained which met the manufacturer's criteria for acceptable BV and Vtg. Repeated measures ANOVA revealed no significant mean differences between the three within-day trials or for the first trial between each of the three days with the exception of between-day BV where day 1 was found to be 260 ml greater than days 2 and 3. Coefficient of variation (SD/mean* 100) and intra-class correlations were determined for each variable both within the three trials of each day and between the first trials of each of the days. For BV, the CV for the 150 cases of within-day measurements was.1 ± .01% while the between-day CV was .4 +.3%. For both within and between day BV, r = .99. The CV and correlations for Vtg was 2.8 ± 2.4% and .99 and 4.1 ± 2.6% and .98 for within-day and between-day measures, respectively. The mean absolute difference between measured Vtg and the predicted value (Vpred) from age, height, and weight was 0.471 ± 0.392 L which would result in body fat estimates that differ by 1.3 ± 0.3%. Estimates of body fat from Vpred were within +2% fat of those derived from measured Vtg values in 80% of the trials. Body fat percentage produced a within-day CV of 2.8 + 4.6% with an r = .99 and a between-day CV of 3.8 ± 5.9% with an r =.99. However, with the exclusion of 3 subjects with body fat <7%, the within-day and between-day CV decreased to 2.0 ± 1.8% and 2.7 ± 2.1%, respectively. The difference between the first two trials of each day was < 2% fat in 93% of the cases, and all 150 cases resulted in fat within + 2% in the three trials. In conclusion, these results support that BOD POD measurements of BV, Vtg, and % fat are reliable both within and between days for a wide range of adults. Also, to obtain the most reliable measurement of % fat in the BP, measuring thoracic gas volume and averaging the values obtained from two trials which agree within + 2 % fat is recommended. / School of Physical Education

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Pharmacological blockade of the endocannabinoid system via rimonabant (SR141716) induced a sustained reduction in weight and fatness. Rimonabant-treated mice exhibited reduced metabolizable energy intake and increased daily energy expenditure on days 4-6 of treatment. However, these on the energy budget had disappeared by day 22-24. Rimonabant treatment increased daily physical activity levels throughout the study. These data suggested that rimonabant caused a negative energy balance by acting on both energy intake and expenditure. Melanin-concentrating receptor 1 (MCHR1) antagonism via GW803430 produced similar effects on energy  budget. However, only physical activity during the dark phase was increased by GW803430 treatment. MCHR1 antagonism produced a persistent anti-obesity effect and the initiation of weight loss resulted from a decrease in energy intake and an increase in active energy expenditure. With respect to environmental interventions, non-genetic individual variability in weightgain when fed a high fat diet (HFD) was investigated. I found that weight gain induced by HFD was associated positively with fat mass and fast free mass and negatively with physical activity prior to HFD exposure. Furthermore, fat mass and fat free mass were influenced by lactation litter size via weaning weight and post-weaning growth rate. Finally I used intermittent starvation to test whether the risk of starvation determines the lower intervention point as suggested by the dual intervention pointmodel. Overall, mice exhibited different behavioural and physiological responses to intermittent starvation dependent of the duration of treatment. This work contributes to a better understanding of the regulation of energy balance and provide useful insights for the prevention and treatment of obesity.

Research in the field of mind/body/spirit/mental connection is extensive. However very few studies have focused on the persons who have survived a life-threatening critical illness and the way in which they redefine beliefs, values and their world view. Recognition of the transformation that occurs following such a crisis is an important contribution toward understanding all facets of the connectedness that exists between our mind, our body, our spirit, our mental/’emotional state and healing. This study will consider the question “What kind of transformation occurs for some who experience critical Illness?” Transformation means starting with one thing and ending up with another. This study reveals the inner world of eight participants (co-searchers) who experienced a medical crisis and found their inner world transformed. A clear view of the road taken by the participants is elucidated following a heuristic path requiring the researcher to interview to the point of saturation. The criterion for a heuristic study has been met. Relevant literature pertaining to the changing worldview of professionals working within the area of wellness from Grecian times to the present is considered. Some qualitative methods available to researchers are explored. This study can contribute to modification and/or expansion of existing health care programs to include the person in the situation. Credible evidence is presented to support the importance of acknowledging the positive aspects within illnesses that can be offered within a variety of health related disciplines: psychology, counseling, nursing, and religious studies, social work and health care providers. The nature of heuristic research is to merge the participants and the investigator. The co-searchers and the investigator reveal their understanding of those things that existed only in an innate dimension prior to illness. As a result of their experience, the researcher and the co-searchers present a rich plethora of changed perspectives they identify as transformative revealing the power illness offers us to reevaluate our personal actions impacting those around us as our worldview expands. This study is not meant to query who lives and who dies, for death ultimately claims us all. / Graduate

This investigation is concerned with the problem of determining whether or not a significant relationship exists between body cathexis and motor performance in junior high school girls. In addition, the study investigates whether or not there are significant differences among Negro, white, and Mexican--American girls and seventh-,eighth-, and ninth-grade girls in body cathexis and motor ability performance.

