The problem of loneliness and isolation is becoming more and more severe in Japan. Unwanted loneliness has a negative impact on both body and mind. Face-to-face communication with others is an excellent way to reduce loneliness. Our group believes that if we can provide a system that allows users to experience face-toface communication with others in a simulated way and make it enjoyable, it will reduce loneliness. In this paper, we propose a framework that enables users to communicate with others using chatbots. We report on the results of two technology workshops where participants experienced the proposed framework.

View full abstract

Urban parks in Japan, which should have served as hubs for sports in urban spaces, do not have sufficient sports environments. Furthermore, while many urban parks are basically free to use, there are restrictions on sports such as ball games. Therefore, there is a need to promote the development of sports environments in urban spaces, including urban parks. In this study, we will grasp the actual situation regarding the presence or absence of sports environments in urban spaces. And we will consider the possibility of introducing sports through social experiments. Finally, as a case study on Biwako Cultural Park in Shiga Prefecture, we would like to propose images and strategies for creating a sports environment in urban spaces.

View full abstract

Urban parks are important facilities for local residents and other users to improve their health through sports. As a change in the situation surrounding urban parks,the Park-PFI system was newly introduced due to the revision of the Urban Parks Act,and has come to be used in many urban parks. As a result,there are examples of urban parks in Japan being renovated by private companies and the number of users increasing due to the introduction of commercial facilities and sports facilities. On the other hand,an issue raised is that there are also urban parks where there is insufficient cooperation between private companies and local groups. The purpose of this research is to understand the direction of collaboration that local governments seek when selecting private companies,and to clarify the form of collaboration between private companies and local groups.

View full abstract

Steroid hormones (SH) play an important role in living bodies such as control of homeostasis, immunogenic reaction, and ageing/development for health longevity. Thus, the similar SH effect of phytochemicals has indicated human promoting heath using these supplements. Previous study showed that diosgenin (similar SH chemical) from Dioscorea esculenta have improvement effect of motor ability. On the other hand, these biological monitoring and investigation of SH and diosgenin are insufficient. In the development phase, SH profiling from various types of studies such as in vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies have to be analyzed. Here, in this study, we tried to develop the simple and simultaneous analytical method for 17 series of SHs using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The method validated in vitro, in vivo, clinical model samples and applied to diosgenin supplied rat serum analysis.

View full abstract

The objective of this study was to explore the possibility of sleep conditioning using a wearable device, so we asked the participants to simultaneously measure their heart rate variability and body movements during sleep.Although discomfort caused by wearing the device and slippage of the electrodes had to be addressed, the data indicated the individuality of each athlete.The next challenge is how to summarize this information and find effective indices for condition management.

View full abstract

The objective of this study was to examine the individual differences of subjective condition assessment. Off-season endurance runners were asked to complete daily subjective condition assessments for one month and during the same season of the following year. The correlation structure among the evaluated items was examined. The results indicated that the correlation structure was unstable both within and between individuals. Because the off-season is considered to have less conditioning variability compared with the training and last spurt periods, some ingenuity to calibrate athlete’s sensation is required to complete the subjective evaluation effectively.

View full abstract

Every day, we see and hear the words “aging,” “aging population,” and “aging society”. These words are often conveyed in a negative impression. Although everyone is getting old and aging, it has been difficult to confront ourselves aging with own problems. Humans have not achieved eternal youth but longevity with aging. Medical advances will not stop and human life expectancy will continue to increase further. Therefore, for humans, the problems and challenges of aging will never be resolved. In such a society, while individual’s aging is various, it is also necessary to consider the dignified life that all people should have. This paper examines “life” and “death” with dignity in “aging” from various aspects of aging. In “Old age (La Vieillesse)” by Beauvoir, there is a marvelous collection of words of lamentation and sorrow that can be seen as a diverse definition of “aging” from poets, writers, novelists, politicians, military personnel, and others in different positions and environments. Although there is a gap in time, I see positive attitudes toward “aging” today in Takaaki Yoshimoto, Tomio Tada, and my own mother. What they all have in common is an independent and self-selective attitude. As the aging society accelerates, there is much talk about “death with dignity,” but little talk about “life with dignity”. The law emphasizes that those in need of care should “maintain their dignity and lead independent daily lives along with their abilities. Although there are various definitions, “independence” is considered to mean “making decisions” based on “one’s own will,” which is the core of dignity. In order to support “life with dignity,” it is important to sustain the act of self-selection (choice), i.e., not to reduce the options that are diminishing with “aging” and to compensate for the limited options.

