Dougongs have been used in many old Japanese architecture. They are components that act as brackets between the capitals and the round beams. However, their behavior during earthquakes has not been clarified. To clarify the behavior of old architecture during earthquakes, we conducted dynamic loading tests on dougongs. In dynamic loading tests, it is difficult to grasp the behavior using displacement meters due to installation issues. In this experiment, we therefore used motion capture to visualize the behavior of dougongs. We also considered the sustainability of old architecture by comparing the results of dynamic loading tests using new dougongs of the same specifications and dimensions made of cypress. The results of the experiment confirmed that the dougongs had the same performance as new dougongs even after about 150 years. It was inferred that dougongs are less susceptible to the effects of aging in wood by using details whose main component is friction resistance.

  This study aims to propose a measurement system that can be utilized in caregiving settings while ensuring accurate data collection and to report on its usage experience. An experiment was conducted with two community-dwelling older adults, assuming application in caregiving environments. The measurement system comprised three smartphones (iPhone, Apple Inc.), a laptop, a markerless motion capture system (OpenCap), and an inertial sensor (ORPHE CORE, Orphe Inc.). Data collected using OpenCap were analyzed with the musculoskeletal modeling software ANYBODY (Terrabyte Inc.) to assess muscular and joint loads. By combining these measurement devices, the study established a system suitable for use in caregiving settings while ensuring measurement accuracy. The proposed gait measurement method using these two devices was found to be simple, time-efficient, and practical for application in caregiving environments.

Based on the hypothesis that consciousness of oral aesthetics is involved in extending healthy life expectancy in a super-aging society, a multi-center survey was conducted. 192 patients aged 60 years or older who visit hospitals and dental clinics affiliated with the Japanese Academy of Esthetic Dentistry under the agreement of the project were surveyed using AI to analyze the relationship between the consciousness of oral aesthetics and other parameters including a 20-item questionnaire, oral findings, and overall health condition.

Based on the results of supervised learning analysis using a support vector machine, features were optimized using recursive feature reduction, and factors related to predicting answers to the question, "Are you concerned about the appearance of your teeth and mouth?" included "cardiac disease" and "dyslipidemia," in addition to oral problems such as "interrupted meals" and "dental problems." This suggests that high consciousness of oral aesthetics has an impact not only on the oral cavity but also on the entire body. We plan to continue the survey prospectively in the future.

  Arteriovenous shunts created for hemodialysis are common sites of stenosis. Early detection is crucial for treatment, and shunt sounds (blood flow sounds) have gained attention as a potential indicator for developing noninvasive, simple screening methods. However, previous research on such methods has not achieved sufficient detection accuracy for practical use. This study aimed to clarify the mechanism of shunt sound generation to aid in developing a stenosis screening method using shunt sounds. Flow in a shunt blood vessel model was analyzed using particle image velocimetry. Spectral analysis of vorticity intensity fluctuations, considered a candidate source of shunt sounds, revealed that stenosis increases the high-frequency spectrum above 400 Hz by approximately 3 to 5 dB/Hz. The similar trend observed in vorticity intensity fluctuations and shunt sound spectra suggests that vorticity fluctuations downstream of the stenosis contribute to shunt sound generation.

Insects have demonstrated remarkable evolutionary sustainability, persisting for over 400 million years and diversifying into over a million species. We can learn their strategy to develop sustainable human society. Their evolutionary success is primarily attributed to flight facilitated by their wings. The wings’ functionality is maintained by blood transport through wing vein networks. However, from a fluid mechanical perspective, this network should face high frictional pressure loss because of inner vein diameter even smaller than human hair width. Reduction in pressure loss is necessary to reduce pump power requirement and energy consumption of the network system. The solutions insects employ to address this challenge offer practical insights for energy efficient technologies, such as microfluidics in chemical sensors and thermoregulators and supply systems of power or water. This paper describes the wing vein network structures in fruit flies that reduce pressure loss during blood transport, based on our previous findings.