The purpose of this study was to develop an experimental technique to objectively measure the deviation between an individual's perception of his body image and his actual image. In addition, this technique was utilized to compare the accuracy of perception of body image between institutionalized and non-institutionalized individuals. Half of each subject category was also compared in terms of performance on an additional perceptual task unrelated to body image.

v anglickém jazyce: The fundamental theme of this diploma paper is the phenomenology of the body which is related to the investigation of the act of the appearing itself in the works of the French philosopher Michel Henry. The phenomenological approach of this thinker is going to be defined primarily by the confrontation with intentional phenomenology of Edmund Husserl, which in the matter of the appearance keeps itself within the bounds of the relation to the world. This classical version of the phenomenology will be compared with Henrys phenomenology of the life. The life which is understood in such a manner is invisible or unapparent because it is radically immanent and never appears in the exteriority of the world. Anyhow, the redefinition of the classical conception of the appearance should make possible access to the most important and the most interesting thing for us that is to say to subjective or transcendental body, which appears and experiences itself directly in its affective self- experience of the invisible interiority. Therefore, the subjective body is going to be described upon these grounds together with Henry as immanent being that is at the same time appearance. Thus we are going to present philosophy of Michel Henry, which is called radical phenomenology of interiority that is...

Student Number : 9304796E - MA research report - School of Psychology - Faculty of Humanities / The central aim of this research was to ascertain the psychological meaning of, and motivation for body piercing in a sample of female body modifiers. It was decided to conduct research on the psychology of body piercing because although medical, anthropological and social research has been conducted into piercing practices and body modification, very little has focused on the underlying psychological meanings and motivations associated with body modification. Furthermore, the focus of this study was limited to women because it was felt that had both genders been included, possibly gender based differences would have caused the scope of the research project to become too wide. By focusing specifically on women, it was felt that a deeper understanding of the underlying psychological motivations for the piercing of the female body could be explored. For the purposes of this research, the operational definition of body piercing is defined as that which does not echo mainstream fashion trends or promote Eurocentric, socially sanctioned ideals of beauty. The participants needed to have pierced body parts (excluding their earlobes), and the piercings or the piercing process should hold specific significance and meaning for them. Participants who had pierced body parts only for aesthetic reasons were excluded from this study. Those who were included attributed more than just a decorative function and aesthetic value to their body piercings. In other words, they deviated from mainstream piercing practices in terms of the meanings they attach to their piercings. Some of the piercings and piercing practices and processes undertaken by the participants represent a departure from the ‘norm’, and have been described as bordering on pathological. The research sought to identified commonalities and differences amongst the participants and to understand their experiences and behaviour within the context of psychodynamic feminist frameworks. Broadly defined, feminism is a movement organized around the belief that men and women are/should be socially, politically and economically equal. Contemporary feminism, which influences perceptions of female body modification, is split into two distinct strands: one school of feminism views body modification as a form of self-injury and self-mutilation while the other holds that it is a positive resistance in the face of gender norms (Pitts, 2003). This was taken into account in this study. Given that the participants were all women, and that the relationship between body modification and social structures of power/authority are a central concern in feminist literature (Atkinson, 2002), this paradigm was chosen because it provides an appropriate and relevant framework within which to explore the underlying motives and meaning of body piercing for female body piercers. Their attitudes, meaning making processes and relationships with their bodies in relation to their piercings are used to uncover the significance of their body projects and their decisions to be pierced. The central themes which emerged through the thematic data analysis are related back to the feminist literature. Psychoanalysis explores repressed or unconscious impulses, object relations, anxieties, and internal conflicts. For this reason, a psychodynamic framework was used to provide a context within which to explore the unconscious motivations, anxieties and defenses employed by the participants. Freud’s theories of masochism are examined in an attempt to further understand the female body piercer. These are placed within a general psychodynamic framework, and the works of Bowlby, Fonagy, Kernberg, Malan and Winnicott are used to support the findings of the research. The research is based in the qualitative paradigm, with the aim of exploring and describing the body modifier’s thoughts, fantasies, feelings and experiences around being pierced. The data gathered was analyzed using thematic content analysis to elucidate the participants’ reasons for choosing to modify their bodies, and to highlight the meanings of these practices in the context of the their personal histories. In total, six participants were interviewed, although one interview was not included for analysis as it was felt that the data gathered from this interview, while not contradicting the rest of the data gathered, was superficial in content and did not contribute to the research. The excluded participant spoke very broadly and did not really offer much personal information as to the meaning and motives behind her piercings. The research explored the history of body modification, definitions of body modification and body projects, issues pertaining to identity, body image and self concept, expanded consciousness and altered states of being, pain and sadomasochism, the pathologizing of body modification, feminist perspectives on body modification and psychodynamic explanations for body modification. Although much literature abounds on body modification practices, very little is of academic significance. Furthermore, few studies have been conducted into this area from a psychological perspective. In this regard, the writings of Favazza (1996), Featherstone (2003) and Vale & Juno (1989) were used to provide a context within which to place this study. Research papers by Atkinson (2002) and Dennes (2005) also proved particularly useful, and will be discussed in the following chapter.