View full abstract

The objective of this study was to develop the simulation model of the kick-start to determine the horizontal take-off velocity on swimming. The human whole-body was modeled as a linked rigid-body segments to simulate kick-start. This model simulates the kick-start motion using numerical integral. The cross-correlation coefficient and the mean value of root mean squared error between the lower limb joint angles of simulation data and actual data were determined to identify whether the simulation model could produce the kick-start motion. In the horizontal take-off velocity, 0.05 m/s difference was found between the simulation data and actual data. The cross-correlation coefficient of lower limb joint angles between the simulation data and actual data were larger than 0.76. Moreover, the mean value of root mean squared error of lower limb joint angles were found 0.15-0.37 rad between simulation data and actual data. Therefore, developed simulation model of kick-start on swimming can be used for studies which these errors have little effect for main findings.

View full abstract

This study aims to investigate the well-being of collegiate student athletes, addressing both psychological and subjective well-being. Collegiate student athletes and non-athletes were recruited via snowball sampling using email to complete an online survey that queried their psychological and subjective well-being. Three hundred and fifty-one respondents completed the survey. Eleven respondents failed the attention check and were excluded from the analysis. One hundred and ninety-seven collegiate student athletes and 143 nonathletes were included in the final analysis. The survey utilized the 43-item Psychological Well-Being Scale, the 5-item Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the 12-item Affective Well-Being Scale to assess psychological and subjective well-being. Mann Whitney U analyses were utilized to discover differences in scores on each questionnaire between the athlete and non-athlete groups. The athlete group reported higher scores in the selfacceptance subscale of the Psychological Well-Being Scale compared to the non-athlete group (P=0.044). The positive relationship with others subscale of the Psychological Well-Being Scale were lower in the athlete group compared to the non-athlete group and while the difference approached statistical significance (P=0.053), it did not meet our criterion alpha (0.05). No significant differences were found in other subscales of the Psychological Well-Being Scale between the two groups (P<0.05). The Satisfaction with Life Scale was significantly higher in the athlete group compared to the non-athlete group (P=0.003). No significant differences were observed between the athlete and non-athlete groups in positive and negative affect scores on the Affective Well-Being Scale (P<0.05). This study highlighted collegiate student athletes had greater selfacceptance and better life satisfaction compared to non-athletes. Findings may offer valuable insights into the well-being benefits associated with high levels of physical activity and participation in sports competition. Further research is required to explore the effects of sports on well-being, considering characteristics associated with various sports and levels of competition.

View full abstract

At the end of the 20th century, health challenges specific to female athletes gained attention, manifested in the female athlete triad (consisting of menstrual dysfunction, low energy availability, and diminished bone mineral density). Female athletes exhibit a heightened susceptibility to sports injuries and disabilities compared to their male counterparts. In Japan, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology initiated a comprehensive project in 2013 dedicated to the development and support of female athletes, with a particular emphasis on elite-level athletes. While significant progress has been made in researching and supporting elite female athletes through various institutions and college organizations, the same level of support has not been consistently extended to junior and developmental level athletes, including those engaged in school athletic activities. To bolster support for young female athletes, we developed targeted training programs aimed at injury prevention and performance enhancement during the 2018-2019 term of the Japan Sports Agency-funded project. Subsequently, during the second (2020-2021) and third (2022-2023) terms of the project, we established a bidirectional online platform, a website, and an online learning system utilizing social networking services (SNS). These initiatives were designed to address the evolving needs of both athletes and their support networks. This paper presents evidence from a comprehensive six-year project detailing our proactive endeavors and system development throughout these projects. In this project, we strived to disseminate crucial support and information to adolescent female athletes, their parents, and coaches, optimizing the well-being and knowledge of young athletes in their formative years.

View full abstract