PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Hip hop dancing promotes awareness of disability rights and performance equality, study shows

2023-12-01
(Press-News.org) Hip hop dancing can be used to spread awareness of disability rights and help those with sight problems to participate in performance equally, a new study says.

 

Breakin’ – which is commonly referred to as breakdancing - is good for mobility and helps promote balance and stability as well as wellbeing.

 

It also offers an important opportunity for people to slow down and to connect with their inner selves, their feelings, their bodies, and their peers, according to researchers. It has been used to treat symptoms of depression, anxiety and PTSD.

 

Nathan Geering, Artistic Director and creator of The Rationale Method, and Dr Simon Hayhoe, from the University of Exeter, analysed the impact of an educational technology and choreography project called Sound Pad. It involved Breakers, choreographers and those with visual impairments working collaboratively to develop a form of participatory dance education.

 

The project was set up to encourage people with visual impairment to move more, to feel more included in mainstream dance culture and develop a greater sense of inclusion. Other aims were to give participants a greater understanding of dance as an art form and the career pathways for people with disabilities as choreographers and music directors.

 

As part of the project dancers performed the work of visually impaired choreographers in Sheffield. Those involved with visual impairments had watched three different dance styles without musical accompaniment and then answered specific questions about the accessibility of each form of dance. The participants’ answers seemed to confirm that Breakin was the most accessible of these three forms.

 

All three phases of practice took place during sessions at the Sheffield Royal Society for the Blind, SNS Bradford and 108 The Moor in Sheffield. The sessions were all led by Nathan Geering and included five children and sixteen adult participants.

 

Dr Simon Hayhoe said: “The Sound Pad project has created a unique form of co-creating, choreographing and learning about dance sequences through imagining mobility and space, and through the co-creation of mobility. All the participants developed new negotiated forms of information that helped them bond, share ideas and subsequently evolve a form of mutual inclusive technical and inclusive capital.

 

“Visually impaired participant choreographers showed that it was possible to imagine dance sequences creatively through touch, sound and residual vision and then communicate this vision to sighted dancers in an effective way. Participants also found other uses for the Sound Pad and said it could be used to help enhance movement comprehension for mainstream sport, martial arts, fitness and fashion

 

“There were challenges to this process, and some dancers felt it was initially difficult to understand if what they imagined was the same as the participant choreographer. However, this confusion quickly dissipated as the sessions progressed, and both the participant dancers and choreographers appeared to evolve mutual respect and comprehension of each other’s abilities. The technology and the rationale method of describing onomatopoeic sound and movement therefore seems to have particularly helped this process of communication.”

 

END


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Urgent work needed to tackle “substantial” digital health inequality, study recommends

2023-12-01
Millions of people are suffering from digital health inequality because of poverty, experts have warned. A new study says urgent work is needed to ensure those from deprived areas can access healthcare as the NHS increasingly turns to the use of apps and online health portals for the provision of healthcare. A team of doctors and academics found a “significant association” between increased poverty and reduced use of digital services. Their modelling estimates that this association accounts for 4.27million patients across England who have not downloaded the NHS app. In October 2022 it was estimated more than 37million patients had activated ...

Unlocking the secret strength of marine mussels

2023-12-01
How do you create strong, yet quick-release connections between living and non-living tissues? This is a question that continues to puzzle bioengineers who aim to create materials that bond together for advanced biomedical applications. Looking to nature for inspiration, the McGill-led research zeroed in on the marine mussel byssus, a fibrous holdfast, which these bivalve mollusks use to anchor themselves in seashore habitats. The byssus attaches to rocky surfaces using an underwater glue, but the other end (the byssus stem root) is firmly anchored within the mussel’s soft living tissue. This area of contact between the living ...

When physics meets biology: prion protein orchestrates liquid-liquid phase separation with copper

When physics meets biology: prion protein orchestrates liquid-liquid phase separation with copper
2023-12-01
In a groundbreaking study published in Science Advances, researchers from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE-Berlin) shed light on the intricate dance between the prion protein and copper ions in the physiopathology of live cells. The research paves the way for potential treatments addressing copper-bound prion protein clusters to prevent abnormal solid formation and mitigate neurodegenerative outcomes. Like oil droplets in water, cells harbor membrane-bound organelles that ...

Eminent scientists say a child-centric approach is the blueprint to improve communities

Eminent scientists say a child-centric approach is the blueprint to improve communities
2023-12-01
Communities can prosper by providing attentive education and social services to their youngest residents — but the challenge is for leaders to work together. That is the message of Craig Ramey and Sharon Ramey, Virginia Tech distinguished research professors of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, who today (Dec. 1, 2023) presented details of a decades-long study that focuses on early childhood education and development. In a research article in the journal Medical Research Archives, the official journal of the European Society of Medicine, the scientists discuss lessons ...