信道質量和服務質量（QoS）是無線體域網的兩個重要挑戰。本文旨在研究信道特性和在保證高吞吐率和低數據弛豫時間前提下探索低功耗WBAN系統策略。本論文的貢獻在於三個方面。首先研究人體信道（HBC）特性。作為IEEE標準802.15.6定義的三種PHY層之一，HBC已經作為體表傳感器通信媒介被廣泛研究。但是，HBC的詳細機理至今仍然不夠明朗，特別是對於那些采用了體內傳感器的應用更少人涉足。因此，我們為此專門預設四種應用場景，並在場景中測量實際信道特性。依據測量結果，我們觀測到數個影響信道質量的因素。其次，我們提出了一種專門針對WBAN的信道建模方法。該方法依賴於對人體組織的直接測量結果，並且此建模方法在建模過程中兼顧體表通信和體內通信。該建模方法包括兩個階段，第一階段是構建人體各部分的子模型，在第二階段調用先前構建之子模型並依賴信號衰減特性來構造上層模型。最終得到的模型包含兩個自變量：頻率和信道長度，從而可應用此模型同時預測不同頻率和不同長度條件下的信道特性。在設計的實驗中，結果表明該模型具有良好的精度，在10 kHz到60 MHz的頻率範圍內，最差的誤差為2.5 dB。除此之外，我們還在一個演示系統中對信道進行了測試，尤其是誤碼率（BER）和信號衰減情形。該測試結果也顯示出該模型所具有的良好預測性。第三，我們提出了一種關註QoS的WBAN系統優化方法。在IEEE標準中定義了數種不同存取模式（Access mode）和存取方式（Access method）。為了提高功率效率，我們著重研究了數據壓縮對系統總功率的影響，另外還對系統吞吐率建立了分析模型。仿真結果顯示，在一定條件下，數據壓縮對功耗降低具有良好功效，另外采用較高數據傳輸速率會對功耗存在改進作用。當數據壓縮模塊的壓縮率超過2倍，而功耗低於收發器的40%時，插入數據壓縮模塊可以確保整個系統消耗更低能源。 / Channel loss and maintaining the Quality of Service (QoS) are two of the major challenges in realizing an effective Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN). This thesis studies the body channel characteristics and proposes a methodology to improve energy efficiency for an entire WBAN system to achieve high throughput and low data latency. Three main contributions are made in this thesis. Firstly, we focus on human body channel (HBC). HBC, as a possible PHY layer for IEEE standards 802.15.6, has been found useful in networking on-body sensors. However, the HBC channel dynamics is not well understood and this is particularly the case when transceivers implanted inside a human body are involved. To this end, channel measurements were performed on real subjects under four different scenarios so that factors affecting channel quality could be identified. Secondly, a channel modelling methodology is proposed for body area network that takes into account the body structure and the dielectric properties of human tissues; this represents the first modelling effort to cover both in-body and on-body communications in vivo. The proposed modelling method composes of two phases: sub-model construction and top-level model construction. The constructed model is a function of two variables, frequency and channel length, enabling channel impedance prediction with respect to either frequency or channel length. Meanwhile, experimental results show that good model accuracy, a maximum error of 2.5 dB, can be achieved in frequencies range from 10 kHz to 60 MHz. In this endeavor, a modified HBC development system was used to measure bit error rate (BER) and signal attenuation during transmission. The measurements show a good match against simulation results and the channel model. Thirdly, a power optimization technique is proposed for the WBAN. The latest IEEE standard 802.15.6 defines several access modes and access methods together with new power management schemes and frame structures. To improve the power efficiency of a body area network, the merit of having data compression was investigated. For this purpose, an analytical model was developed to evaluate the power efficiency of a BAN system. Simulation results show that good power efficiency can be achieved by employing data compression. It is evident that higher data rate can also help improve energy efficiency. When the compression factor is larger than 2, better energy efficiency can be guaranteed by introducing a data processing unit in a sensor node as long as its power consumption is limited to 40% of that of the transceiver unit. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Ai, Yanqing. / Thesis (Ph.D.) Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2014. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 126-135). / Abstracts also in Chinese.