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Cognitive strand

Cognitive strand. Daniel Leahy | January 2, 2020 Presentation includes content from Rory Sobolewski and Dr Shona Darcy. Background .

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Cognitive strand

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  1. Cognitive strand Daniel Leahy | January 2, 2020 Presentation includes content from Rory Sobolewski and Dr Shona Darcy

  2. Background • The goal of the cognitive strand is to identify and measure behavioural markers which lead to the decline of cognitive function in older people. Behavioural or electrophysiological markers are measurable behaviours or characteristrics of an older person. Knowledge of these markers help the investigators, clinicians or care-givers find ways to modify behaviour or in some way mitigate the problem.

  3. Consequences of Cognitive Decline • The biggest limiting factor to independence in older people is impaired cognitive function and its consequences. Such consequences include: • Accident proneness - falls, burns, bruising and cuts, • Self-neglect - missed medication, not eating properly, failing to keep properly warm, poor hygiene, failure to notice or report medical signs and symptoms, • loss of initiative, • diminished repertoire of activities and • low mood.

  4. Aging Population In 1950 European countries had a population of age 65+ of some 45 million; in 1995 the population of age 65+ had already more than doubled to 101 million; by 2050 Europe will have 173 million people age 65+.The picture in the US is similar to that of Europe. As the figure below shows, the US population growth of three age groups for 1975, 2000 and projected for 2025. The age 65+ segment is increasing almost twice as fast as the rest of the population. (Source: US Census Bureau)

  5. Cognitive Strand Projects • Engineered Alertness • Life mapping • Dear Diary

  6. Cognitive Strand: Objectives and Focus Dear Diary: a system for speech markers of mood and cognitive function. Engineering Alertness: a system to maintain alertness so as to maintain independence and avoid accidents. Lifemapping: a system for measuring and augmenting motivated engagement in real life activities likely to maintain or augment brain function and independence.

  7. Improving attention of the elderly Self-Alert Training study Using Galvanic skin response (GSR) as feedback mechanism. Developing experimental procedure for older adults Expand monitoring to include respiration and ECG Engineering Alertness

  8. Aim of Engineering Alertness • Monitoring alertness and attention • Find appropriate biomarkers of alertness that can be monitored unobtrusively in the home. • Using these biomarkers to reduce accidents associated with loss of alertness and lapses in attention.

  9. Life mapping • Monitoring initiative and goal directed behaviour • Monitor physiological signals that are influenced by changes in cognitive demand • Sudoku engages cognitive effort • Provide information about different brain states associated with successful and unsuccessful strategies

  10. Aim of Life mapping • Develop a system that monitors physiological responses to provide feed back to re-enforce effective problem solving strategies • Increasing the level of difficulty of the game provides a training tool for older adults to improve their cognitive skills

  11. Heidi passage (Reading fixed passage of text) The fluent reader’s brain is free to use higher-level cognitive skills [4] These higher-level cognitive skills include understanding, synthesizing, and thinking about the material [5] Acoustic measurements Fundamental frequency Formant frequencies Perturbation measurements; jitter (frequency) shimmer (amplitude) Lexical measurements Mean pause/utterance duration, number of pauses, length of pauses/utterances, mean/variation energy per second, mean variation vocal pitch Dear Diary

  12. Analysis • Investigate feature values; • As a function of Age, gender, MMSE (Mini Mental State Exam), years of education • Best classifier based on MMSE scores • Language analysis • Inspect fluency of read speech • Inspect spontaneous speech, e.g. richness of language

  13. Common challenges • Ethnographic input • Attitude of elderly users to technology • Attitude of elderly to their cognitive health

  14. References • [1.] Katzman R, Terry R. Normal aging of the nervous system. In: Katzman R, Rowe JW, eds. Principles of geriatric neurology. Philadelphia: F.A. Davis Company, 1992,18-57. • [2.] Von Dras DD, Blumenthal HT. Dementia of the aged: disease or atypical accelerated aging? Biopathological and psychological perspectives. • g Am Geriatr Soc 1992;40:285-94. • [3.] Levy R. Aging-associated cognitive decline. Int Psychogeriatr 1994;6:63-8. • [4.] Fuchs, et al., 2001. • [5] Nathan & Stanovich, 1991.

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