Adverse childhood experiences linked to muscle dysmorphia

2023-12-01
Toronto, ON – A new study published in Clinical Social Work Journal found that adolescents and young adults who experienced adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) before the age of 18 were significantly more likely to experience symptoms of muscle dysmorphia. With previous research showing that more than half of North American children and adolescents experience at least one adverse childhood experience in their lifetime, these new findings highlight the need for greater awareness of how adverse experiences in childhood (such as domestic violence, emotional abuse, and sexual abuse) and muscle dysmorphia (the pathological ...

New health problems emerge after COVID-19 for those who lack quality housing, health care

2023-12-01
New research from the Texas A&M University School of Public Health suggests that those who live with ongoing poverty and poor housing conditions are more likely to develop new mobility issues following a COVID-19 infection. This study, published in Preventive Medicine, is the first to examine the relationship between social vulnerability and persistent COVID-19 symptoms. In it, researchers analyzed data about socially vulnerable Michigan residents who experienced new difficulty in walking or climbing stairs after ...

Two leading standards bodies launch Neuroscience Community, powering a global data network that will speed up answers in autism, Parkinson’s, addiction, and more

Two leading standards bodies launch Neuroscience Community, powering a global data network that will speed up answers in autism, Parkinson’s, addiction, and more
2023-12-01
The Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH) and the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility (INCF) launched a new group to lay the groundwork for connecting global neuroscience and genomic data.  Answering data-driven questions in neuroscience means dealing with complexity: in types of data, data management systems, the number and variety of conditions, ethical and legal requirements, and the genetic and biological conditions themselves. Even just aligning industry standards for neuroimaging and genomics can be a struggle. To improve life for people with neurological conditions, we need to tackle the complexity together. The new GA4GH & INCF Neuroscience ...

Novel screening tool and recovery program may help reduce mental health problems after trauma

2023-12-01
Key takeaways  A new mental health screening tool accurately predicts mental health outcomes for hospitalized trauma patients.   To be sustainable, mental health screening and recovery programs should be tailored to each trauma center, with the engagement of all stakeholders, a related study finds.  Studies shed light on the need for trauma centers to provide injured patients with mental health resources, such as online education, support, and referrals to mental healthcare providers when needed.  CHICAGO (December 1, 2023): A novel screening ...

Black men with advanced prostate cancer less likely to receive crucial treatment, study finds

2023-12-01
A new study led by investigators at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center found Black men diagnosed with more advanced stages of prostate cancer are significantly less likely to be prescribed novel hormone therapy than other racial and ethnic groups – including white or Latino men – despite the therapy being proven to effectively control the growth of prostate tumors and extend the lives of men with the disease. The findings, published in JAMA Network Open, reveal a concerning racial disparity in the utilization of the crucial therapy for the treatment of the disease. “This revelation is particularly concerning ...

Trends in adult smoking prevalence

2023-12-01
About The Study: This analysis of survey data from 353,000 U.S. adults found that smoking prevalence decreased from 2011 to 2022 in all age groups except adults 65 years or older, with faster decreases among younger than older adults. These findings suggest that the greatest gains in terms of reducing smoking-attributable morbidity and mortality could be achieved by focusing on individuals with low socioeconomic status, as this population has the highest smoking rates and the worst health prospects.  Authors: Rafael ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Development of a global innovative drug in eye drop form for treating dry age-related macular degeneration

Scientists unlock secrets behind flowering of the king of fruits

Texas A&M researchers illuminate the mysteries of icy ocean worlds

Prosthetic material could help reduce infections from intravenous catheters

Can the heart heal itself? New study says it can

Microscopic discovery in cancer cells could have a big impact

Rice researchers take ‘significant leap forward’ with quantum simulation of molecular electron transfer

Breakthrough new material brings affordable, sustainable future within grasp

How everyday activities inside your home can generate energy

Inequality weakens local governance and public satisfaction, study finds

Uncovering key molecular factors behind malaria’s deadliest strain

UC Davis researchers help decode the cause of aggressive breast cancer in women of color

Researchers discovered replication hubs for human norovirus

SNU researchers develop the world’s most sensitive flexible strain sensor

Tiny, wireless antennas use light to monitor cellular communication

Neutrality has played a pivotal, but under-examined, role in international relations, new research shows

Study reveals right whales live 130 years — or more

Researchers reveal how human eyelashes promote water drainage

Pollinators most vulnerable to rising global temperatures are flies, study shows

DFG to fund eight new research units

Modern AI systems have achieved Turing's vision, but not exactly how he hoped

Quantum walk computing unlocks new potential in quantum science and technology

Construction materials and household items are a part of a long-term carbon sink called the “technosphere”

First demonstration of quantum teleportation over busy Internet cables

Disparities and gaps in breast cancer screening for women ages 40 to 49

US tobacco 21 policies and potential mortality reductions by state

AI-driven approach reveals hidden hazards of chemical mixtures in rivers

Older age linked to increased complications after breast reconstruction

ESA and NASA satellites deliver first joint picture of Greenland Ice Sheet melting

Early detection model for pancreatic necrosis improves patient outcomes

[Press-News.org] Hip hop dancing promotes awareness of disability rights and performance equality, study shows